Chapter 204 Everybody Moved On

Chapter 204 Everybody Moved On
Ember’s POV:

I wasn't surprised when Ethan and Lucas left without ordering anything. I knew Lucas had only come here to vent his emotions at me.

The kitchen felt quieter after their departure, the tension finally lifting from my shoulders. I was rinsing dishes when Amelia walked in carrying an empty plate, her eyebrows furrowed with concern.

"Where's Marisa?" she asked.

"I don't know," I replied honestly, setting down the dish I'd been washing. "When I came out of the bathroom, she was gone."

Amelia's frown deepened. "She never leaves like that."

I shrugged, turning back to the sink. "Maybe she went home to get something?"

Amelia nodded reluctantly, but I could see the worry lines creasing her forehead. She pulled out her phone, and I heard the familiar sound of typing as she sent a text message.

A few minutes later, her phone buzzed.

"Oh!" she let out a sigh of relief when checking her phone. “She had left me a message,” she informed.

"What did she say?" I asked, curious about what had put that relieved smile on her face.

Amelia glanced at her phone, then quickly tucked it away without showing me the screen. I knew there were things they wouldn't tell me, and since I was still new here, I didn't push or try to eavesdrop on their conversations to make them uncomfortable.

"She did go home to get something," Amelia said with a forced bright smile, but she immediately looked away from me.

That moment, I knew she didn't want to tell me the truth.

I dried my hands on my apron and turned to face her fully. "If you don’t mind, can I also take some time off?" I needed to call Alexander and ask him about Dominic's body.

Her expression shifted, and there was an edge to her voice when she asked, "To do what?"

I realized she wanted to know everything we did. Like she wanted us to depend on her, and that was not something I would do.

I appreciated her for being nice to me and wanting to be a shoulder for me to cry on, but sharing everything with her was something only Marisa could do. I believed in keeping my secrets to myself.

"I have something to take care of," I said, not disclosing anything to her.

Amelia studied my face for a moment, then sighed. "Fine. Go ahead! But be back in a few minutes. I can't handle everything by myself."

I quickly untied my apron and stepped outside the café. I was only given a few minutes, so I needed to hurry and not waste my time. I haven’t even walked away from the cafe when I watched somebody standing at a distance and watching me.

"Maxwell?" I whispered to myself, confused. "What's he doing here?"

I frowned at the way he was standing there, remembering how his mother had told me that Maxwell wouldn't even walk through tall grass.

I still couldn't process what he'd done to me the other day, and now this.

I hurried back inside, my heart racing.

"Amelia!" I called out, my voice loud and urgent.

She looked up from wiping down the counter, a teasing smile playing at her lips. "What's wrong? Why are you back so soon?"

"Maxwell is here," I said breathlessly.

The moment she heard her son's name, her body went rigid. The smile vanished from her face completely, and she actually trembled.

"What? My Maxwell?" she asked, disbelief clear in her voice.

"Yes! He's outside the café," I said, grabbing her hand to pull her toward the door.

Amelia followed me outside, her movements sharp and anxious. But when we got there, I realized I should have kept watching him, because he was gone.

"Where is he?" Amelia asked after looking around. There was something in her eyes that seemed to be judging me.

"He was just here, I swear!" I said, feeling like a fool for believing he would stand here and wait for me to call his mother on him.

Amelia crossed her arms over her chest, raised an eyebrow, and bit the inside of her cheek. Her eyes stayed fixed on me with a look that made my stomach drop.

"Hmm!" she said, her voice dripping with skepticism.

I could feel my frustration building. "What would I gain from this?"

That's when Amelia completely lost it.

"Are you trying to make my son look like some kind of pervert and liar?" she shouted.

I stood there, too shocked to respond immediately.

"Listen here, little girl!" she continued, her voice getting louder and more aggressive. "I've been kind enough to let you and your useless mother stay in my house. But I'm warning you—stay away from my son's business. You've already caused us enough problems, and I'm getting sick of it."

I couldn't say anything because I had no proof of what I'd seen.

"Now go do whatever you were planning to do, then get back to work," she snapped. "You're not getting paid to stand around." With that, she stomped back into the café.

Since there was not much I could do in this case, I rushed across the road and ended up in the phone booth.

I dialed Alexander's number.

The phone rang several times before Alexander finally picked up. His voice sounded strange—like he was drunk, or maybe very tired.

"Mmm?" he mumbled into the phone.

I was about to speak when I heard a woman's voice in the background. She sounded annoyed.

"Get back to bed," the woman said. "Who's calling you this early in the morning?"

"I'll be back to bed after I take this call," Alexander replied, his voice muffled as if he'd turned away from the phone.

I found myself wondering who he was sharing a bed with.

"No! You are not doing that," the woman said, and it sounded like she was grabbing the phone from him. "Today is nobody’s day."

Her voice came clearly through the receiver now, direct and irritated. "Whoever you are, call later."

Then the line went dead.