Third person's POV
Alya was gone! She had slipped away stealthily during the gap in her exercise routine!
Immense terror gripped Tabitha's heart.
Ayla had always been so well-behaved. Tabitha never imagined Alya would venture out alone to find Wilmot.
She was well aware that this ship was no ordinary place, harboring far too many hidden dangers and darkness.
Her mind conjured up various dreadful thoughts.
How many psychologically twisted perverts lurked on this ship?
Ayla was so young and adorable, like a budding flower. If targeted by ill-intentioned individuals, what kind of misfortune might she encounter?
There were far too many wealthy individuals with twisted psyches committing heinous acts, and the consequences were often more terrifying than mere threats.
For instance, some perverts were obsessed with specific parts of a woman's body, such as legs or hair.
They would post nefarious tasks on the dark web, and a complete industry chain would spring into action, searching globally for suitable targets.
They would disguise themselves with various identities to approach their targets, and those innocent girls would often be lured abroad under the guise of relationships, only to be heartlessly sold.
Some girls were harvested for organs, and their bodies were brutally violated. Once their value was depleted, they would be sold to those perverted buyers, becoming part of their mutilated collections and spending the rest of their lives in endless pain and torment.
This cruise ship seemed to be a gathering place for such perverts, with their numbers beyond imagination.
Tabitha felt as if her heart was about to explode. She could only pray silently that Ayla had caught up with Forrest and that everything would be alright.
With the ship about to dock, she prayed there would be no complications at this critical moment.
The child she had gone through so much to reclaim must return to her unharmed.
In a panic, Tabitha put on a wig and a mask, grabbed a piece of clothing, and hastily threw it on before rushing out the door in a state of extreme anxiety.
Her heart was filled with fear. She might have been able to maintain some composure if she didn't know where her child was, but the thought of her child possibly being in danger was an agony like a million needles piercing her heart.
The once happy times had now become a weight that increased her fear, making her extremely anxious and fearful of loss. She could feel every pore of her body radiating a chilling sense of dread.
She recklessly rushed towards Wilmot's room, but due to her haste and panic, she stumbled and fell heavily to the ground.
Although the side effects of chemotherapy had gradually lessened, her body was far from being back to a normal state, and the fall left her seeing stars and her head ringing.
She lay on the ground for two seconds, biting her teeth, preparing to struggle back up, when she noticed a pair of women's high heels in front of her.
They were black patent leather high heels with thin, cone-like heels that shimmered coldly under the light.
Tabitha's gaze slowly moved up along the high heels, revealing the woman's fair skin, paired with black fishnet stockings, creating a stark visual contrast.
"Do you need help?" A seductive and charming voice asked in her ear.
Tabitha continued to look up and saw the woman dressed in a high-waisted mini-skirt and a short black T-shirt, her face exuding a spicy vibe.
She couldn't help but wonder, in this mixed and dangerous place, she wasn't wearing a mask and was unabashedly showing her true face. Wasn't she afraid of those perverts?
A sense of foreboding welled up in Tabitha's heart. There was only one possibility. This woman herself was a pervert.
Suddenly, she realized she had seen this face before, just a few days ago, when the woman was smoking with her neck tilted back.
"No, thank you," Tabitha declined the woman's assistance without hesitation, relying on her tenacious will to struggle up on her own.
With that, Tabitha planned to bypass the woman and hurry away, but at that moment, the sound of a lighter igniting came from behind, followed by the woman's voice again. "You seem to be in a rush. You're not looking for someone, are you?"
Tabitha's steps instantly froze, her pupils dilated, her heart rate spiked, and a strong sense of unease washed over her.
She turned sharply, staring at the woman, her voice trembling as she asked, "What do you mean?"
Matilda was lighting a cigarette with a lighter leisurely, her movements full of charm.
She took a gentle puff of the cigarette, then slowly approached Tabitha, blowing a cloud of smoke into Tabitha's face.
Tabitha had never smoked before and was violently coughed by the sudden smoke.
The woman laughed at Tabitha's embarrassed appearance. "Never smoked before?"
"Never mind that. What did you mean by what you just said?" Tabitha endured her anger and asked again with emphasis.
The woman's lips curled slightly, smiling provocatively, "What else could it mean? It means what it means. Are you looking for a little girl about this tall?"
She gestured the height of Ayla with her hand, "And holding a little rabbit doll in her arms?"