Ditching Me for His 'Soulmate'? His Loss. Next Stop: My New Life novel Chapter 129

Chapter 6

A dozen bodyguards combed every corner of the city, their search relentless yet fruitless. Despite their efforts, not a trace of me was found.

But that was exactly what I had anticipated.

By the time darkness cloaked Silverlake, I was already far away—vanished without a trace from the city I once called home.

The following morning, when John Sterling realized I was still nowhere to be found, he reacted exactly as I had predicted: he went straight to the police station.

“Mr. Sterling, are you certain you want to file a missing person report?” the officer questioned, skepticism evident in his tone.

“Claire Dawson has been missing for less than twenty-four hours. It’s too soon to open a case. Perhaps you should wait a little longer,” the officer suggested, glancing at John with a hint of doubt.

John’s face flushed with a mix of frustration and worry.

“Claire is shy, reserved. She’s never left on her own before—not in all these years. She doesn’t have any family here in Silverlake. Where else could she possibly have gone?” he argued, desperation creeping into his voice.

“Do you think… she might have been kidnapped?” John asked quietly, his voice trembling as he faced the worst possibility.

Outside the station, he paced anxiously, already pulling every string he could think of, making calls to every contact in his network.

“My girlfriend, Claire Dawson, disappeared last night,” he told them, sending a photo of me to their phones. “If you see anyone who looks like her, please contact me immediately.”

As if that wasn’t enough, his voice cracked as he added, “She’s my fiancée. I was planning to propose tomorrow. Please, I’m begging you.”

John Sterling—always so proud, so composed—had never pleaded for anything in his life.

But now, he was frantic, pacing back and forth like a trapped animal, desperate for any shred of hope.

After hours of relentless pressure, the police finally agreed to open a missing person case.

Days slipped by as they sifted through security footage from all over the city.

“Mr. Sterling, we’ve found something,” an officer announced one afternoon.

“This video is from a traffic camera near the Silverlake airport. It shows Ms. Dawson five days ago, carrying a suitcase into the terminal.”

John’s hands shook as he gripped the printed image tightly.

“That’s her,” he whispered, his voice rough with emotion. “That’s Claire.”

“Find out where she went,” he commanded urgently.

A day later, his assistant returned with new information.

“Mr. Sterling, Ms. Dawson’s ticket was to Brookfield.”

John was stunned. “Brookfield? Why would Claire go there?”

In the five years they had been together, John had come to know every detail about me.

He knew I had no family—an orphan drifting from place to place, taking odd jobs until fate brought me to the agency where we met.

Brookfield held no ties for me, no obvious reason to visit. Yet the evidence was undeniable.

“Book me a ticket to Brookfield,” he said without hesitation.

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