Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee

Luke Gill erased any trace of emotion from his face, but his heart churned with unease. "I just saw Tina and Jared. Though, it seems like they didn't notice me. Quite surprising." "What's so surprising about that?"

Ella Bailey shot him an unimpressed glance. "You're not some big celebrity, Luke Gill. Why would they notice you? You really think too highly of yourself."

Luke Gill was long used to Ella Bailey's sharp tongue. Her words didn't faze him in the slightest.

He even smiled warmly, reaching out to take her hand. When she tried to pull away, he tightened his grip, holding her firmly by his side. "You're right. There's no reason for them to notice me."

"I heard Kelly's upset after being rejected by Hayden. She's probably throwing a fit. Why don't we go check on her together? Just in case anything happens."

Ella Bailey rolled her eyes, wanting to dismiss the idea, but she paused mid-motion.

Kelly had been rejected, yet here she was, about to walk into her hospital room hand-in-hand with Luke Gill. It'd probably drive Kelly insane.

The thought amused her, so she stopped struggling against Luke's grip.

Behind them, Woods, the man tasked with carrying the gifts, raised a brow. His expression was unreadable as his gaze landed on the two holding hands. His lips twitched slightly, but he swallowed whatever thoughts he had and followed them silently into the elevator.

In the hospital room, Kelly lay weakly on the bed, her face turned toward Victor, tears still streaking her cheeks.

She looked utterly pitiful-like someone who'd suffered unimaginable grievances.

Victor, who could never bear to see Vivienne cry, felt his heart ache at the sight of his daughter, who resembled her so much. His voice was full of indignation. "My daughter marrying his son would have been a favor to the Cohen family! That old man dared to put on airs with me?! And Hayden-what an insufferable brat!"

"Dad, who's upset you again? It's the middle of the day, and you're already this angry?"

Ella Bailey pushed the door open, catching the last part of his rant.

Her sharp gaze flickered with a fleeting hint of amusement. She reached up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear, her fingernail lightly grazing the earring she wore.

A faint smirk played on her crimson lips as she strutted confidently into the room, ahead of Luke Gill. She didn't even spare a glance at Kelly on the bed, instead heading straight toward Victor.

"Your blood pressure's already high, Dad. Getting worked up over something so trivial isn't worth it."

"Trivial?"

Vivienne's face was a picture of disbelief, her voice trembling with shock and hurt. "Victor, did you hear that? Ella, how could you say that? Kelly is your sister, and she's lying in a hospital bed after being humiliated. How can you call this 'trivial'?"

Seeing Vivienne tear up, Victor's chest tightened with pain.

He waved Ella aside with an irritated gesture. "You're getting more and more out of line! Kelly got rejected, and you're happy about it, aren't you?"

Of course, she was happy.

Sister? Kelly should take a good look in the mirror before calling herself that!

Ella Bailey bit back her sarcastic thoughts, schooling her expression into one of feigned seriousness. "Dad, I'm only thinking about your health. How could you misunderstand me like this? Besides, there was nothing between Kelly and Hayden in the first place. This whole rejection thing is just absurd. Anyone who didn't know better might even think they'd been dating."

"You were just trying to set Kelly up with him. Hayden's constantly surrounded by beautiful women; isn't it normal for him to not be interested? I don't see why she's making such a fuss. Getting herself admitted to the hospital over this-it's embarrassing."

Her rapid-fire retort left even Luke Gill momentarily speechless.

On the bed, Kelly's trembling fingers pointed at Ella as though she'd just been struck by lightning. She was so furious she couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

In the end, she turned her face into the pillow and began to sob quietly, her muffled cries filling the room.

No one noticed the venomous glint in her eyes as she hid her face.

Vivienne clutched her chest, visibly distressed. "Victor, look at her! Ella, I know you don't like Kelly, but how can you say such cruel things? She's your sister! Do you think your life will somehow get easier now that Kelly didn't secure a marriage with the Cohen family?"

"Ella, apologize!"

Victor's voice boomed across the room, his anger palpable. "The Bailey family is one of the most respected hidden families, yet you speak as though we're beneath others! Don't forget-you're also a Bailey! If your sister is being looked down upon, do you think your future will be any better?"

"Dad, Ella didn't mean it like that."

Sensing the tension rising, Luke Gill quickly stepped in to mediate. "This whole thing is really the Cohen family's fault. If they didn't want to form an alliance with us, they should've made it clear from the start, instead of leading Kelly on and breaking her heart."

He paused, noticing Victor's expression softening slightly, then added, "Honestly, I don't think Hayden dislikes Kelly. There might be other reasons behind this."

Victor frowned. "What other reasons could there be?"

"Well, Dad, you might not know this, but Hayden is very close with Jared and Tina. What if they said something to influence him? That could explain why he's keeping his distance from Kelly." Though Luke didn't finish his thought, everyone in the room understood his implication.

Tina had deliberately interfered to keep Hayden and Kelly apart.

Ella couldn't help rolling her eyes. It seemed the rest of the Bailey family, apart from her, had collectively outsourced their brains to Luke Gill. His ability to spin a narrative was truly commendable. Sure enough, Victor and Vivienne both fell into pensive silence.

Luke, noticing this, pressed on, his tone somber. "To be fair, it's partly my fault. I misjudged people in the past and got involved with Elsa. Now they're trying to exonerate her, and because Kelly is my sister-in-law, they're naturally wary of her. Perhaps, if I can prove my innocence in the Elsa situation, they'll stop targeting Kelly."novelbin

Victor's body stiffened, as though he'd just remembered something important. "This isn't your fault. That meddling Tina-it doesn't matter what she's trying to do. She'll soon find out whether she's up to the task!"

Victor's tone darkened as he turned to Woods. "Go find Ozan. Bring his whole family here immediately! Do it quickly. I want to see how Tina plans to reopen this case after all these years without any proof!" Ella's lips twitched faintly.

She couldn't decide whether to laugh at Victor's slow realization or admire Tina's remarkable foresight.

By now, Victor could head to Maplewood, but he'd find nothing but an empty house.

If he wanted to bring anyone back, he'd be lucky to find a brick or two for keepsakes.

The old man had clearly forgotten about Ozan Bailey entirely.

If not for needing them now, he probably wouldn't even remember Ozan's phone number.

As for the people Victor wanted... they were most likely still tied up in Tina's villa at this very moment.