Chapter 16

"Keep searching! If you can't even do that, just get lost!" Ethan snapped, his voice raw with fury. It had been over two weeks, and he’d basically activated his entire network. Not just in B City—he’d stretched out across the whole country. Every connection, every favor the Mitchell family had built over the years, he’d used it all. And yet, it was like Lila had vanished into thin air. No matter how many people he sent, how many favors he called in—even with both the legal and underground worlds involved, even with his business empire backing the search—she was just… gone. There were no travel records, no signs of her ever leaving B City. So why, just why, couldn't he find her? The more time passed with no news, the more it drove him insane. He couldn’t erase that last look she gave him—the mixture of heartbreak and numb resignation. And that faint, bitter smile haunted him. What if something had happened to her? She was pregnant, had no money, and was completely alone. The thought of