Chapter 224: Quite the Pair

Adrian sighs as he turns to look at Cassidy who's presently making herself at home in his office. 

"I thought we talked about this already," he started, sighing one more time. 

"We did..." she acquiesced.

"But we're not done talking. I'm serious about what I said."

"I know you are."

"So, why aren't you taking me seriously?"

He swivels on his desk chair, looking up at her. Under the light, he can almost see her eyebags even when she tried to cover them up with make-up. There's been a lot on her mind lately. On top of Damien's kidnapping incident, she's been particularly antsy about Asher's growing distance from them.

He can't blame her, though. He's worried sick too.

These days, Asher would barely spare Cassidy a glance. Watching him walk away from her as though they're strangers puts a monumental strain on her heart. Having him disappear from her life like a tendril of smoke is enough to make her feel like ashes scattered in the wind. 

They don't know why Asher is acting this way, but they can feel that it's because of Damien's disappearance that night. 

'I know you, Cassidy. I know the rhythm of your heart and the direction of your thoughts.'

As Adrian has never been able to hide matters of the heart from Cassidy, so it is the same for her. He understands that the situation they're in is taking a huge toll on her, and he will allow it no longer.

Earlier that day, he'd been a little surprised when she insisted on meeting him in his office. 

She'd wanted to check on him. That's probably because he wasn't being discreet either. Aside from Damien's abduction and Asher's unusual behavior, another problem has appeared and started stealing his sleep lately. 

'Apparently, my mother went missing. She's supposed to be confined in a private mental health facility. She's been staying there ever since she went mad when Grisham Donovan received his life sentence two years ago...' Adrian pondered, recalling the news he received from Gertrude's caretakers the other day. 

'And as if that's not enough, Grisham Donovan himself broke out from prison. Good grief. Just what the hell is going on?'

It's one predicament after another. 

Right when he thought that everything would be alright from now on, all these things had to happen. It's as if fate is mocking them, telling them that they can never find a happy ending. But instead of thinking that way, he decided to believe in what his wife told him back then. 

'If it's not a happy ending, then it's not the ending yet.'

At that thought, Adrian feels his shoulders slacken. And in a rare show of tired affection, he scoots closer to Cassidy before he wraps his arms around her waist.

"I am taking you seriously..." he told her, feeling her return his embrace, her fingers running through his hair.

"I'm just being cautious, Cassidy. You have to understand. What I did tonight, what I saw - I'm actually glad you weren't there."

"But Adrian..." she argued, a little softer this time.

"If you're going to do things alone, you're just keeping the burden all to yourself. I thought we agreed to do them together."

"Sometimes, it's a struggle to give you what you want."

Cassidy hits his head lightly, pouting. At this, Adrian only chuckles. 

"And sometimes, it's a pain to get things through your thick skull," she retorted while he pulled back, if only to avoid getting hit again, and smiled cheekily.

"Well, I suppose this is why we make quite the pair."

Adrian looks dastardly handsome right then, especially with his toothy grin and his smug expression. Cassidy steels her heart to keep her mind at the wheel for a little bit longer.

"You're distracting me again!" she whined, though there was a twinkle in her eyes that dispelled all the merits of her statement.

"You were distracting me first," he accused, smirking. 

"With good cause!"

"Sure. Because good cause is equal to giving me a heart attack."

"What a drama queen."

"Whatever you say."

Adrian turns back to his desk, going through his pile of paperwork once more. Silence befalls them for a moment. Cassidy still has her hands knotted in his hair. And it's only his self-satisfied hum that snaps them out of the comfortable lull. She watches as he looks up to her again. 

"A week at most..." she then whispered, and he caught the trail of her hands squeezing her palms reassuringly.

"I'm hoping Damien will hold out until then."

"Our nephew's a fighter..." he said with conviction. 

"We'll definitely get him back."

"Oh, right. You're also moving in the shadows, aren't you? While the police continues to investigate, you're conducting your own. Isn't that why you're staying up late tonight again?"

"I finally found the location of the hideout. Now, I have to get the layout of the building."

Since the Millicent's have a wide-ranging network, they're able to increase the pace of the investigation.

Just about a couple of days after the kidnapping incident, one of their sources had confided in Ray, the detective who solved the case regarding Grisham, about possible sightings of Damien as well as a list of places where he could be held captive. At that news, Adrian had gone on to investigate, bringing Charles along with him. Soon enough, they learned about a large-scale human trafficking activity involving a syndicate of institutions that went bankrupt in the past. 

That explains why Keith, a former chief executive officer whose business faced the same fate, is one of them. 

"By all means..." Cassidy breathed out, appalled. 

"These heinous individuals should get captured at once. I mean, human trafficking? Really?"

Adrian scowls, recalling that she still doesn't know about Gertrude and Grisham - and he can't let her know yet. 

For now, they have to deal with one matter at a time. And so, he went on to investigate further, which led to his eventual disguise as Damien's temporary handler last night. It was a stroke of luck, but it was an opportunity he couldn't pass.

He'd gone ahead without telling Cassidy nor Charles, which more than ruffled her feathers. Even now, she isn't a bit pleased with him.

"We can't involve the police yet. Now that we know their location, we should plan an ambush first - one that'll capture all of these degenerates at once..." Adrian said, hoping with all his heart that Damien could last until then. 

"At least we know more now than we did before. And it's only been four days."

"Yeah..." Cassidy agreed, nodding. 

"So. Phase two, then?"