Chapter 331: Mrs Cole

Away from all the stress and chaos of the day, an older woman stepped out of the car that had just pulled up in front of the large house, closing the door behind her before standing still for a moment.

She took a careful look around the quiet compound, her eyes moving from one side of the house to the other as though she was trying to notice anything that looked out of place, and after a few seconds, she adjusted the handbag hanging from her arm and slowly walked toward the front door with a serious expression on her face.

When she reached the door, she opened her purse and brought out a small key card, holding it against the scanner beside the door before swiping it across the reader, and almost immediately, the lock clicked and the door opened.

Mrs. Cole stepped inside.

The house was unusually quiet, and the silence immediately made her feel uneasy because she had expected to find her son somewhere inside, probably hiding away in his usual manner or sitting in one of the chairs, but instead, there was not a single sign of him, and the strange emptiness of the house made her heart tighten slightly.

She had barely taken a few steps when she noticed the butler walking toward her from the hallway, and the moment the man recognized her, his eyes widened slightly before he quickly approached her and bowed his head respectfully.

"Good evening, ma'am," he greeted politely.

"Good evening," Mrs. Cole replied, but her eyes remained fixed on the house as she took another slow look around before finally turning her attention back to him.

The butler stood quietly in front of her, waiting for whatever question she was about to ask, and Mrs. Cole did not waste any time before speaking.

"Where is my son?" she asked, her voice calm but firm.

The butler's expression immediately changed as his eyes dropped toward the floor.

"The young master has not been around for some days now, ma'am," he replied carefully, causing Mrs. Cole to frown.

"He hasn't been around?" she repeated, her voice filled with surprise as she stared at him. "Are you sure?"

The butler nodded slowly.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied.

Mrs. Cole's confusion deepened because she had come to Adrian's house expecting to find him there, especially because the people she had placed to monitor his movements had told her that he had barely left the house for days, and now she was standing inside his home being told that no one had actually seen him for several days.

"When was the last time you saw my son?" she asked, her eyes narrowing slightly.

The butler swallowed slowly before answering.

"The last time he came home was during the week of his accident, ma'am," he said, and this time, Mrs. Cole's entire expression changed.

"His accident?" she repeated in disbelief, almost as though she had not heard him correctly.

"Yes, ma'am."

"What accident are you talking about?" she asked immediately, her voice becoming sharper. No one had told her anything about Adrian having an accident, not even the people she had specifically placed to monitor his movements. What was the need of paying them if they couldn't carry out a simple job?

The butler looked even more uncomfortable, his fingers moving nervously against each other.

"I am sorry, ma'am," he murmured softly, but Mrs. Cole wasn't having any of that.

"Sorry?" she repeated, clearly becoming angry. "Why didn't you call me? Why didn't you tell me that my son had been involved in an accident? Or why did you think I placed you here? I put you here for a reason, and that was to report every single thing to me," she said, her voice thick with anger and betrayal as she glared at the butler.

The butler remained silent for a moment before finally looking up at her, fear clearly visible in his eyes.

"Because the young master warned us not to, ma'am," he said carefully, while Mrs. Cole continued staring at him.

"What do you mean he warned you?" she asked.

The butler took a nervous breath before continuing.

"I don't know exactly how he found out, ma'am, but the young master eventually discovered that I was working for you and that I was keeping an eye on him and reporting things to you, and after he found out, he warned me that if I told you anything about him again, I might not be alive to see the next day."

Mrs. Cole's expression hardened.

"He threatened you?" she asked. She knew her son, and she knew how very irrational he could be.

The butler nodded quickly.

"Yes, ma'am, and I was scared for my life, so I didn't say anything, especially after he told me that he would know if I tried to contact you behind his back."

Mrs. Cole slowly exhaled, her mind racing as she tried to understand what was happening, because the more she heard, the more worried she became, and the fact that Adrian had disappeared immediately after an accident that nobody had bothered to report to her made something deep inside her tell her that there was much more to the situation than what she was being told.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment before opening them again.

"Leave me for a moment," she said quietly.

The butler immediately nodded, looking almost relieved.

"Yes, ma'am."

He turned around and walked away, leaving Mrs. Cole alone in the quiet room.

The moment he disappeared down the hallway, Mrs. Cole reached into her handbag and pulled out her phone, her fingers moving quickly across the screen as she searched for a number. There was only one person she could think of who might know where Adrian was, especially if Adrian had been hiding something from her.

Henry, his best friend.

If anyone knew where Adrian was or what had happened to him, then it had to be Henry.

Mrs. Cole pressed the call button and lifted the phone to her ear. The phone rang once, then twice, before finally, he answered.

"Hello?"

"Henry," Mrs. Cole said immediately.

There was a short silence on the other end before Henry finally responded.

"Mrs. Cole... good evening, ma'am." His voice sounded hesitant, and the hesitation did not escape her notice.

"Good evening, Henry," she replied, her voice controlled despite the growing anger and worry inside her. "Where is your friend?" she asked, and Henry went silent. For a few seconds, she waited for him to say something, but when she noticed he wasn't about to reply, she called him again.

"Henry?"

"I... I don't..." he began, but his voice faltered, causing Mrs. Cole's eyes to narrow slightly in anger and frustration.

"You don't what?"

"I don't really know where he is right now."

"You don't know where Adrian is?" she asked, her voice becoming colder. "Henry, I am standing in his house right now, and his butler has just told me that nobody has seen him for several days, so I am asking you directly, where is my son?"

Henry remained silent.

Mrs. Cole could hear his breathing through the phone.

"Henry, answer me."

"I..." He was still trying to say when she immediately interrupted him.

"And don't tell me you don't know anything, because I can hear it in your voice that you know something," she pointed out, causing Henry to go mute again.

Mrs. Cole's anger grew stronger when he said nothing.

"I was not even told that Adrian had an accident," she continued, her voice trembling slightly with frustration. "Nobody called me, nobody informed me, and now I am finding out from his butler that he disappeared after the accident, so tell me, Henry, what happened to my son?"

There was another long silence.

Henry finally spoke, but his voice was low.

"Mrs. Cole, I think you should talk to Adrian yourself."

"I would gladly do that if I knew where he was," she replied sharply. "That is exactly why I am calling you."

Henry hesitated again, and Mrs. Cole understood immediately.

He knew something. He knew where Adrian was, but he simply wasn't ready to tell her.

"Henry," she said more quietly this time, "whatever it is you're hiding from me, you need to understand that Adrian is my son, and I have every right to know what is happening to him."

Henry remained silent. She waited for several seconds, but when he still refused to answer, something inside her snapped.

"Fine," she said coldly.

"Mrs. Cole..." he was still saying when she ended the call.

She lowered the phone slowly and stared at the screen for several seconds, her face filled with anger and worry.

She now knew Henry knew something; his hesitation in his voice had confirmed it.

And whatever he knew, he was deliberately keeping it from her.

Mrs. Cole tightened her grip around her phone before placing it back inside her handbag, then turned toward the door and walked out of the house with quick, angry steps.

She had come there hoping to find her son; instead, she had left with even more questions than she came with.

And one thing was now certain in her mind.

Something had happened to Adrian, something serious, and she was going to find out exactly what it was.