03
The next day, whispers rippled through the city and the Thomas Family was forced to cancel the wedding because the bride was missing.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Portland, the eldest son of the Davis Family stood in his groom’s suit, Waiting for his bride. But she, too, had failed to appear.
“Son, you wouldn’t have been played, would you?”
The eldest son, his sharp features set in a grim line, turned toward his mother. “Mom, Daisy and I are already married. What could she possibly do to fool me?”
“Then why isn’t she here? We’ve been waiting since morning and now it’s already afternoon.”
Gordon glanced at the clock before his gaze shifted to the hotel entrance. Though he had only known Daisy for a brief time, he was certain of one thing: she wasn’t the type to go back on her word.
“If she said she would come, she’ll come
H
But as the afternoon bled into the evening and the last guest departed, Daisy still hadn’t shown up.
His family members watched him with sympathetic eyes.
Gordon Davis pressed his lips together, frustration simmering beneath the surface. He dialed a number. “Find
out about Daisy, the eldest daughter of the Johnson Family in Seattle.”
Once the call ended, he stared at the image of Daisy’s smiling face on his phone’s screensaver.
Had she regretted it?
A frown creased his brow. He refused to entertain the thought.
Sending Daisy to the mental hospital had been a secret closely guarded by the Johnson Family, but Gordon’s people had uncovered the truth. They had even discovered, through their sources, that Daisy had been forced into
the wild and had vanished without a trace.
Half a day later, Gordon entered the forest, his team in tow, as they searched for Daisy.
As time wore on, his presence seemed to grow more formidable, his energy sharpening with every passing.
moment
From the information he had gathered, Daisy had been lost in the forest for five days. The longer she was out there, the slimmer her chances of survival became.
Gordon’s aura grew nearly suffocating in its intensity.
Finally, beneath the shade of an ancient tree, they found her, a barely conscious figure.
Gordon’s eyes flashed with hope. He rushed forward, gently cupping Daisy’s face as he whispered, “Wife.”
At the sound of his voice, Daisy’s strength waned entirely. With the last of her resolve slipping away, she collapsed into his arms.
Daisy felt as though she had been trapped in a long, endless dream.
In the dream, Daisy was relentlessly pursued by wild beasts, her body battered by poisonous snakes, each. escape more narrow than the last
But no matter how hard she fought, death loomed closer, inevitable.
Finally, as the bloodthirsty jaws of a grizzly bear closed in on her, terror surged within her, causing her to snap her eyes open. She shot upright in bed, heart racing
The sudden movement almost caused the needle in her hand to fall. Gordon, who had been vigilantly watching over her, rushed to steady her. “Careful.”
155 PM
But the accidental restraint only heightened Daisy’s panic. With an immediate motion, she pushed his hand away, curling up against the wall, trembling in fear.
Seeing her distress, Gordon hesitated, not daring to make another move. He slowly stood, backing away to give
her space.
Kneeling down a
at a safe distance, he locked eyes with Daisy, his gaze softening as he watched her shrink in fear, her eyes wide with terror.
“Do you remember me?” Gordon’s voice was gentle, yet a quiet tension lingered beneath. “I’m Gordon. We got married a month ago. Do you remember?”
Daisy didn’t respond. Her body trembled uncontrollably as if the very air around her was too much to bear. She was surrounded by warmth, yet her mind was lost in the cold walls of the mental hospital and the unforgiving wilderness.
The trauma had turned her into something fragile, a bird too frightened to fly.
Not daring to push further, Gordon slowly stood, pointing to the bedside button. “I’ll leave for now. If you need anything, just press that button.”
Daisy didn’t acknowledge him. Her eyes, hidden beneath her disheveled hair, flickered with silent fear.
When noon arrived, Gordon quietly entered, carrying a bowl of oatmeal. He placed it gently on the bedside table, his eyes falling on Daisy, still curled up against the wall,
Standing at a distance, he spoke softly, “You need to eat, Daisy. Please, just a little. Come,
