Chapter 155 I Can Save Him
The moment Amelia's eyes fluttered open, the phone on the pillow beside her buzzed. Michael's name glowed on the screen.
"Baby, are you awake?" His voice was deep, rich with that magnetic timbre she knew so well, softened by fatigue from a long-haul flight and the drag of jet lag, yet still warm.
Amelia glanced at the time. "You just landed?"
"A few hours ago. I'm in Sulien now, at the hotel." Michael paused, as if picturing her in bed. "I worked out your schedule and figured you'd be waking up… so I called."
They both fell silent for a few seconds, the quiet weighted but not uncomfortable. Then, almost in unison, they spoke.
"I miss you," Amelia said plainly.
"I miss you so damn much." His voice had gone husky, threaded with an intimacy that reached straight into her chest.
Even through the phone, emotion seemed to bleed into the air between them. Sweetness swelled in her heart, tempered by the ache of distance, the frustration of not being able to reach across and touch him.
Maybe that was what love felt like for them—something intoxicating, yet edged with helplessness.
She remembered his last text before boarding last night and shifted the conversation. "What's the situation with your grandmother?"
"I went to the care home the moment I got off the plane." His tone dipped, heavier now. "She disappeared during the night, sometime while she was sleeping. The nurse found her missing during morning rounds."
"I thought at first she might have wandered off in a moment of confusion, and the staff didn't notice. But the room's security camera… was deliberately disabled."
Amelia's breath caught. "You mean… someone took her?"
"Yes." Michael drew in a slow breath, the sound taut with anger. "If she was deliberately taken, it's a move aimed at me."
Amelia's brow furrowed. If not Michael, who would target an elderly woman with Alzheimer's living in a foreign country?
"Could it be your uncle?" she asked, then shook her head. "But he's your grandmother's son. No matter how twisted he is, would he really harm his own mother?"
Michael's pause was telling. When he spoke again, his voice was colder. "He's my grandfather's illegitimate child. My grandmother isn't his biological mother. His real mother died years ago."
"If it's him, it's not impossible. The thing is… I've kept my grandmother's whereabouts hidden. He didn't know she was in Sulien."
"Not knowing before doesn't mean he doesn't know now."
"Either way, she's still in Sulien. I've spoken to the police—they're mobilizing the entire city to search."
His voice dropped even lower. "The bigger problem is…"
"What?" Amelia asked, her body tightening.
"She doesn't just have Alzheimer's. If that was her only illness, I'd have kept her in the country under my care." Michael's words grew heavier. "She has Primary Pulmonary Hypertension. It's rare, and there's no cure anywhere in the world. She needs targeted therapy at that care home every week to stay alive. Without it, she could go into heart-lung failure."
"So I have less than a week to find her. Even if the person who took her doesn't harm her… she's still in danger."
Amelia breathed quietly, feeling the tension radiating through the line.
"Don't worry," Michael said softly. "We'll find her… or they'll contact me first."
"I'll be busy the next few days. You're alone back home—take care of yourself, be good, alright?"
"I know. Don't worry." Amelia kept her voice steady.
She didn't mention last night's incident. Michael already had too much on his plate. If he knew Ryan had nearly harmed her, he wouldn't be able to focus on finding his grandmother.
Zander's condition was no longer a concern.
That morning, he'd woken to find the wound on his neck nearly healed. His shock was obvious, but when he remembered Amelia had treated him, it seemed almost natural. From the moment they'd met, she had done things that defied his expectations.
Amelia wasn't worried about Zander. She had ways to restore his body, slowly but surely.
Ryan, however, was another matter.
She climbed to the second floor and found Kevin and Jenny standing outside a room, their faces taut with worry. Shards littered the hallway, the floor a mess of broken pieces.
"What happened?" Amelia asked, stopping short.
Kevin took a deep breath. "Amelia, I told you last night—when Ryan's episodes hit, he gets violent. I wanted to restrain him before it happened, but Mom couldn't bear it."
"He woke up and started smashing things. He drove her out and locked the door."
"Now it's dead quiet in there. We have no idea what's going on."
Amelia's gaze shifted to the closed door. The silence inside felt heavier than noise, thick with foreboding.
"Can the spare key open it?" she asked.
"It can," Kevin said, frowning. "But his state is unstable. Going in without knowing could be dangerous. I've called his psychiatrist—we'll wait until he arrives."
Amelia inhaled slowly, her voice deliberate. "Kevin, there's something I wanted to tell you last night."
Kevin blinked. "What is it?"
"I don't think that psychiatrist has ever truly helped Ryan."
"After… that incident, he only pretended to be fine so you wouldn't worry."
"One day I went to his room to talk. I accidentally saw scars—self-inflicted. He panicked. After I left, he secretly took medication."
"Thinking about it now… he's been hurting himself for years, relying on drugs to keep his mind together. He's never left that shadow."
Kevin and Jenny froze.
They had always believed Ryan had moved past the kidnapping, never imagining the hidden pills or the self-harm.
"You mean…" Jenny's eyes filled instantly, her voice trembling.
Amelia met their gaze and said quietly, "I don't think that doctor can save him. But I… maybe I can."