Chapter 133 She's Not Dead
Mrs. Ginger looked panicked, both hands clutching at her shirt.
She was a simple, honest woman who'd never dealt with anything like this before.
"Mrs. Ginger, please don't ask. Okay?"
Quinley got up and limped to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She leaned over the sink and washed the face mask off.
She'd only been gone from Rosewood City for less than a month, and already Zachary's people had tracked her all the way to Lakeside City. Quinley knew he wouldn't give up until he found her. There'd be a second wave coming, then a third.
This time she'd gotten lucky. But what about next time?
Her mind was racing, but the more panicked she felt, the more she needed to calm down. Quinley stared at herself in the mirror for a long time. Slowly, a plan began to take shape.
After a moment, she opened the door to step out. Mrs. Ginger was blocking her path.
"Cindy, why are they looking for you? Did you do something illegal?"
Mrs. Ginger's eyes bore into her, desperate for a real answer.
"Yeah."
Quinley's simple response hung in the air.
Shock flashed across Mrs. Ginger's face. Then her eyes started to well up.
"Cindy, I'm sorry, but I can't help you. I have a son in college. I can't bring trouble to his door."
In that instant, a million thoughts raced through her mind. She looked at Quinley apologetically, clearly torn, but finally spoke up. "Can you pay me for these last few days? I need to leave now."
"Sure."
Quinley limped into the bedroom, got the money, came back out, and handed it to Mrs. Ginger.
"Thank you for taking such good care of me. I really appreciate everything you did."
These past weeks with Mrs. Ginger had been really nice. Quinley hated to see her go, but she didn't try to stop her. She didn't want to drag Mrs. Ginger into her mess.
Mrs. Ginger took the money but didn't immediately leave. "Cindy, let me give you some advice. Whatever you did, there's always a way to fix it. You're still young. How long can you keep running and hiding?"
Quinley smiled faintly. "Until I can't run anymore, I guess."
She started limping toward the couch, maybe moving too fast. She lost her balance and crashed to the floor.
Mrs. Ginger rushed over to help her up. "What did you actually do?"
She didn't want to know, but curiosity got the better of her.
"Mrs. Ginger, you really want to know?"
Mrs. Ginger hesitated, then nodded.
Quinley didn't want to lie to her, but if she didn't, Mrs. Ginger would never stop worrying.
"My ex-husband had a serious gambling problem. He liked to get physical too. I couldn't take it anymore, so I divorced him. Now he regrets it and he's got people looking for me everywhere."
It was a lie. But a kind one.
Mrs. Ginger studied Quinley's face for a long moment. Her expression softened with sympathy.
"Cindy, I'm so sorry. I totally misjudged you just now. Don't worry—if anyone else comes looking for you, I'll protect you."
"You're not leaving?"
"No, no, I'm staying. I'm gonna go make you some mushroom soup right now."
Mrs. Ginger looked relieved as she hurried into the kitchen and got to work.
Meanwhile, back in Rosewood City, Zachary had just finished his morning meeting and returned to his office. Lucas knocked and entered, his face grim, voice low.
"Mr. Jennings, the people we sent out have searched every town around Rosewood City. They haven't found Ms. Elikin."
Zachary leaned back in his leather chair, his dark eyes fixed on the potted plant that had started sprouting on his desk.
"Expand the search radius. Keep looking."
Lucas's brow furrowed tight. He didn't want to say anything, but he couldn't hold it in.
"Mr. Jennings, you need to wake up. Ms. Elikin is dead. No matter how hard you search, you're not going to find her."
It had been almost a month. Everyone else had accepted that Quinley was gone. But for some reason, Zachary refused to believe it.
"You think she's dead too?"
Zachary's tone was sharp.
Lucas let out a long breath. "I totally understand how you feel. I wish it wasn't Ms. Elikin who died either. But Mr. Jennings, even her own family confirmed it was her. Why can't you accept the facts?"
The anger Zachary had been holding back suddenly exploded. He grabbed the potted plant off his desk and hurled it across the room.
"I said she's not dead, so she's not dead!"
His eyes were bloodshot. He looked like a lion gone mad.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Jennings!"
Lucas realized he'd overstepped. He bent down to clean up the mess.
"Get out," Zachary barked.
Lucas backed out of the office. Zachary stood there for a long time, that hard, chiseled face slowly filling with sadness.
Quinley, where did you go? Where are you?
He'd been asking himself that question constantly. Why would she tell such an elaborate lie? Why would she escape from his life this way?
She must've been completely heartbroken, right? Completely devastated?
Zachary moved his heavy legs and picked up the broken stem of the Brazilian wood plant. He gathered up the tiny shoot that had snapped off too.
Quinley had given this to him as a gift. It had just sat on his desk, and he'd barely paid attention to it. Only after she disappeared did he start noticing that little sprout.
Objects carry memories. He was living in the past, refusing to take a single step forward.
But time's a runaway train—it doesn't stop for anyone.
Six months flew by.
During those six months, Zachary sent out search parties every single month looking for Quinley. Every time, he was full of hope. And every time the teams came back empty-handed, he got another dose of crushing disappointment.
Still, finding Quinley became the most important thing in his life.
But those same six months meant something completely different for Quinley in Lakeside City. For her, it was like being reborn.
Her leg healed. She could walk normally again. The scar on her forehead had fully formed—kind of gnarly-looking, but she had no plans to get it removed. Some scars are meant to stay as reminders.
Mrs. Ginger was still taking care of her, and true to her word, whenever strangers came near Quinley, she'd swoop in like a protective hawk.
Zachary's people came around a few more times, but none of them recognized her.
She wasn't that fragile girl anymore. She had short hair now, and when she laughed, she threw her head back and showed all her teeth. She spoke fluent Lakeside dialect, wore rough local cotton clothes every day, went to the market with Mrs. Ginger to haggle over vegetables.
Most importantly, her appetite was insane. Thanks to Mrs. Ginger's amazing cooking, she'd gone from a skinny girl barely pushing 140 pounds to tipping the scales at nearly 200.
Looking like this, Quinley could disappear into any crowd. Even if Zachary stood right in front of her, he wouldn't recognize the woman he'd been desperately searching for.
These six months were the happiest, freest time of Quinley's life.
But the good times only lasted half a year. Everything changed when one person showed up.
However, the good days only lasted this half year before they were shattered by someone's appearance.