Chapter 306 - 306: Missing

*** At Erick's Place ***

The ringing sound of the doorbell reverberated inside the entire house. Elle was the one who walked over to welcome the visitor outside.

"Erick what the-" Dr. Gomez was not able to finish his sentence the moment Elle's face greeted his sight.

He stayed rooted in his spot, his mouth hung open but no words came out as his eyes lingered on Elle's face. He was shocked beyond belief. 

He shook his head and blinked several times, as he thought that his eyes were just playing tricks on him. But nothing happened. Elle was still there standing in front of him, eyeing him with an unreadable expression on her face.

Erick followed Elle behind and saw Dr. Gomez who looked like a frozen statue outside. It took a few hard shakes for Dr. Gomez to awaken from his baffled state.

"Hey, are you with us? Get a grip on yourself! There's a patient inside that needs your help." Erick said to him with urgency in his voice.

After Dr. Gomez recovered from his deep stupor, he gave Erick a questioning gaze while pointing Elle. 

Erick took a deep sigh and said, " I will explain later. Please follow me first. We have an injured man inside." 

Erick didn't wait for him to respond as he immediately pulled him inside the house going to his room where the unconscious patient was lying in bed. Dr. Gomez brought his medical kit as per the instruction of Erick.

Elle shook her head as she watched the back of the two men. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Dr. Gomez's reaction was too much as if he had just seen a ghost.

'He might be thinking that I am a ghost. Well… I couldn't blame him… I and the 'dead person' they know look exactly the same. I should have done plastic surgery in the first place before coming back here to avoid a scene like this.' Elle thought to herself jokingly.

Elle proceeded to the kitchen as she helped Erick in the preparation of ingredients. They were supposed to enjoy this dinner alone together but due to the circ.u.mstances, their initial plan got ruined.

Erick left Dr. Gomez in his room as he allowed him to treat the wound of the man they rescued from gangsters just a while ago. Since he pleaded not to bring him to the hospital, Erick decided to bring him home and called Dr. Gomez over.

Fortunately, Dr. Gomez would be in the morning shift that's why he was free tonight.

When Erick went back to the kitchen, Elle had just done preparing the ingredients including the meat and spices. He couldn't help but smile seeing Elle standing by his kitchen once again. The house felt very lonely without her presence for the past two years.

"Hey, do you still need me here? You've already done most of the works." Erick grinned at her then traced his steps towards her.

Elle rolled her eyes playfully. "Of course, you're the Master Chef, did you forget?"

Erick chuckled as he took the tray of ingredients in her hand.

"Okay… now it's my turn. Just sit back and enjoy... Let me do this. Do you want to watch television in the living room while waiting?"

Elle shook her head and grabbed a chair. She sat down beside the dining table as she watched Erick. Her eyes were following his every action.

"I'll stay. I want to watch you while you're cooking." 

Erick paused what he was doing as he turned around to face her. Those words alone could make his heart flutter. He longed for this. 

In the past, every time he cooked, Elle would always accompany him in the kitchen as she watched him. 

Sometimes, she would always hug him from behind while he sliced the vegetables and other ingredients. If he was too immersed in his cooking, Elle would just suddenly steal a kiss from him on his cheeks.

Every time she got bored of waiting, she would always do things to distract him and their food would always end up getting burnt. In the end, they would just order food and have it delivered to their home.

Erick put on a gentle smile as he reminisced those memories. Elle, also known as Catseye, had playful and naughty sides too in which Erick was the only one who was aware of this.

"Hey, Chief Lee? Why are you just standing there? Smiling like a fool again?" Elle asked lifting an eyebrow.

Elle's voice pulled him back out of his wandering thoughts. 

"Hmm, come here… I'll teach you how to cook. I'll give you my secret recipe." Erick said with a grin.

Elle's face brightened up. She nodded and flashed her lovely smile before she cheerfully went to his side.

After they were done cooking, Elle prepared the table while Erick proceeded to his room to call Dr. Gomez and invite him to have dinner with them. The middle-aged man was still sound asleep.

Upon reaching the dining area, Erick immediately introduced Dr. Gomez to Elle. 

"You're Aliyah… not Elle? You and Elle look alike!" Dr. Gomez asked her in disbelief.

"Are you her twin sister?" He added.

Elle let out a forced laugh.

"Since the day I met Erick and his friends, everyone is calling me Elle. Argh! Kinda frustrating!" Elle pouted in frustration.

'Because you are Elle.' Erick thought to himself as he looked at her helplessly.

"I'm sorry Miss Aliyah. But it is really hard to believe that two different persons have the same face… and voice? Unless you are identical twins?" Dr. Gomez insisted.

Elle heaved a deep sigh. "I think I should ask my parents… maybe I have a twin sister."

"Parents? Do you still have parents? As in biological parents?" Erick asked her curiously. 

Elle rolled her eyes once again.

"Yes, I do have. They are happily living in New York. Do I need to call them now? Do you want to talk to them?"

Erick fell silent. He was just observing Elle with complicated emotions.

"Hehe… no need Miss Aliyah. I believe you." Dr. Gomez said awkwardly.

"Let's have dinner first. I am really hungry." Elle said to end the topic.

The three of them sat down together and started eating their food.

"By the way, Doc, how is he?" Elle asked him regarding the condition of the middle-aged man.

"I cleaned and sanitized his wounds. He was covered by bruises. He was badly beaten. I injected him pain relievers. He will wake up by tomorrow. He needs to get an X-ray to check whether he got some broken bones or fractures."

"But he refused to go to the hospital," Erick said.

"Hmm, just bring him to some laboratory clinic. I'll write him a prescription and laboratory request. I will be the one to interpret the result." Dr. Gomez suggested.

"He's quite weird. He doesn't look like a bad guy but he doesn't want to see a doctor nor a policeman. I am curious about his reason.." Elle couldn't help but ponder.

Dr. Gomez just shrugged as he continued to dig in his food. He was enjoying his meal. The food was delicious.

"I'll talk to him once he wakes up." Erick simply stated.

As much as Erick wanted to spend more time with Elle, he had no choice but to forget that idea as of this moment. Elle decided to leave together with Dr. Gomez after their dinner.

Since Erick was currently taking care of an injured stranger, he couldn't leave him at the house alone. So Erick just asked Dr. Gomez to drop off Elle to her apartment. His doctor friend gladly complied with his request.

Just a few moments after Elle and Dr. Gomez left, Erick received a call from his hired man. He hired someone to follow and monitor Roland Bienvenido's whereabouts.

Roland Bienvenido was one of the original members of Los Molasses Gang 16 years ago together with Carlo Vello, Jefferson Gong, and Diego De Dios.

After the Gang members went to separate ways, Roland Bienvenido reestablished and recruited new members of Los Molasses Gang. He became the new leader.

Erick continued investigating them, especially their relationsh.i.p.s, and how they were connected to Elle's past. Erick knew that Elle's revenge had something to do with those people.

Erick hired someone to trace the other original members. He was determined to uncover the truth regarding Elle's past.

"Chief Lee… we got a problem. Roland Bienvenido just went missing!"