By the time Dominic arrived, the house was empty. He led people to search and discovered Esther's wedding dress.
"Sir, the Department of Defense just texted me that a recently licensed private helicopter has left our country."
"From Frederick Vincent?"
"Yes sir."
"Is it confirmed that my wife is there now?"
"Sir, it is currently unknown."
Dominic coldly pulled out his phone and dialed an unknown number. After a few seconds, the person picked up the phone.
"Oh, hello?" The sound was loud and turbulent so his voice was a little hard to hear.
"Where did you take my wife?"
"Ah, Dominic Arnold? Hi, why do you have my number?" Frederick spoke in a cheerful voice, glancing briefly at the woman who had fallen asleep beside him.
"Stop messing around. Tell me, what do you want?" Dominic had absolutely no patience when talking to Frederick.
"God. You're so grumpy. All in all, it's nothing special. Esther Joan said she wanted to travel, and I'm good at it. So I helped her."
"She asked you to take her away?"
"Yes."
"Where does she want to go?"
"Lenox City." Frederick made no secret of this.
After hearing the answer he wanted, Dominic immediately hung up. He tugged the bow tie down his neck and grabbed it to the ground. Dominic's subordinates knew he was angry, so they all kept quiet and backed out.
"Esther Joan, you're so good. I'm so worried about you, but it seems you're engrossed in your new lover.
Take advantage when I can't find you, you should enjoy your last good time in the Lenox City."
Dominic stared at the elegant white wedding dress that was left on the bed. His eyes were no longer calm and cold, but completely jealous and angry at being betrayed. The only thought in his mind right now was to find Esther Joan as soon as possible.
"Ethan."
"Yes sir."
"Prepare a private jet. We'll fly to the Lenox City now."
...
When I woke up, Frederick's helicopter had also landed.
"Welcome to the Lenox City." Frederick smiled and said.
The Lenox City is not a peaceful place to relax or have fun. This place is really unstable and often happens extremely scary riots and terrorism.
When I see Lenox City fighters carrying AK guns and patrolling the streets, I get goosebumps. For a moment, I slightly regretted my decision to follow Frederick here. I even imagined myself being shot to death at any moment.
"Come with me for a walk. We need to buy you some essentials. You know, I haven't lived with a woman in a while."
I did not refuse Frederick's offer. He was very familiar with the streets of the Lenox City, he showed me famous shops, some shops selling delicious food. At the same time, he also reminded me of places not to go.
"Anyway, if you want to hang out here, tell me in advance, don't go alone because women in the Lenox City are very vulnerable. Especially beautiful women like you." Frederick leaned close to my ear and whispered. "If I can't go with you, I'll send my subordinates with you. It'll be safer."
Hearing Frederick say that, I felt really grateful to him. Although my impression of him has deteriorated a lot since he hired the army and mercenaries to attack my engagement, but now that aversion has subsided a bit. He still portrays himself as a gentleman and treats me quite politely.
I looked at the street, feeling like I was lost in a different body from what I used to know. Rows of white Lenox City flags flutter in the wind, below are old billboards that have been painted over. This is a country that has been through a lot of wars, but its people are resilient to day by day.
As I passed a small house, I saw a young woman with a black scarf on her head and many children. This is a poor family, I'm sure of that. In the poorly lit room, a row of sewing machines sat in the corner, heart-shaped balloons dangling from the ceiling. Amidst this gloom, the only ray of light for the woman and her children was a small window not the length of an arm's length.
"Don't look too long, they'll think you're the bad guy. Just act normal." Frederick reminded me.
I nodded to signify my agreement with him. I feel so sorry for the women here, they are beautiful, talented and strong, but they are not so lucky.
Spring has passed now, so in the Lenox City the weather is very hot and sunny. I picked up quite a few cotton dresses and some cool sportswear. Anyway, I don't need to pay attention to the image of the elegant and noble lady of the Joan family anymore because no one knows.
When walking on the street, I often receive stares from the men here. Perhaps this is why Frederick advised me not to go around this area alone.
After a few hours of walking, we arrived at Frederick's mansion. It is located in an isolated area of the richest people in the Lenox City. This place makes me feel like a paradise completely separate from the unstable and anxious life of the Lenox City people outside.
Frederick's mansion is lavish and colorful, just like his personality. There is no uniform color in this villa. Each place here has a different look that symbolizes his different personalities. By comparison, he has a much more complex interior than Dominic.
Dominic is cold most of the time and shows no interest in anything. He is polite to strangers and always keeps his distance from them. Occasionally, he would show affection for me, but not much. It often comes suddenly when he misses me. And of course, not to mention the times when we made love.
But Frederick is different. His personality is extremely erratic, being happy can suddenly become upset or angry. He likes to appear mysterious, but when he speaks, he is very straightforward. He's also not one to hide his feelings. But such people have the potential to be unexpectedly terrifying.
I've always known Frederick as a dangerous guy, the way he played with guns I understood. Being around him meant I was taking the risk, but I needed to. I wanted to bet with myself if he could tell me the things I wanted to know about Dominic.
"This is your room. And here are your things. If you want to use anything else, just tell me, don't be shy. We're friends."
When I heard Frederick say that we were friends, I just smiled faintly. Are we friends? For the time being, it can be considered so.
Frederick gave me everything, except a phone. He wanted that I could only rely on him in this strange Lenox City country and not contact anyone else, especially Dominic.
"Hey. Will Dominic find us here soon?"
"He must already know we're here."
"So you're not afraid Dominic will attack you?" I was surprised to see Frederick completely calm.
"Have you forgotten what I told you?" Frederick grabbed my chin and laughed. "Lenox City is my core business. If I were to be attacked so easily by your fiancé here, I would have died a long time ago."
After saying that confidently, Frederick left. Compared to Dominic, he was just as busy, and he couldn't be around me all day.
The first day passed, I just went to see this villa and cook some dishes, sometimes I will also think of Dominic. Just like Frederick said, Dominic hadn't come here yet, or it could be said that he hadn't found a way to get there.
I plan to talk to Frederick this evening. I need to quickly learn everything about Dominic before I leave. Anyway, I'm not interested in being with Frederick.
"Oh, I didn't think you could cook that well."
When Frederick entered the kitchen without my knowledge, he was free to pick up a few chips and put them in his mouth to chew.
"I think you can cook for me while we're here. You cook better than the previous Lenox City chef I hired." Frederick casually sat down next to me and began to eat.
I pondered his suggestion a bit and agreed. I'm at his mansion, eating what he buys, so I should at least act like I'm useful. Cooking will also help me pass the time while I'm here.
"Okay, but I want to buy the ingredients myself."
"Okay. I'll go with you to the market tomorrow. Well, this chicken soup is delicious."
Seeing how he comfortably eats, I feel like I'm looking at a teenage boy. He seemed really interested in the food I cooked. Seeing a man so tall but acting so naive and clumsy made me feel that he was really funny. Who would have thought that someone like that would be an arms dealer on the same level as Dominic Arnold?
"I don't remember if I told you, that you look a lot like my sister."
"You already said it."
"She's also very good at cooking."
Frederick didn't seem happy about his dead sister anymore. Although he was still smiling, he was much more contemplative. Unconsciously, I wanted to comfort him. So I put my hand on his shoulder and patted him, like I was soothing him and making him forget his sadness.
"It's okay. Everything will be okay. My mother used to tell me that every loss is inevitable, the important thing is that we know how to overcome that loss to live for us."
Frederick raised his head to look at me. For the first time, since I met him until now, I saw his eyes glint with suppressed emotions, like someone who had not been cared for in a long time.
He suddenly lunged at me and hugged me. His embrace was so tight that I felt a little breathless, but I let him do it and continued to pat him on the shoulder instead of comforting words.
He once said we were friends, so I want to treat him like a friend who cares about each other.
Frederick hugged me for a long time, it took a while for his mood to settle down. I couldn't see his face, but I felt his tense body relax little by little. In the end, he stopped hugging me too, but he didn't sit back and just sat next to me. That confused me a bit, and just as I was about to take the seat next to him to keep some distance from him, he grabbed my arm.
"Esther Joan. Suddenly I really want to take you away from Dominic. What if you stay with me like this?"