Chapter 598: Zane’s Survival Story

Bianca bit her lip, surprised at how fast everything had spiraled. She nearly told him the truth that Reese had already been found. But Dave gave her hand a gentle squeeze and shook his head, his face serious.

She understood what he meant and quickly changed her words.

“I’ve been trying to reach her all morning, but her phone’s still off. I’ve been searching around the city myself. I’m really sorry this is affecting the hotel.”

“Bianca, the hotel can wait. Finding her is what matters. Where are you? I’ll come to you.”

His words caught her off guard.

“I…”

If Blake showed up, he’d see right through her. She didn’t like lying. It wasn’t something she was comfortable with.

Even though Dave had said he didn’t mind helping Blake on the business side, Bianca knew it was all strategy. He didn’t trust Blake, and it showed.

She took a deep breath and spoke into the phone. “I’ve already checked nearby places but didn’t find anything. I’m heading to Reese’s apartment next. I’ll send you the address so you can go straight there.”

“Got it. If I get there before you, I’ll update you,” Blake replied quickly. He already knew where Reese lived, but went along with it to keep things smooth. “What’s her apartment number?” he added.

Bianca gave him the details. Blake ended the call and told his driver to go to the apartment right away.

Bianca slowly lowered her phone and looked at Dave. Her eyes showed her doubt.

“What do we do now?” she asked.

“We’ll play along,” Dave said calmly, looking at Lindsey. “I know you’re worried, but trust doesn’t happen overnight. I have my reasons for doubting him, especially after what happened at his business banquet. It’s wise to stay alert.”

He turned to Zane. “I’ll need your help with Reese.”

“No problem. I’ve got it,” Zane said with a smirk and a nod. “But really, boss, you don’t have to be so formal with me.”

“Noted,” Dave said with a faint smile.

Zane took out Reese’s phone and quickly typed a post.

“Had too much to drink last night. Head’s killing me. Don’t expect much from me for the next day or so.”

Zane uploaded a few staged photos to Reese’s Twitter, then added, “I’m fine, just need some extra rest. Thanks for your concern!”

Once the posts went up, he powered off the phone and leaned back with a nod. “This should buy us a few hours. I’ll post another update later saying her phone died.”

As usual, his quick thinking got silent approval from both Dave and Bianca.

With Reese still tied up and looking defeated, they all got into the car.

Bianca kept glancing at Reese. A few times, she almost asked Zane to untie her. But each time, she stopped. The pain of Reese’s betrayal still lingered, dulling any pity she might have felt.

“It’ll take about thirty minutes to get to her place. Why don’t you tell us what happened after you fell into the sea?” Dave said, glancing at Zane.

Zane scratched his head and gave a sheepish grin. “It’s a weird story, and some parts are still a blur, but I’ll try…”

He started explaining how he blacked out almost as soon as he hit the water. The next thing he knew, he woke up tangled in a fishing net, surrounded by fish and shrimp. Voices were shouting around him, but he couldn’t understand what they were saying.

Still dazed, he reached up and felt blood on his head. He figured the hit to his head must’ve caused him to forget everything, who he was, how he got there, all of it.

Out of pure luck or maybe bad luck, a fishing boat pulled him out. With no ID and no memory, he had no choice but to stay and work with them.

“It was a deep-sea squid fishing boat that picked me up,” Zane said, grinning.

“Good thing I still knew how to work, even if I didn’t remember who I was,” Zane said with a grin.

The ship had just left port, and with Zane’s situation, the captain decided to let him stay. That’s how Zane ended up joining the crew of the squid-fishing boat called Sword of the Sea. They sailed out from the North Sea for a three-month trip across the Atlantic.

Zane quickly became part of the crew. He did everything, from scrubbing the deck to handling the net-casting machines.

At each stop for supplies, the captain took him to see different doctors.

“Want to know what one of them said?” Zane tapped his head. “He said the injury was bad and I’d never get my memory back. Said I was only alive because of some god’s blessing. Can you believe that? I don’t buy into that stuff.”

He scoffed and went on, “So I tried figuring things out on my own, but I had nothing. No ID, no clues, nothing at all. When the ship finally got back to Edenfield, I had nowhere to go. I begged the captain to let me stay, but he brought me to the police station instead. They ran my fingerprints, that’s how I found out my name was Zane Miller.”

He pointed at himself with a small smile. “Funny thing is, the name didn’t even feel like mine back then. The captain saw I was lost and asked if I wanted to stay on the ship until my memory came back. I said no right away. I’d had enough of life at sea.” Zane gave his head a dramatic shake.

“So you figured out who you were and didn’t bother coming to see me?” Dave asked, not hiding his irritation.

“I owed the captain and crew my life. I wanted to leave, but the captain showed up again. Said he was short on men and had spent money on my medical bills…”

Zane scratched his nose. “Honestly, it wasn’t that much. But I couldn’t say no. So I got back on the ship. That’s when I realized I’d been tricked. No wonder they needed help; the trip was even longer this time. Six whole months. I might as well have joined a pirate crew!”

Bianca quickly covered her mouth, trying not to laugh, but Dave wasn’t amused. His fists tightened as he said, “How could that captain do that to you? Give me his info.”

Zane let out a sigh, his tone softening. “It’s not worth it, boss. But while I was overseas, I saw news about Phoenix Alliance Group’s stock crashing. It gave me the worst headache.”