Chapter 289 I Am So Hungry
After leaving the Pineville police station, Elizabeth and Timothy went to the street captured in Sarah's grandfather's video.
They started asking shop owners on both sides of the street.
Timothy's team spread out to search and inquire.
"Hello, did you see this little girl from the video yesterday?" Timothy showed his phone to a shop owner.
"Never seen her," the shop owner shook his head.
"Thank you."
Timothy pushed Elizabeth's wheelchair to another shop.
They asked several stores in a row.
Finally, at a small noodle shop, they got some information.
Although there were no customers in the shop at the moment, the owner still lowered her voice and said quietly, "This man brought this little girl to eat noodles yesterday. The little girl was obviously very hungry and grabbed the noodles with her hands to eat."
She didn't think much of it at the time, assuming the father just didn't care about her.
Looking at Timothy and Elizabeth, who both had such refined presence, she wondered if Seraphina had been trafficked.
Elizabeth blinked her stinging eyes.
Seraphina eating noodles with her hands.
Just imagining that scene broke Elizabeth's heart.
Timothy gripped the wheelchair handles so hard that veins bulged on the back of his hands.
After asking around the street for a long time, they only got that bit of information from the noodle shop owner.
That evening they stayed at Pinewood Hotel.
Elizabeth and Timothy talked about their daughter.
"Mr. Robinson, I suspect there must have been a submarine in the sea at that time," Elizabeth suddenly said.
This might mean that Jake's people were still out there.
Timothy's face darkened as he held Elizabeth in his arms. "They might be fighting among themselves over what Jake left behind."
And their daughter Seraphina was very likely the condition Jake had set.
Elizabeth closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm her anxiety.
When she opened her eyes again, they had regained their determination. "There will be good news tomorrow, there has to be."
Timothy held her hand and kissed her cool fingers. "We will find Seraphina."
Neither of them slept a wink that night. Neither could sleep.
The next day, with help from multiple sources, they finally discovered that Rolf, who had taken Seraphina, had hitchhiked to Silverlight City.
"Mr. Robinson, we've found a new lead," Philip showed Timothy footage from the Silverlight City police. "According to surveillance video, that man was last seen near this motel in Silverlight City."
"Thank you, we'll head there right away."
Timothy immediately called his people in Silverlight City to start searching.
They set off immediately for the airport.
---
The sun in Silverlight City was scorching, the temperature on the streets was high. Walking around without sun protection and water could easily cause heatstroke.
Seraphina crouched outside a dessert shop window, her cheeks flushed from the sun.
She looked through the transparent, clean window.
Her eyes fixed on people inside drinking beverages and eating food, her throat swallowing from hunger and thirst.
Mommy, I'm so hungry.
Her eyes reddened, wanting to cry, but she couldn't cry. Crying would get her beaten.
"Armando, look at that little beggar outside, so disgusting." Junior Potts pointed at Seraphina outside the window and made a disgusted face.
Armando, sitting across from him, looked up from his computer and followed Junior's finger.
His gaze lingered on Seraphina's face for a moment, then suddenly stopped, his brow furrowing.
His grandmother Cecilia had once sent Armando a photo of Elizabeth's daughter Seraphina. The little girl before him looked extremely similar to Seraphina in the photo.
Seraphina's gaze remained fixed on the food inside the shop, completely unaware of Armando watching her.
Armando continued observing, seeing the strongly-built Rolf standing beside Seraphina talking on the phone.
After Rolf hung up, he pulled Seraphina's hand and left.
Seraphina obediently followed Rolf, turning back to look at the shop, her eyes showing unease and fear.
Armando immediately stood up. He said to Junior, "Junior, stay here, don't move."
As Armando quickly walked toward the door, he took several hundred-dollar bills from his wallet.
He walked outside and chased after Rolf and Seraphina. "Sir, wait a moment!"
Rolf turned around with an impatient expression. "What is it?"
"You dropped your money." Armando held up the hundred-dollar bills with a friendly smile.
Rolf's expression softened slightly as he let down his guard. "Thanks, but that's not my money."
Rolf bent down, picked up Seraphina, and walked away.
Seraphina looked at Armando with bright eyes.
"Armando? What are you doing?" Brynn got out of her car and saw Armando standing by the roadside. She called out.
Armando put the money back in his wallet and turned to look at Brynn walking over. "Found some money, no one claimed it."
He glanced once more at Rolf, who had already gotten into a van with Seraphina in his arms, then looked away.
Brynn walked up to him with a dissatisfied expression. "Do you know how embarrassed I was today? All their husbands paid with their cards, and I had to use my own card."
Brynn was only now realizing that love alone wasn't enough.
Armando was tired of hearing Brynn's complaints.
He tried to stay calm. "Sorry."
Brynn used to like Armando, but after marriage, she discovered the harsh reality that Armando couldn't even afford a luxury handbag anymore.
She rolled her eyes and walked toward the car. "Whatever, this is so boring."
Armando pressed his lips together, then turned back to the dessert shop to bring Junior out. Junior was a relative from Brynn's side.
"Auntie, let me tell you, I just saw a little beggar staring at my food and drooling. So disgusting, I instantly lost my appetite." Junior said to Brynn in a whiny voice.
Brynn patted Junior's head lightly. "Really, Junior? Are you still hungry? I'll take you to eat something else, okay?"
Junior nodded happily. "Yes! Auntie, you're the best!"
Armando didn't join their conversation, his face cold.
When they arrived at a restaurant, Armando let Brynn and the others go in first, making an excuse about calling a client.
He was basically working for the Potts family now, and the Potts family was very guarded around him, so they only gave him sales work.
When Armando said he needed to call a client, Brynn didn't suspect anything.
Armando waited until Brynn and the others entered the restaurant, then walked to a quiet corner and took out his phone.
He had just entered a few numbers when he stopped.
Armando lowered his eyes, thinking about his current desperate situation and Mindy's crippled left leg.
He slowly put his phone back in his pocket.
Wasn't Timothy so capable? He could find his own daughter himself.
Armando's face was cold as he turned and walked into the restaurant.
---
The van drove out to the suburbs and stopped at an abandoned factory. A motorhome was waiting in front of the factory.
Rolf carried Seraphina, who had been given an anesthetic injection, into the motorhome.
Inside the motorhome, the light was dim with a smell of disinfectant.
The surgical table light turned on.
"Such a pretty little girl, you're sure you want to change her face?" Alvin Jordan in the motorhome put on gloves and organized his surgical tools. Though he said this, Alvin's movements showed no hesitation.
"Cut the crap." Rolf, holding Seraphina, said coldly as he placed the little girl on the surgical table.
Rolf only needed to raise Seraphina until she turned eighteen to get his boss Jake's inheritance. As for her appearance, changing it would actually mean they wouldn't have to live on the run anymore, which was good for Seraphina too.
And Rolf would also get some work done on his own face.
Alvin, putting on his gloves, stopped trying to persuade him. He was only responsible for taking the money and performing the surgery.