Crises in Love (Zora and Jaylan) novel Chapter 499

Exhausted from crying, and burdened by his injury, it wasn't long before Carl drifted back into a fitful sleep. But it wasn't a peaceful rest; he'd whimper and wail intermittently, clearly in pain.

The doctor reassured me that it was lucky the main artery hadn't been hit, just muscle tissue, but given the boy's tender age, we had to keep a close eye on him.

I resolved to stay put in the small town until his wounds healed, postponing our return to Goldenvale Town.

After getting the doctor to administer a mild sedative, I took Hannah and headed straight to the local sheriff's office to confront the detained Jaylan.

Seeing him, I felt a surge of rage so fierce I could have torn out his heart. But I kept my cool, asking him, "Tell me where you've sent my child."

At first, Jaylan played dumb, claiming he didn’t understand.

I slammed my fist on the table, anger boiling over. "You really think I'm that gullible? Or are you keen on spending your life behind bars? Because I can make that wish come true!"

I laid out all the pieces of the puzzle before him, peppering him with questions until his face went pale. "I swear, Aaliyah, I have no idea where that woman took the kid. I'm telling you the truth; I just don't know."

He was stubborn, almost insolent. "I had my reasons, okay? She used this to blackmail me, forcing me to give in, threatening Carl's well-being. I asked her a thousand times, but she wouldn't budge. What could I do?"

"Jaylan, are you even human? You've gambled away your business, your family, your own flesh and blood for a fling. How can you live with yourself?" I was livid. "It should have been you who died!"

Those were my raw, unfiltered thoughts. What good was this excuse of a man still breathing when Zora, the only lead to finding my son, was now six feet under?

I remembered when I was pregnant with Carl, Zora suddenly claimed a family emergency back home and took an eight-month leave, only returning when I was about to give birth. She looked healthier and a bit bigger then.

I joked with her, "Looks like going home did you good; you’ve put on some weight, huh?"

She admitted to some family business but wouldn't elaborate, and I didn't press.

"Aaliyah!" Jaylan pleaded from across the table, "Just wait... think of something, Aaliyah, to get me out of here! Please, let me out! I'll help you find clues; we need to get our child back!"

I looked at him coldly, scornfully replying, "You look for him? Have you ever cared about his existence? My three children, did you ever care for any of them? Stay here... it's a good place for you to reflect!"

Without another word, I left the sheriff's office with Hannah.

Outside, Hannah asked, "Do you believe what he said?"

"He wasn't lying; he probably doesn't know where Carl is. Otherwise, he wouldn't occasionally yield to Zora. He was telling the truth about that."

As we walked away, I continued, "Remember back in Silverdale City, how he kept taking pictures of Carl? Now it's clear: Zora must have been threatening him, wanting pictures of Carl. That's why he took them, not out of any genuine concern for his son."

"How do you know he was taking them for Zora?" Hannah asked, puzzled.