Chapter 28

On Monday morning, Wendy brought some of her favorite breakfast goodies to share with Victoria.

She waited at the Starry Studio Gallery, but even after work hours had passed, there was still no sign of Victoria.

Wendy shot Victoria a message, but got no reply, and her calls went straight to voicemail. She started to get worried. Victoria was never late, let alone disappear without a trace.

Could Victoria be sick?

Since Victoria got her internship through some internal connections, Wendy figured Diana must know Victoria's friends. So she rushed to Diana's office and anxiously asked, "Ms. Simpson, did Victoria take a leave of absence?"

"She didn't come?" Diana asked, her expression shifting slightly.

Victoria hadn't asked for leave from Diana. She was always hardworking and would never skip work without a reason. Could something have happened to her?

Thinking of this, Diana told Wendy to go back to work and then called Elara to ask about the situation.

Elara also thought Victoria might be sick and quickly took out a spare key to check on her, only to find that she wasn't home. After making numerous unanswered calls, Elara quickly informed Diana that Victoria might be missing and asked Diana to think of a solution.

Diana's face darkened as she thought of William, who had recently spent a lot of money to acquire their gallery. She had heard from Elara that Victoria used to work at the Scott Group.

Now that Victoria was missing, even if it wasn't William's doing, he was definitely involved. Although Diana didn't know what kind of entanglement they had, Victoria was now part of Starry Studio Gallery, and Diana wouldn't allow anyone to harm her.

Since William had spent a lot of money to acquire 45% of Starry Studio Gallery's shares, he shouldn't harm Victoria anymore.

After some thought, Diana dialed William's number. When his phone rang, William saw it was an unfamiliar number. He frowned and answered, just about to ask who it was when Diana's slightly cold voice came through, "Mr. Scott, hello, it's Diana Simpson."

William thought, 'Diana? Hugo's daughter, the general manager of Starry Studio Gallery. Why would Diana be calling me?'

"Ms. Simpson, what can I do for you?" he asked indifferently.

Diana asked, "Mr. Scott, do you know Victoria? She used to work at your company."

When William heard her words, his expression froze slightly. Diana was really smart, quickly guessing that he had acquired shares in Starry Studio Gallery because of Victoria. As expected of cunning Hugo's daughter from the Simpson family.

Thinking of this, William cleared his throat and replied indifferently, "Yes, I know her."

"Since you know her, I'll get straight to the point. She's missing. It wasn't you, was it?" Diana's voice sounded a bit agitated.

"She's missing?" William's voice suddenly rose a few notches.

Diana paused for a second, then recounted what had happened that morning, finally saying, "If you could help me find her, I would be very grateful." Then she hung up the phone.

William stared at the darkened screen for a moment, then stood up and shouted, "Harry, get in here!"

In no time, Harry entered the room and respectfully said, "Mr. Scott."

"Find out where Victoria is," William ordered with a stern face.

Harry's heart skipped a beat when he heard this. Victoria was missing?

"Got it," he said and prepared to leave.

"Wait," William suddenly called out. "Don't forget to check on Ella's whereabouts as well," he added.

"Okay," Harry said and immediately left.

William leaned back in his chair, his eyes deep. The only sign of his emotions was the tightly clenched pen in his hand. Soon, Harry discovered that Victoria's last call was from Nora. After that, Victoria's phone lost signal.

A shadow crossed William's eyes, and he immediately headed to Nora's hospital room with his men.

Nora was happily talking to Bobby on the phone, smiling as she said, "Ella kept her word. As soon as Victoria signed, the remaining $800,000 was transferred! Bobby, I'll send you the money right away and give you an extra $50,000 for spending money!"

"Really? That's great! Now I can definitely get into the University of Aesthetics Shine!" Bobby said excitedly.

Nora sighed and said, "It's all Victoria's fault. If she had signed earlier, your matter wouldn't have been delayed for so long."

"Exactly, my classmates have already started training for a week. I have to go pay the fees now!" Bobby said eagerly and hung up the phone.

Nora put away her phone, a satisfied expression on her face. Just as she was about to ask the caregiver for a glass of water, the door was kicked open.

Nora was startled and turned to see a group of men storming in. Just as she was about to question them, William stepped forward, his deep voice cutting through the silence. "Victoria is missing. Does it have anything to do with you?"

Nora's eyes widened in panic, and she exclaimed, "Who are you? What right do you have to meddle in our family affairs?"

William's gaze was as sharp as an ice blade as he looked at Nora. He said, "You'd better tell me everything honestly, or don't blame me for being rude!"

Hearing this, Nora couldn't help but shiver. She had never seen such a fierce look before; it was terrifying.

"I don't know. She's my daughter. Why would I harm her?" she insisted through gritted teeth.

William sneered, his tone full of sarcasm. "I only believe in evidence!" With that, William turned to Harry and gave him a look. Harry understood and stepped forward, pinning Nora against the wall.

"What are you doing? Help! Murder!" Nora screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Shut up! If you keep yelling, I'll cut out your tongue!" Harry threatened viciously.

"You dare! Let me go! I warn you..." Before Nora could finish, a slap landed on Nora's cheek, leaving a bright red handprint. Her smooth skin immediately swelled with the imprint of the palm, looking quite shocking.

"I advise you not to shout. My patience is limited," William said expressionlessly.

Nora's body trembled, and she slowly stopped struggling, stammering. "I don't know why she's missing. I just sent her to a place."

"Where?" William pressed.

Nora then gave William the address of the abandoned factory, not forgetting to add, "This has nothing to do with me! It was Ella who did it. She kidnapped Victoria."

William's eyes flickered. He snorted coldly and then, along with his men, drove to the abandoned factory.

A dozen bodyguards searched the entire factory and finally found Victoria in the basement. Pushing open the iron gate, William saw Victoria lying on the ground, covered in blood, her lips purple, looking lifeless.

His pupils contracted, and his heart seemed to be hollowed out in an instant, the pain unbearable.

He squatted down to check Victoria's breathing, then placed his hand on her chest. Only when he felt her heartbeat did his own heart gradually begin to calm. He picked up Victoria and rushed out of the dilapidated building, with Harry and several bodyguards quickly following.