Chapter 111
William kept calling over and over again, refusing to give up. The first few times, the prompts were all the same - that mechanical female voice repeating that the call couldn't be connected.
But after William had made many attempts, the prompt suddenly changed: "Hello, the number you have dialed is currently on another call."
Busy signal?
William's brow furrowed, a bad feeling rising in his heart.
It was already so late - who would Emily be talking to?
If that were really the case, it would mean she had her phone with her right now.
He had called her so many times before, and she must have seen them all. So why would she not answer?
Even if she was angry, she should at least give him a chance to explain. Was Emily not worried that something might have happened to him?
William called again - still busy.
Again and again. Then William suddenly understood.
He had blocked numbers before, and the message you hear after blocking someone sounded exactly like this.
In other words, Emily wasn't talking to someone else - she had blocked him.
The realization made William's heart skip a beat and sent his pulse racing.
No, it couldn't be like this.
He had his reasons.
On the very day he arrived back at the organization, there had been a gunfight. He had been stabbed several times by a traitor and had only just survived.
These past few days, he had been unconscious the whole time. Forget calling Emily back - he couldn't even feed himself.
If he could just explain all this to Emily, she would surely understand.
He just needed a chance to explain.
William couldn't sit still anymore. He got up and headed for the door. But just as he reached it, he stopped.
He remembered what Tony had just said - not to let him leave.
Although Tony meant well, William knew very clearly that if he couldn't find Emily now and explain everything, the misunderstanding between them would only deepen. What might happen in the end, even he couldn't predict.
So he had to leave this place.
But when William's hand touched the doorknob, he paused again.
He needed to leave, but not like this.
Everyone in the organization was worried about his condition. If he just left like this, no one in the organization would be able to relax.
The organization wasn't in great shape at the moment - they were counting on William as their anchor.
If he left, the organization might fall into chaos again, and Tony and the others alone wouldn't be able to handle it.
"I need to find a way that works for everyone," William muttered to himself, his brow deeply furrowed.
After leaving the organization, he couldn't let anyone notice.
If Clarence had people watching in secret, they would definitely discover he had left and would surely take action.
Besides, he would have to leave without Tony and the others knowing. Otherwise, if they came after him, his identity would be exposed.
William didn't want Emily to know about his second identity, and he didn't want to bring her trouble.
While William was deep in thought, Emily sat in the police car, her heart completely calm.
She glanced at the phone in her hand without even lifting an eyebrow, then casually tossed it aside.
She had seen all of William's first few calls.
Even with the phone on silent, the screen kept lighting up - hard to miss.
But so what if she saw them?
It had been so many days, and William had not returned a single call.
She had called William so many times, and every one had gone unanswered.
At first, Emily had wondered if something had happened to William.
During those days, besides following news about her own mother, she had also been following the news online.
As the first child of the Brown family, even though William had not returned to the family yet, she had heard him say that Raymond knew about William's situation.
That meant if something had really happened to William, she would surely catch wind of it online.
There is no such thing as a secret that never leaks. No matter how well the Brown family covered things up, something would leak out.
But there wasn't a thing online, and the Brown family was as calm as ever.
Since William was fine, where could he be?
When she needed him most, and he didn't show up, then there was no need for him to show up later either.
The officer suddenly raised his hand and waved it in front of Emily. "Ms. Johnson, I was just talking to you. Did you hear me?"
"What?"
Emily quickly snapped back to attention and said apologetically, "Sorry, I zoned out."
The officer rolled his eyes speechlessly. Emily really had nerves of steel - she could actually zone out in this situation.
The officer repeated what he had just said. "According to the information we have received, we have found Brian's whereabouts."
"Though we have not confirmed whether your mother is with him, once we find Brian, we will find your mother too."
"If nothing goes wrong, you might be reunited with your mother tonight."
"Really?"
Emily almost jumped up in excitement, her eyes shining. "Sir, is that really true? Can my mother really come back?"
The officer nodded seriously. "As a police officer, I wouldn't say anything I am not sure about."
"Besides, I got this firsthand information, passed down level by level. If there were any problems, it wouldn't have reached me, and I certainly wouldn't be telling you."
"That is wonderful."
Emily clasped her hands together, thanking heaven. "My mother is finally coming back. This is such great news."
"Sir, thank you."
Emily was sitting in the car right now, otherwise she would have bowed to him several times.
"Are we going to pick up my mother now?"
The officer nodded. "To be precise, we are going to find Brian."
"Like I said, even if your mother is not with him, once we find Brian, we will find your mother."
"Okay, I understand."
Emily suppressed her excitement and let out a long breath.
It really was the best news she could have hoped for.
She had asked the officer several times earlier, but he wouldn't tell her - probably because he had not gotten confirmed information yet.
Now that it was confirmed, he told her right away.
This meant she would be reunited with her mother soon.
The police car sped down the road with its siren wailing, and cars on both sides pulled over to let it pass.
Gradually, after more than an hour of driving, they left the city and turned onto a remote country road.
Emily looked anxiously at the pitch-black surroundings outside, her brow furrowing tighter and tighter.
Where exactly had Brian hidden himself?
This place looked desolate, no matter how you looked at it. There wasn't a single house for miles. Why would he come to a place like this?
The officer noticed Emily's unease but didn't say much. He was busy contacting his superiors.
Brian wasn't someone easy to deal with. If he wasn't mistaken, Brian was probably already thinking about how to escape.