Chapter 106. Interrogation
Inside the Everhart Manor
The grand living room of Everhart Manor—usually a place of elegant warmth—was now steeped in somber quiet.
Heavy curtains dimmed the sunlight, casting the room in a soft golden hue, while the crackling fireplace offered little comfort.
The sofas, arranged in a circular formation, now served as a somber council for worried hearts.
Liana Everhart, the mistress of the house and mother to Amelia, sat at the center of it all, surrounded by the girls.
Her elegant posture had withered, replaced by tension in her shoulders and a distant, haunted look in her eyes.
The weight of a mother’s dread pressed down on her every breath, and it was all she could do to keep herself composed.
The others tried their best to comfort her.
Freya sat beside her, gently rubbing her back in slow, calming motions. "She’s strong," she said softly. "If anyone could survive something like this, it’s Amelia. But... if she hasn’t come back yet, it’s likely she’s trapped. Or worse, captured somewhere in the black market."
Liana gave a faint nod, her fingers clutching a handkerchief with white-knuckled desperation. "I think so too," she murmured. "We had people search the entire southern black market, but no trace of her turned up. Not a single one."
Evelyn, who had been silent for most of the conversation, leaned forward slightly. Her tone was even, analytical. "That might mean she wasn’t captured," she proposed, "but either escaped... or—"