Kidnapped

Chapter 7: Kidnapped

As they arrived at the orphanage, excitement mixed with nervousness churned within Ashley's stomach.

"Good day, ma'am," she greeted an unfamiliar blonde at the reception.

The woman returned the greeting with a warm smile. "Good day, ma'am. Good day, sir."

Ashley glanced at Mikael's guards, who remained stationed outside, grateful for the reduced attention.

"Please, how may I help you?"

Ashley straightened. "I want to take back my child, Vanessa Flynn. I left her here for temporary support last week." Excitement was obvious in her voice.

The woman nodded and led them to an office, introducing them to another staff member, a woman surrounded by a pile of files.

"What's the child's name, please?"

"Vanessa Flynn."

The woman sifted through a stack of documents, her expression gradually shifting into one of confusion.

Ashley's stomach slightly tightened. She sensed that something was wrong.

"Is there a problem?" she asked, her voice edged with unease.

The woman hesitated. "Did you say Vanessa was on temporary placement?"

"Yes, I was given a month to come back for her." she answered almost too quickly.

The woman exchanged glances with a colleague before returning to the documents.

"Are you sure?" she asked after another moment.

Ashley's brows furrowed. "What do you mean? Of course, I'm sure."

A heavy silence followed before the woman spoke again, her voice careful.

"The Vanessa Flynn here…" her finger traced a line from one of the files. "was adopted two days ago by the Hawks."

"What?!" Ashley's voice rose in disbelief, a frown etched into her face. "That's impossible! I was told she wouldn't be eligible for adoption for another month!"

Turning back to the files, the woman's confused expression morphed into something else—judgment.

"This document right here states that Vanessa wasn't on temporary placement. She was fully given away."

Ashley's breath hitched, and a sharp pain stabbed through her chest.

"No… No, that must be a mistake," she argued, panic taking over. "I dropped her off myself. Please check again."

The lady checked several more times and reported the same thing. Soon, the conversation grew more intense, voices rising.

Mikael had to finally step in.

"Where can we find the Hawks? We'll get my great granddaughter back, and they can adopt another child."

The woman shook her head. "It doesn't work that way, sir. We have to reach out to them first, see if they're willing…"

Ashley snapped. "If they're willing?!" Her voice trembled with anger and desperation. "Where's the woman who handled Vanessa's case? A tall brunette with—"

"You mean Roseline?"

The receptionist nodded grimly. "She quit. She recently relocated with her family overseas."

Ashley felt the world spin.

This couldn't be real.

She turned to Mikael, her face stricken with panic, and his expression mirrored hers.

After driving for hours to the Hawks' listed address, they were met a more devastating news—the family didn't exist in the neighborhood.

Ashley's worst fear had just become reality.

Vanessa had been kidnapped.

She sat in the car, staring blankly at the road ahead. Her fingers trembled as she clutched the hem of her dress, her breath coming in as shallow, uneven gasps. The weight of the past few hours pressed down heavily on her chest.

Her grandfather.

Her daughter.

One found, one lost.

She took in another deep shaky breath.

The timing was too perfect, too precise. She found out she had a family—only to have the one person who truly mattered snatched away from her.

Her mind whirled, landing on a scary thought.

What if it wasn't a coincidence?

Her gaze flickered to Mikael, who sat beside her, his features shadowed with concern. The man who claimed to be her grandfather. The man who had never known she existed—until recently.

How long had he really known?

She felt sick as the thought cemented itself more in her head. What if he'd orchestrated this? What if this was some twisted way to control her? Make her desperate enough to cling to him? He was powerful enough to make people disappear. Powerful enough to take her child and make it look like an accident.

Her hands curled into fists. But why has he been going around searching with her, looking all worried and concerned.

"Maybe he is just a good actor." a voice answered in her head.

No. No, she was being paranoid. Right?

But she had spent her whole life learning the hard way that no one helped without expecting something in return. If Mikael wanted her in his world, what better way to ensure she had no reason to run?

Ashley's heart pounded as panic clawed at her chest. She needed air. Needed space.

"Stop the car, I need some air." She croaked, suffocating despite the tight air condition.

Mikael turned to her sharply. "Is there any..."

"Stop the damn car!" she snapped, her voice breaking.

The vehicle screeched to a halt, and before anyone could react, Ashley shoved the door open and stumbled out. The night air was thick, suffocating, offering no relief to the chaos in her head.

She took a shaky step forward, then another. Then she ran.

Away from Mikael. Away from her fears. Away from everything. She wanted to escape the universe and all the daily does of trouble it gave her.

Mikael's features was marred with worry. He didn't know if to go after Ashley. He knew that she perhaps needed some space to take in all the troubles that had befallen her today, but he also feared that she would hurt herself.

"Poor child." He muttered to himself, casting another glance in the direction she ran.

Entering the car, he instructed his driver to slowly drive behind Ashley.

Ashley didn't know where she was headed, she just ran. She was surprised Mikael didn't order his bodyguards after her.

She didn't see the car coming.

Before she could fully register her surroundings, a sharp pain struck her head.

She had been hit. Pain exploded through her body, and her vision blurred.

But just before darkness swallowed her whole, she caught a glimpse of the last man she ever wanted to see.

Fucking Christian Harrington. His eyes were wide with shock as he stared at the woman lying helpless beside his car.