First Love Only? I Left Him First, Now the CEO Can't Let Go novel Chapter 235

Chapter 235: Chapter 235: Serena Jennings Is Missing

The downpour that had been held back all morning finally came down.

By the time Caleb Lockwood’s imperial blue Bentley reached the entrance of the Cultural Innovation Park, the rain was pouring heavily.

Caleb parked the car, got out, and opened his umbrella.

The louder the sound of rain, the quieter the Cultural Innovation Park seemed.

This was where Serena Jennings worked.

He could have gone straight up to find Serena.

But he didn’t.

Caleb stood alone in the rain; even with an umbrella, his suit was soaked.

He didn’t know why he had come here.

Even if he knew, he wouldn’t tell Serena that he hoped she’d spend this birthday with him.

Caleb just silently stood in the pouring rain, holding the umbrella, while lightning flashed overhead.

The construction site was deserted; such stormy weather made it impossible to work.

The entrance to the cement staircase had long been blocked by old containers three stories high.

At a glance, no one could tell there was a staircase behind those containers leading underground.

Nor would anyone know that at the staircase’s end was an abandoned power room.

Even less would anyone know a person was trapped inside.

On the old, rundown street of Vornath.

Cynthia Fulton lay sprawled on the sofa, the room reeking of alcohol.

Since The Fulton Family went bankrupt, she moved here, which was now her home.

Cynthia was drinking alone, her face showing tension, excitement, and pain by turns.

The tension from having killed someone, although the person might not be dead yet.

The excitement of having killed someone, though the person should soon be dead in such conditions. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"A cold basement, confined too long, leading to palpitations, hypothermia, dehydration, fainting... By the time someone finds them, Serena Jennings may have become a rotten corpse."

With Claire’s words echoing in her mind, Cynthia already pictured Serena’s tormented and twisted death.

"Serena, just die! Die for me, hahaha!"

Cynthia suddenly burst into wild laughter.

As she laughed, tears rolled down uncontrollably like beads from a broken string.

Cynthia wasn’t crying for the dying Serena.

She cried for herself.

To see Serena die in agony, she had degraded herself to a mere transaction.

Cynthia picked up the wine bottle and gulped down a whole bottle.

She couldn’t afford expensive liquor, so she drank cheap beer.

Trading her body for Serena’s life—

"It’s worth it!"

The sky grew darker.

The rain kept falling.

The site was dead silent.

In the Cultural Innovation Park.

From five o’clock onward, companies gradually closed; by now, it was completely dark.

Another wave at 5:30, and again at 6.

Seven, eight, nine o’clock...

The trickle of people leaving, emerging from office buildings.

Caleb held his umbrella, standing outside until then.

Yet among those sporadic outpourings, he didn’t see Serena.

"President Lockwood?"

Caleb lifted the umbrella slightly, revealing his face.

"It really is you, President Lockwood; I thought I mistook someone else!"

Before him stood a young girl, whom Caleb didn’t quite recognize but found somewhat familiar.

If he remembered correctly, this girl was the new assistant Serena had hired.

Seeing Caleb scrutinize her, she patted her chest, introducing herself:

"President Lockwood, I’m Ai, Serena Jennings’ assistant."

"Hmm..."

Ai observed Caleb had little to say but felt with her woman’s intuition he was here to find Serena.

Mr. Miller showed all workers Serena’s photos, but everyone claimed they hadn’t seen her.

About two hours ago, Caleb found Ethan White, who said he had arranged for Serena to deliver the goods at the site, then changed the plan as he was going for inspection but had some urgent company issue, so he texted her to reschedule.

Ethan claimed he hadn’t seen Serena at all.

Caleb also went to the old house on Vornath Street, Serena hadn’t gone home.

Calling Serena, the message always said the phone was out of service.

Caleb’s intuition told him Serena was in trouble.

He asked Mr. Miller to call the police, but while they had responded, Caleb couldn’t just sit and wait.

Ethan White and others got wind of Serena’s disappearance and went out to search separately.

Caleb led his people to the construction site.

Even though Ethan absolved himself of responsibility, according to Ai, Serena left the company to deliver goods to him.

The site was remote, signal poor, matching Serena’s phone being out of service.

Yet Caleb sent over twenty bodyguards with workers to search, almost overturning the site without finding a trace of Serena.

"President Lockwood, there’s no way anyone is here..." The contractor said helplessly, "If the lady you mentioned came to deliver goods, she would have contacted Ethan given there wasn’t a soul here... Even if the signal was bad, she wouldn’t be alone waiting here."

"Besides, the site is only this big, the pits are just these few, if she fell in, she would have climbed out, and we’ve checked those."

What the contractor said made some sense, even Mr. Miller thought Serena wasn’t there.

"Did the surveillance come out?"

Caleb asked Mr. Miller coldly.

"Officer Lowell said it hasn’t fully recovered because it rained too hard before."

Mr. Miller’s words had just fallen when a massive raindrop splashed on Caleb’s forehead.

The rain slowly flowed down his tall nose.

"It’s raining again."

"It’s pouring, who has an umbrella!"

The site was instantly chaotic, workers scrambling for umbrellas and shelter.

"President Lockwood..."

Mr. Miller first shielded Caleb with an umbrella, having long been drenched.

"It’s too late now, and raining too, how about we go back tonight and wait for news from the police tomorrow?"