Chapter 117: Chapter 115: He Loved Her More Than He Imagined
The police were in the middle of a rescue when another person jumped in. They immediately stopped what they were doing to save Chloe Marshall.
Chloe Marshall was flailing in the water, shouting and crying erratically. "I can swim! You don’t need to save me! Hurry up and save Nora!"
A male police officer tried to reason with her. "Miss, please get out of the water first. We will do everything we can to rescue her, but half an hour has passed. There’s a ninety-five percent chance the person in the car has already drowned."
Chloe Marshall was soaked to the bone. Her wet hair clung to her shoulders, dripping water. She had been searching underwater for over half an hour, and she wouldn’t have gotten out if Ethan Ellsworth hadn’t forcibly pulled her onto the bank.
Jean Grant draped her own coat over Chloe Marshall’s shoulders. "Don’t catch a cold."
She sat huddled on the ground, tears dripping down one after another.
"Ethan, Herman’s here."
Chloe Marshall looked over as well. Herman Hawthorne’s face was thunderous. A man who had seen it all, he had lost his composure. "Have they rescued her yet?"
Ethan Ellsworth replied in a low voice, "It’s been too long. She’s most likely drowned."
Herman Hawthorne’s eyes grew moist. "Just yesterday, I told her it was a shame they missed their chance. I never thought... this time, they’ve truly missed it for good."
"Herman, try not to take it so hard."
Herman Hawthorne looked at Jean Grant. "I’m upset, but I don’t think I’ll be the one who’s most devastated. Jean, call your brother. I tried telling him, but he doesn’t believe me."
Ethan Ellsworth knew exactly what he meant. "I called him too, and he didn’t believe me either."
But Jean Grant was a little confused. "What does this have to do with my brother?"
"She’s the woman your brother loves. You tell me, does it have anything to do with him?" After saying this, Herman Hawthorne walked onto the bridge.
Hearing this, Jean Grant’s palms went cold. Not daring to delay, she immediately dialed Quentin Grant’s number.
This time, his phone was off.
She had no choice but to say to Ethan Ellsworth, "I’m going to find him. You guys stay here. Call me if anything happens."
After being salvaged by a crane, the mangled wreck of the luxury car was hoisted onto the riverbank.
The car’s windows were completely shattered, and the driver’s seat was covered in blood, but there was no one inside.
The conclusion was obvious: the person inside had almost certainly drowned.
The next step was to recover the body, but after a long search, they found nothing.
In the end, the police’s preliminary conclusion was that the body had been washed downstream. The search would continue unabated.
On the bridge, the small group of people either squatted or stood, all of them silent.
Jean Grant took a taxi back to the city and went straight to Quentin Grant’s apartment complex.
"Is my brother here?" she asked as soon as the door opened.
One of the Men in Black quickly replied, "He’s eating."
Jean panicked. ’He still has the appetite to eat?!’
When she ran to the entrance of the living room, she found Quentin Grant was indeed eating.
And sitting next to him was a very beautiful woman.
"Brother, who is this now?"
Charlotte Young stood up. "You must be Jean. I’m Charlotte Young."
Jean Grant shot her a look. "I don’t care who you are. I’m asking you, what are you doing here with my brother?"
"Your mother and Quentin set us up."
Jean Grant froze instantly. "Brother, are you two dating?"
Quentin Grant kept his head down, eating. "What are you here for?"
For a moment, Jean was rooted to the spot. She hesitated, unsure if she should still say it.
"Didn’t... Ethan and Herman call you?" After some thought, she finally got the words out.
Quentin Grant’s hand paused. He turned to look at her. "So you’re in on it too? Trying to fool me?"
Jean grew frantic, a sting in her nose. "Brother! It’s true! Something happened to Nora Ainsworth! She’s drowned, and they’re searching for her body right now! If Herman hadn’t told me you love her, I wouldn’t have rushed all the way over here to get you!"
Quentin Grant remained seated, then slowly rose to his feet as if it took all the strength he had.
He stood up straight, and tears immediately streamed from his narrow eyes.
Both Jean Grant and Charlotte Young were stunned.
"Brother?" she called out tentatively.
Quentin Grant said nothing. He walked out the main door, and Jean Grant chased after him, getting into the car with him.
By the time they reached the city outskirts, the police had already left.
A pink cardigan had been recovered from the water. Chloe Marshall confirmed that it belonged to Nora Ainsworth.
Ethan Ellsworth and Herman Hawthorne had also seen her wear it before.
The cardigan was likely washed off as the current carried her downstream. The river flowed directly into a larger one.
The search would continue along the downstream section tomorrow.
The police issued a public statement: the person was confirmed to have drowned. After so much time, and after plunging from such a high bridge, even if the impact didn’t kill her, she would have at least been knocked unconscious. Either way, there was no possibility of survival.
This outcome was expected.
The car’s engine cut out. Several pairs of eyes turned to watch as Quentin Grant, barely able to stand, staggered over to Ethan Ellsworth. His voice trembled. "Where is she? Where is she?!"
Ethan Ellsworth stood up, turned to look at the broken guardrail, and said nothing.
Herman Hawthorne walked over and patted Quentin Grant’s shoulder. "We’ve been searching for a long time," he answered in a low voice. "We haven’t found her."
Chloe Marshall stood up, looking at him with tear-filled eyes. "What are you doing here now? Where were you before? You kicked Nora out, so what are you doing here?! If you couldn’t make her happy, you shouldn’t have been with her in the first place!"
Quentin Grant didn’t speak. He squatted down and picked up the dripping wet, pink cardigan. The cold, wet sensation on his fingertips was a piercing pain, and his heart ached uncontrollably.
’I never realized I loved her more than I thought.’
’I never realized I could fall in love with her so unintentionally, and so deeply.’
’I thought I could send her away for a while, get everything in order, and then win her back.’
’I thought it didn’t matter how much I suffered inside, as long as she could be happy.’
’But I was wrong. So, so wrong. I shouldn’t have done this.’
’And just like that, I’ve forever lost the chance to win her back. This must be heaven’s punishment for me.’
In the quiet of the night, a light, continuous drizzle fell, and the wind began to pick up.
His choked sobs were clearly audible to everyone. He never showed his true emotions in front of his friends. This time was an exception.
Like a child, he covered his eyes with one hand, his sobs gradually becoming uncontrollable.
No one tried to console him. They all just stood there, watching him, each feeling their own private anguish.
Jean Grant had never seen him like this. This was the first time she realized her own brother had a connection with Nora Ainsworth.
When they left, everyone was soaked through. Chloe Marshall had developed a high fever, so they all went to Quentin Grant’s residence.
The family doctor put Chloe Marshall on an IV drip to bring down her fever. Herman Hawthorne sat on the sofa in silence. Ethan Ellsworth was the first to break the quiet atmosphere. "I’m freezing to death. I’m going to go find some clothes to change into."
Jean Grant glanced at him. "A bathrobe on top and leather shoes on the bottom. Your sense of style is really something else."
Ethan Ellsworth shivered as he went upstairs. "I was in a panic."
