Chapter 495: The Only Clue
Eric walked over and silently sat down next to his wife. Ella’s eyes were unfocused as she sat there quietly, holding the small airplane in her hands and staring blankly into space.
Thinking about how little Elias had been happily playing with the plane that morning, Ella felt a wave of anguish. Her chest tightened, and her eyes began to redden again.
Eric gently took her hand in one of his, while his other hand softly smoothed her disheveled hair.
Lucas, sitting nearby, said nothing. He quietly left the living room to give them some space.
Ella’s eyelashes fluttered, resembling the delicate wings of a butterfly. The dim lighting in the living room cast soft shadows on her face, creating crescent-like shapes under her lashes.
"I’m sorry, honey... I failed to protect our son," Eric said, his deep eyes filled with sorrow and cold resolve. "But the fact that they waited this long to take Elias means... they weren’t doing it for money."
Ella let out a bitter laugh and pulled her hand away, but Eric held on tighter. "Ella, losing our son has broken my heart too. Please, don’t treat me like this... I need you. Aurora’s call only came because she’s an artist our company values—I didn’t want to cause unnecessary tension with her."
Ella pressed her lips together, her brow furrowed with icy restraint. "Just let me have some quiet."
"We’ve been married for so many years, Ella. I don’t want us to keep drifting apart like this—it’s killing me too. I’ll do anything to make things right, no matter what it takes."
"If I could trade places, I’d rather it was me who was taken," Eric said, gripping her hand tightly, his eyes full of pain.
Ella glanced at him, her mouth dry, her gaze flitting away as her heart raced. She didn’t know what to say.