Alessia remained silent, her face showing a complex expression.
If she told Dominic that Chris was missing, Dominic would definitely become suspicious, especially since there was still another 'Chris' in the old mansion.
But upon further consideration, she couldn't be so selfish.
She couldn't let Christopher be in danger just because she didn't want Dominic to know about Christian and the others. After all, having one more person searching for Christopher could mean finding him a minute earlier.
"I...," Alessia was about to speak honestly when several cars drove into the steel factory gate.
The door of the leading car opened, and out stepped David.
After getting out of the car, David reached in and lifted a little boy out.
And the boy he lifted out was none other than the missing Christopher.
David just happened to encounter Christopher emerging from the weeds on his way here with people.
As soon as Alessia saw Christopher, she forgot about everything else and quickly ran over, embracing Christopher tightly and kissing his forehead. "Chris, you scared Mommy to death."
Having finally found Chris, how could she bear the possibility of losing him again?
"Mommy, I'm okay." Christopher's little head rested on Alessia's shoulder, and his small hand patted her back soothingly.
This little guy had just been kidnapped, yet he understood to comfort her sensibly.
Alessia gently patted Christopher's head and carefully checked him over. When she saw the various wounds on Christopher's hands, her heart clenched again. "Mommy has caused you trouble and made you suffer."
"Mommy, didn't you already take revenge for me?" Christopher glanced at the thugs lying on the ground who couldn't get up, comforting her in his childish voice.
"Yes, Mommy will avenge you." Anger flashed in Alessia's eyes; she would hold Nolan accountable.
David watched as Alessia interacted with Christopher, his gaze filled with complexity.
Dominic walked over, checked Christopher's injuries to confirm they hadn't affected his bones, then his gaze fell on Alessia's face, his eyes becoming inexplicably meaningful.
Contrary to his usual behavior, Dominic let Christopher stay with Alessia without any intention of taking him away.
On the way back, Alessia drove with Christopher and Riley in one car in front, while David and Dominic rode in another car behind.
Inside the car, Dominic rubbed his temples and instructed, "Directly back to the old mansion."
David understood the implication immediately.
The car that had been following them suddenly changed lanes after getting onto the main road.
"Daddy left." Christopher sat in the back seat, staring at the rearview mirror.
Alessia's grip on the steering wheel tightened, and she lightly hmm'd.
What had to come would always come, but she would never give up custody of the three children.
Alessia stabilized her emotions, first taking Christopher and Riley to the hospital.
Riley had an infection caused by the injury, but luckily it was caught in time, and it didn't have much impact on his body; he just needed to be observed in the hospital for a few days.
The wounds on Christopher's hands were also treated simply.
"Mommy, do my hands look like they're wearing white gloves? It feels really cool, doesn't it?" Coming out of the treatment room, Christopher noticed Alessia's low spirits and raised both hands, deliberately speaking in a tone reminiscent of Christian's.
However, Christopher, usually reserved, now sounded somewhat awkward in his attempt at humorous banter, like someone who had taken bitter medicine, his face contorted into a grimace.
But Alessia was still touched.
"Yeah, really cool."
Feeling moved, Alessia rubbed Christopher's little nose and hugged him tightly.
Alessia then arranged for a nurse to care for Riley and entrusted Christopher to Mrs. Cate before leaving.
With the main tasks completed, she could finally go find Nolan now.
...
In the luxurious gaming hall, smoke filled the air as Nolan, after playing a few games of pool with his cronies, slumped onto a black sofa, took out his phone, and dialed Leon's number.
However, despite the phone ringing several times, there was no answer, making Nolan impatient. He heard his friends next to him exclaiming in surprise as they refreshed the news.
"Wow, there's big news in our city today. The police caught a dozen kidnappers in the outskirts abandoned steel factory. How stupid can they be?"
Nolan's heart skipped a beat, then he glanced at his friend, regaining his composure.
As the top playboy in Toronto, he had visited the police station before, but always returned easily.
Leon was an old hand; he knew the rules. If caught, he would definitely cover for him.
As for Alessia, he wasn't worried at all.
A divorced woman from the countryside, even if she guessed something, what could she do to him if he was behind it?
He just regretted that he couldn't give Alessia a substantial lesson this time.
He had originally wanted Leon to capture something interesting, but it seemed he would have to wait until next time.
"Nolan, where are we going next?" His friend, after reading the news, nudged Nolan with his elbow.
"I heard there's a car race in the east of the city at dusk. Shall we go?" someone suggested.
"Okay, let's go for it." Nolan took a sip of his drink, flashing an indifferent smile.
Night fell.
At the winding road, checkpoints were set up, and people of all sorts gathered here, waving their arms and shouting loudly.
Following the crowd's gaze, one would see two cars, one white and one black, speeding along the complex mountain road.
As they neared the finish line, the white car, which had been in the lead, was caught up by the black car. The two cars raced side by side, and suddenly the black car intentionally collided with the white one, causing the white car to crash into the guardrail and stall.
At this moment, a hand arrogantly stuck out of the black car window, waving ostentatiously before speeding away.
With the actions of the black car owner, the atmosphere of the race was pushed to another level.
As for the intentional collision by the owner of the black car, nobody paid attention because this was an illegal race with no rules to begin with.
The participants in these races were either thrill-seeking rich generations or underground illegal racers looking to make money.
Regardless of the means, they only sought to win the race.
Alessia, wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and jeans, appeared in the crowd, her gaze coldly fixed on the man who had just won the championship, surrounded by overly arrogant men.
As the two cars returned, the black car stopped, and Nolan pushed open the door, with everyone crowding around him.
Friends offered congratulations, women sent flowers and kisses, and at this moment, Nolan seemed to be the winner of life.
However, compared to the gloominess was the owner of the white car, his forehead injured, his face covered in blood, and his leg injured.
At this moment, he was struggling to get out of the car with his injured leg, receiving no care from anyone. Instead, he was subjected to insults from his boss-Gabe, waiting on the side.
"Didn't you say you were the best racer in the black market? I think you're just trash, you can't even beat that idiot Nolan. You'd better go home and raise lambs."
The more the rich generation cursed, the more excited he became, kicking the racer even more angrily.
Milo was kicked to his knees, looking weakly at the rich generation's trousers, his eyes filled with resentment and unwillingness.
Who would want to be a black market racer if they could? Not only was there no guarantee of life, but they also had to endure insults and abuse from wealthy people.
Now with a leg injury, he probably couldn't even be a black market racer anymore. Losing the race meant losing the prize money, how would he live in the future...
Milo clenched his fists in despair and pounded the ground.
Just then, a pair of white sneakers appeared in front of him.
"Do you still want to win?" A woman's cold voice sounded.
Milo looked up and saw an excessively beautiful face, beautiful features, just a bit colder in temperament, but still very attractive.
After staring blankly for a moment, Milo glared at the woman with red eyes. "Are you mocking me? How can I win with a leg injury?"
Alessia said, "You only lost the first round out of three."
Milo frowned.
The meaning of the woman in front of him was that she would win the next two rounds, quite confident.
Seeing Milo remain silent, Alessia spoke again, "If I win this race, the prize money is yours. If I lose, I won't hold you responsible for anything."
Finally, Milo's emotions changed.
Alessia spoke again, "This is your only chance."
***