New beginning: Billionaire love story

Chapter 216 She’s Gone

Matthew's eyes darting around as he searched for Claire. The room was buzzing with chatter and clinking glasses, but there was no sign of her anywhere. He cursed under his breath, frustrated that he had gotten caught in traffic and missed her big presentation. Now, he hadn't seen her at all, and his unease was growing by the second.

"Matthew!" a voice called out from behind him. He turned around to see Adrian striding toward him, looking as concerned as he felt.

"Adrian," Matthew greeted him, shaking his head. "Have you seen Claire? I just got here, and I've been looking for her too."

Adrian's frown deepened, and Matthew could already tell something was up. "Is something wrong?" he asked, his voice tinged with urgency.

Adrian sighed. "I bumped into her a few minutes ago. We talked for a bit, but then her expression changed. She said she was going to the restroom, but something didn't feel right."

Matthew's pulse quickened as a sense of dread settled in his stomach. "We need to find her," he said, already moving toward the exit of the ballroom. Adrian followed closely behind, both of them picking up their pace.

As they were heading out, Alex, who had been deep in conversation with some guests, noticed them. He smiled politely at his companions, excused himself, and hurried after them. Something about Matthew and Adrian's uneasy expressions had caught his attention. "Matthew!" Alex called out, catching up to them. Matthew spun around, his frown deepening when he saw who it was. The last thing he needed was Alex getting involved, but it looked like he had no choice.

"What do you want, Alex?" Matthew snapped, clearly not in the mood.

Alex ignored the hostility and asked, "Have you seen Claire?"

Matthew let out an exasperated sigh. "I should be the one asking you that, not the other way around."

Alex's confusion turned to irritation, and he stepped closer to Matthew, their faces just inches apart. "What do you mean, 'where is Claire'? You're the one who's supposed to be keeping an eye on her." Matthew's jaw clenched, and he looked ready to punch Alex right then and there, but Adrian quickly stepped between them, his expression serious. "Hey, this isn't the time to fight. We need to find Claire." Alex's frown deepened as he looked from Adrian to Matthew. "What's going on?" he demanded.

Adrian's voice was calm but firm. "Matthew has a bad feeling that something's not right."

already moving toward the exit. But Matthew

anything, I know the ins and

but Adrian stepped in again, trying to be the voice of reason. "With Alex's

Finally, he relented. "Fine. But

cold look. "So am

expression set in determination. Adrian hurried after him, but Matthew lingered for a moment, watching Alex with a mixture of frustration and grudging respect. He knew Alex wasn't going to back down. As

"Claire's more important," he said, his tone leaving no room

down the ballroom hallway, both of them on high

on the floor. He stopped in his tracks, squatting down to get a closer look. "Hey, wait a second," he muttered, reaching out to pick up a sleek black

turned around, eyebrows raised. "What

Claire's purse. I saw her hold this

he noted. His gaze shifted upwards, and he spotted a surveillance camera mounted on the ceiling. A lightbulb went off in his

without hesitation, nodded. "Of course." He headed off down the

then turned back to Matthew. "You think we should split up? Might find her faster

moment, then nodded.

off in different directions, Matthew grumbling under his breath as he went. "What

Adrian, meanwhile, was thinking

someone was

.n

would they take her? He had a bad feeling about this, and after a moment's hesitation, he decided to head to the basement. “If I were a bad guy, I'd

room. The moment he stepped inside, he was met with a scene of absolute chaos-security guards scrambling around, clearly not

hell

looking more flustered than anyone, stepped forward, stammering