Chapter 208: William Goes Missing Again
After William's reassurances, Nathan's expression visibly softened. He sat on the sofa contemplating for quite some time before suddenly jumping down and throwing his arms around his father.
"Dad, let's buy Mom a silk scarf tomorrow."
Nathan could barely contain his eagerness to mend things with Isabella, his voice rising with urgency.
But no sooner had he finished outlining tomorrow's plans than he shook his head vigorously. "Actually, tomorrow there'll be crowds of people trying to see Mom. We should buy the scarf right now, so I can give it to her first thing in the morning!"
Nathan's little face radiated pure excitement, as if he could already picture Isabella's delighted reaction when he presented his gift.
William's heart twisted painfully.
He had a sinking feeling that Isabella wouldn't forgive Nathan so easily. Yet he couldn't bring himself to voice this concern. After a prolonged silence, he simply nodded.
The father and son's overeager enthusiasm only intensified Laura's anxiety. Her hands twisted the fabric of her dress at her sides, her lovely eyes hardening with cold, venomous resentment.
"Nathan, I can arrange for you to train with the world's best racing coaches," Laura quickly interjected, sliding closer to the boy as she tried to tempt him with her offer.
But Nathan remained adamant, shaking his head firmly. "The world's best racer is Victoria, and Victoria is my mom. Why would I need anyone else when I have someone that amazing?"
Just thinking about Isabella's performance on the track made Nathan's eyes shine, his entire face glowing like a polished apple with barely-contained excitement.
He mentally rehearsed countless scenarios of his mother forgiving him.
At the luxury boutique with William, Nathan examined item after item before finally selecting an orange-red silk scarf adorned with intricate patterns.
He simply felt, without quite knowing why, that this particular scarf was extraordinarily beautiful—that it would look stunning on his mother.
Even William praised Nathan's taste, boosting the boy's confidence so much that he hummed cheerfully all the way back to the hotel.
"Mom's definitely going to love the scarf I picked! She'll wear it all the time!" Nathan declared confidently.
William nodded in agreement. "She'll love it."
Isabella had never been the type of parent to dampen her child's spirits. When Nathan had won first place in his kindergarten poetry recitation competition, she'd even thrown him a small celebration party.
The next morning, Nathan woke at dawn, clutching his carefully prepared gift. After getting ready, he immediately dragged William out the door.
During the entire journey, he continued rehearsing different ways to talk to Isabella, practicing his approach over and over.
But the moment they reached the corridor where the Romantic Racing team had been staying, they spotted several open doors. Housekeepers were busy cleaning the rooms.
William glanced inside one of the rooms, his heart sinking instantly. The space was completely empty.
"Where are the guests from this room?" William asked a nearby housekeeper.
The woman glanced at the room before giving William a pleasant smile. "The guests in these rooms all checked out early this morning."
William felt an immediate surge of indignation—as if he'd been played for a fool.
Nathan looked up at his father with profound disappointment etched across his features.
Meeting his son's dejected gaze, William considered briefly before declaring without hesitation, "We're flying home today."
According to the weather forecast, Canvia would experience a once-in-a-century blizzard tonight, with all flights grounded by early afternoon.
Their original tickets had been booked for three days later—after the storm would fully subside.
William immediately called his secretary and had their tickets changed to the earliest available flight that noon—the last departure before the blizzard hit.
With so many people trying to leave ahead of the storm, even William's willingness to pay premium prices only secured them economy class seats.
When Laura heard they'd be flying economy, she immediately balked. "What's the harm in waiting a few more days? It would give you time to let that bruise on your face heal before people see you."
William dismissed her concerns entirely. "The tickets are already changed. We're leaving today. If you don't want to come, you're welcome to wait and fly back in three days."
Recognizing that staying behind while William left could leave her dangerously vulnerable, Laura gritted her teeth and boarded the economy flight.
By the time they landed, all three passengers felt as though their legs belonged to someone else—each step awkward and uncomfortable.
Laura winced with every movement, while Nathan declared dramatically, "I'm never flying economy again!"
The moment William's phone reconnected to the network after landing, a new message appeared.
[Don't forget to bring your documents tomorrow morning to process the divorce. I've already scheduled the appointment for finalizing the divorce agreement.]
William's brow furrowed as he read Isabella's text.
The next day, Isabella—determined to finalize her divorce—woke early and requested a two-hour leave of absence from work. She planned to arrive right when the law office opened at nine, complete the paperwork, and return to the office without missing much of her workday.
Before leaving, Isabella sent William another reminder message, urging him to wake up early.
Like yesterday's message, it went unanswered.
Finding this tedious, Isabella decided to call instead. The phone rang endlessly before finally going to voicemail—no one picked up.
Nine o'clock came and went. Isabella had already wasted a full hour waiting at home.
Unable to wait any longer, she sent William another message: [You can contact my attorney whenever you're available. We can at least complete the property settlement agreement first.]
This message, too, received no response. William seemed to have vanished into thin air—completely unreachable.
Even sitting in the car on her way to the office, Isabella remained deeply frustrated. Now that divorce was actually on the table, William had apparently decided to dodge the issue—his earlier eagerness nowhere to be found.