Chapter 40
“Alright, alright, you’re super fierce! Want some candy?”
She pulled out a handful of colorful starfish-shaped candies from her pocket, which she had bought at a popular tourist spot earlier that day. Not only were they pretty, but they tasted absolutely amazing.
“Don’t treat me like a little kid!” Sebastian said indignantly, but his frown turned into a smile when he saw the shiny candies in her hand. “Starfish-shaped, wow!”
Xanthea laughed. If he wasn’t a little kid, then what was he?
The starfish candies quickly bonded the two, turning them into tight buddies. With nothing else to do, Xanthea sang nursery rhymes and told jokes, making Sebastian laugh till he bent over.
But when she mentioned it was getting late and she needed to take him home, his face. immediately fell.
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t want to go home.” Sebastian mumbled, fiddling with the candy wrappers. “There’s no one at home, it’s so lonely and-boring, no one to play with.”
No one at home?
Looking at his smooth, fair cheeks and his stylish, clean outfit, Xanthea doubted that he was really left alone.
“Where are your mom and dad?”
“Mom and dad went on a trip abroad. They said my uncle would come stay in Willowdale for a while to keep me company, but I waited and waited, and he never showed up. He’s a liar, and I don’t want to talk to him ever again!”
As he spoke, Sebastian looked like he was about to cry again.
Promising something to a kid and not keeping it, his uncle really was awful!
“So you ran away from home?”
“Yeah!” Sebastian sniffled. “If I can’t wait for him, I’ll make sure he can’t find me either!”
“That’s some serious revenge, but what if he calls the police and they bring you back?”
Oh, right!
Sebastian paused, looking at her somewhat panic-stricken. “Then, can I hide at your place. for a while?”
“You’re quite brave, aren’t you afraid I might kidnap you?”
1/2
Chapter 40
“You’re so pretty, if you kidnapped me, I’d just marry you when I grow up!”
“Huh, always thinking big!” Xanthea scooped him up. “Let’s get moving. Better to go back on your own than have the cops drag you back!”
“Waaaah, no no,” Sebastian kicked his legs and wailed. “What if my uncle still isn’t back?”
“Then I guess I’ll just have to sacrifice my evening to keep you company!”
“Really?”
Sebastian’s eyes lit up, wiping away a couple of crocodile tears. “Then let’s hurry back!”
“Such a drama king!”
At Crystal Lakes Estates, number 27,
Inside the luxurious standalone villa, a crystal chandelier cast a soft glow, yet the living room of the Thompson family was plunged into deep panic and dread.
The ser vants knelt in a flurry, tears streaming down as they faced the man shrouded in a chilling gloom.
“Mr. Lockwood, we’re so sorry, we didn’t know when Sebastian slipped out.”
“He said he wanted to go to the backyard to fly kites, and Nora and I went upstairs to get the kites. By the time we came down, he was gone. We thought he was in the garden, but there was nothing there, the butler knows this too.”
“Sebastian usually tells us where he’s going, today was really out of the ordinary.”
At the entrance, some police officers paced back and forth, making calls, but as time ticked by, the search teams still had no news about the whereabouts of the Thompson family’s young master. Helplessly, they looked towards the man at the head of the room offering words of comfort.