Chapter 111 Dylan Wells

Chapter 111 Dylan Wells
Seraphina stared at Joanne with incredulity.
For a moment, she could hardly believe the woman had actually said that.
Dylan, however, seemed far less offended by the remark. A small, amused smile tugged at his lips as he looked toward Joanne.
“I assume she has always been this welcoming.”
The sarcasm in his voice was subtle, but Joanne caught it immediately.
Her eyes narrowed.
Before she could fire back, Knox stepped forward, positioning himself slightly between Dylan and Seraphina. His expression had lost every trace of civility. “And who are you?”
Dylan calmly met his stare.
There was no defensiveness in his expression, nor did he appear intimidated by Knox's imposing presence. He simply studied the him for a moment before Seraphina stepped in.
“Dylan is an old friend,” she explained. “We went to the same high school. I needed to get medication, and we happened to run into each other. He helped me get it.”
Knox's eyes remained on Dylan for another second.
Then he looked at Seraphina.
“We were worried when we couldn't find you.”
There was genuine concern beneath his stern tone, and Seraphina's expression softened.
“I know. I'm sorry.”
Joanne made an impatient sound before turning away from them.
“I'm going back to the car.”
She didn't wait for anyone to respond before walking away.
Dylan's eyes followed her until she reached the vehicle.
“Does she always have an attitude like that?”
Seraphina’s lips curved into a faint smile.
“She doesn't matter.”
Knox glanced toward the car.
“We're ready to leave. I'll see Miss Seraphina into the car first.”
He walked ahead and opened the rear door for her, then waited.
Dylan looked between the two men and Seraphina, amusement returning to his face.
“Your friends are damn protective,” he said. “I could have mistaken them for your personal guards.”
His gaze briefly shifted toward Knox.
That wasn't entirely inaccurate.
Seraphina simply smiled.
She had no intention of explaining the circumstances surrounding her life to him.
“It was nice seeing you again, Dylan. And thank you for helping me with the medication.”
“My pleasure.”
He hesitated for a moment before adding, “I'll reach out one of these days.”
Seraphina nodded politely. “I'd like that.”
She climbed into the car.
Knox waited until she was fully inside before closing the door, his eyes meeting Dylan's through the narrowing gap.
The look was unmistakably a warning.
Dylan raised his brows slightly.
Then he shook his head with quiet amusement, slipped his dark spectacles over his eyes, and turned toward his own vehicle.
He watched the car pull away before getting inside his.
For a brief moment, his expression softened.
It really had been nice seeing Seraphina again.
She had been one of the few people from his high-school years he genuinely remembered fondly.
Back then, he had wished they could have had more time together. He had liked her long before he ever admitted it to himself, although his feelings had never reached the point of consuming him. She had simply been the beautiful girl he couldn't help noticing whenever she walked into a room.
The professors wouldn’t stop talking about her rare intelligence too. He had wanted to get to know her more.
Then his mother had transferred him to another school.
She had been terrified of people becoming too curious about him. But that was for a reason. 
Dylan started his engine and his smile disappeared.
There was a reason he had chosen to take the house inside the Government Estate.
And he was about to pursue it.
~
Dylan drove deeper into the estate, passing the familiar security checkpoints until he reached the third wing.
The atmosphere here differed from the rest of the estate.
There were fewer residents.
Fewer casual movements. And more security.
He parked at a distance from a building and killed the engine.
Then he waited.
He’s here because of one particular man.
The man who had become the reason Dylan had accepted the house in this estate in the first place.
The man Dylan was almost certain knew where his missing mother was.
His fingers tightened around the steering wheel as his mind raced again.
It couldn't be a coincidence.
His mother had disappeared at precisely the time she had finally decided that she was tired of hiding him from his father.
She had wanted Dylan’s father to acknowledge him publicly as his son. Even if he would only keep her in his discarded memory as the hotelier he used to have casual flings with.
But his father had dismissed her repeatedly. Dylan didn’t want his mother to keep seeking for his father’s validation but his mother had insisted.
She went missing on one random day she told Dylan that she was meeting with him.
Dylan had spent two years trying to convince himself that she had simply left.
But he knew his mother.
She would never abandon him without a word.
His eyes burned.
He blinked rapidly and looked through the windshield.
The possibility that she was already dead had haunted him for years.
Yet he refused to surrender to it.
His mother was alive.
She had to be.
And if she was alive, Dylan knew exactly who had the power to keep her hidden.
His father.
The man Dylan had spent his entire life being forbidden to call his father in public.
Dylan glanced at his watch.
Nearly an hour had passed.
Then movement caught his attention.
Security personnel emerged from the building first. Two of them, then another two- making four.
They moved with the practiced alertness of men protecting someone important.
Dylan's eyes narrowed.
A moment later, the man he had been waiting for emerged.
His father.
He inhaled sharply, then exhaled heavily.
He watched as the security detail surrounded the man and escorted him toward the waiting vehicle.
For several seconds, Dylan remained inside his car.
Then he opened the door.
He stepped out and began walking toward them.
The moment he got close, two security guards stepped into his path.
“Sir, can we help you?”
Dylan stopped.
“I need to speak with him.”
The guard frowned.
“Do you have an appointment?”
Before Dylan could answer, another guard looked at him more closely.
His expression changed. “Wait.” He nudged the other man. “That is the Deputy Minister.”
The guards immediately straightened.
“Sir.”
Dylan barely acknowledged them.
His gaze was now fixed on his father who had already noticed him.
Their eyes locked, and for the briefest moment, the older man's expression changed.
His lips parted. “Dy—”
He stopped himself almost immediately, the warmth vanishing from his face.
“Oh. The deputy himself.”
Dylan almost smiled. Typical of him.
Even now, his father couldn't bring himself to acknowledge him with familiarity.
Not in front of other people.
Never in front of other people.
His father turned toward the guards. “I'll speak with him.”
The guards stepped back.
Dylan followed his father a short distance away until they were far enough from the security detail that their voices couldn't carry.
The moment they stopped, his father's expression became cold.
“Why did you come here? I’ve told you before- only call when you need money.”
Dylan slipped his hands into his pockets.
His father stared at him.
“I don't need your money.”
“Then what do you want?”
Dylan's expression hardened. “My mother.”
His father stared at him for several seconds.
Then he let out a quiet, humorless laugh. “You really are a bastard, Dylan.”
Dylan's eyes narrowed into squints.
His father continued.
“You think like one too. What exactly do you expect me to do with your mother?”
“Find her.” Dylan simply replied.
His father shrugged. “She could be dead for all I know.”
Dylan's face remained still, but his eyes sharpened.
“You're not even bothered that she's been missing?”
His father scoffed.
“Why should I be bothered?”
Dylan stared at him.
The older man continued coldly.
“I never married her. I never promised her anything. Whatever happened to her has nothing to do with me.”
Dylan's jaw clenched. “You're really going to stand here and pretend you don't know where she is?”
“I've told you everything I know.”
“You haven't.”
His father's eyes hardened. “Stop looking for her.”
Dylan stayed silent.
“I'm serious,” the older man warned. “Don't come looking for me again. If you need money, call. Otherwise, stay away from me before you implicate me in whatever ridiculous investigation you're conducting.”
Dylan stared at him for a long moment, disdain etched in his expression.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled.
A quiet one that made his father's expression tighten.
“All right. I'll leave.”
His father seemed satisfied, flashing his hand to wave him off.
“But this isn't goodbye, President Frederick.”
Dylan adds as he slid his dark spectacles back over his eyes, not waiting to see the President’s facial expression.
Then he walked away without another word.
Behind him, President Frederick remained completely still, his expression darkening as he watched his illegitimate son disappear into his car.