Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 322

Bryce blurted out, "Jaxon has escaped."

"What?" Whitney stood up abruptly, causing every executive in the room to turn their gaze towards her.

Whitney's face went through a quick succession of changes, making it clear the meeting couldn't proceed. She gestured dismissively, effectively adjourning the meeting, and headed straight back to her office. "How could we let him escape? The bodyguards..." "He took off when the guards were switching shifts. It's my oversight; I only assigned two of them to watch him. I thought, given his severe lung injury, and considering he was under investigation for manslaughter, he wouldn't run!" "...," Whitney was taken aback.

She squinted her eyes in thought, piecing it together-Jaxon saw her as a lifeline, a way to get out of the Bartels family's clutches only to ditch her when he saw fit!

She had overlooked something crucial: If Jaxon testified against the Bartels family and admitted his guilt, securing her uncle's release from prison, he'd still face a harsh sentence or even life imprisonment. People can be so cunning and treacherous. Jaxon wanted to escape scot-free, to save his own skin.

Damn it!

Fury and frustration swirled in her mind as she thought about her uncle still languishing in jail. Without Jaxon coming forward, her uncle's chance for a retrial was slim to none.

He would face the death penalty, while the Bartels family continued to roam free...

Whitney's eyes reddened with emotion, "Bryce, we have to find him, no matter what!"

"I'll have people search the city discreetly right away."

Whitney nodded, her brow furrowed in worry, "Now that he's out, he's a wanted man. With his ID, there's no way he could leave the country, unless he plans to blackmail the Bartels family..."

"If that fool tries to approach the Bartels, it's as good as signing his own death warrant. They'll make sure he doesn't see the courtroom!"

"My fear is that he's not thinking straight, trying to extort both of us for a quick payout. Playing both sides to escape justice."

Whitney spoke coldly, enveloped in anxiety. She felt powerless as she dashed out, "I'm on my way now. Let's try to pick up his trail. I hope he tries to blackmail me first within these three days..."

-

It was 8 PM by the time Whitney dragged her exhausted body back to her apartment.

to kick off her shoes, the nanny

expression shifted, becoming evasive,

glanced towards

her son's usual playful figure was nowhere to be

paused, turning to

the nanny blocked

sensed something was wrong from her tone. She searched the master bedroom and

going on, isn't Sammy at

so sorry, Ms. Valentine... Sammy sneaked out at

reveal the truth, "He gave me a glass of water, and after drinking it, I felt incredibly sleepy. When I was napping, the little guy told me

something like this,

he'd be back before you got

no word from Sammy, and he's not answering his smartwatch. I was afraid of your reaction..." Whitney's face turned

and her three-and-a-half-year-old son

as she ran into the bedroom to check her drawer, noticing one of

he been sneaking out while she was busy these

secretive plans could

time to ponder these questions. Whitney quickly turned to the nanny, "Split

sneak out and took the

unaware of the

was sent by Bryce to help Whitney care for her

Mr. Lutz had instructed the nanny not to strictly prevent Sammy from going out

understand Mr. Lutz's reasoning but chose to follow his

-

neighborhood for her son and made countless calls to his

station, she overheard officers discussing, "This afternoon, a child abduction case occurred at a bridal boutique in the suburbs.

God, could it be

she hailed a cab and rushed to the suburban

Tiana speculated, "Could Mr. Lippert have staged the

were the case,