A Journey from Bitterness to Truth

The man cursed as Matilda bit him, retaliating with a fierce slap across her face, “I was doing you a favor, bitch!”

“Help!” Matilda’s plea was cut off as he snatched her phone, smashing it with force against the bathroom floor. Tears welled in her eyes as she weakly protested, “Let me go!”

In the next second, he brutally smashed her face against the wall!

As pain flooded her senses, tears mixed with blood streamed from her battered face. Tasting blood, breathing blood, every gasp was crimson. Matilda’s body trembled before going limp, losing all strength to fight.

She passed out in the man’s arms, droplets of blood falling rhythmically onto the tiled floor.

“Tough girl, huh?” The man grunted, throwing her over his shoulder with one arm and making a call, “Miss? Got her, heading your way now. The kid? We’ve got that sorted too.”

The man slunk into the last stall, where a ventilation window was conveniently open. He hefted Matilda up to waiting hands on the other side, and a few accomplices quickly transferred the unconscious Matilda through the men’s restroom vent before swiftly exiting themselves. Têxt © NôvelDrama.Org.

Yvan waited at home all day, but darkness fell, and there was still no sign of Matilda.

A nagging unease settled in his gut. Matilda wouldn’t just run off; she didn’t have the guts to challenge him again, or did she? Why was there no word from her?

Yvan dialed Matilda’s number, only to be met with the dead tone of a powered–off phone.

Panic setting in, Yvan wasted no time and called Carl, who answered immediately, “Mr. Boyd, what can I do for you?”

“Find out where Matilda is.”

Yvan’s gaze grew steely as he contemplated the possibility that the daredevil woman had actually fled.

An hour later, Carl’s update only added to Yvan’s confusion.

“Mr. Boyd, we’ve located Matilda’s phone IP–it’s… at a mall.”

Sensing there was more to the story, Yvan’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Go on.”

“It’s… in a men’s restroom.” Carl was just as baffled, but the data was irrefutable, triple–checked, “No joke, Mr. Boyd. That’s the location, and… there’s been no movement.”

That meant the phone was deliberately left there.

05.58

Yvan’s expression darkened, “Find Matilda now! Check the mall’s security footage!”

Yvan’s mind raced. Was Matilda crafty enough to use her phone as a decoy?

Yet. Yvan’s trembling fingers betrayed an unfamiliar fear creeping into his mind.

If Matilda wasn’t purposefully avoiding his search, why on earth was her phone in a men’s restroom at the mall?

He didn’t want to consider the possibilities. Without hesitation, Yvan dialed another number, “Hey, Adrian? It’s me. I need a favor.”

Adrian was surprised Yvan would call in a favor for a woman, especially Matilda, whom Yvan initially dismissed. But the urgency in Yvan’s voice was unmistakable.

With some influence in the right places, dispatching a search warrant and rallying police support was a minor task for Adrian’s family. Adrian hadn’t been concerned until a chilling update from his team made both men’s hearts clench.

“Mr. Simpson, surveillance footage shows Matilda entering the restroom and not leaving. A man followed her in and didn’t come out either. We suspect… Matilda’s been kidnapped.“