Chapter 44

“Maybe not. Freya said that the Jones family is hopelessly biased.”

“Alright. I’ll check it out.”

Fretful, Shaun then gave Hadley another call. “Find out where Catherine last appeared.”

An hour later, Hadley brought him some news.

“Miss Jones went to the Jones family’s house three days ago. Shortly after she entered the house, the
Jones family headed to the old house located in Pennington using their car. She’s probably there.”

“Do you mean that she might be imprisoned?”

“Very likely. The Jones family would not go there except for their family worship. What’s more, that
place is remote and desolate.”

Shaun held his phone firmly. “Come and pick me up. I’m going to visit that place in person.”

…

Considering that Pennington was a large distance away, Hadley drove for three hours before they
reached there.

It was already midnight by then. Only when Shaun got out of the car did he realize that the place was
eerily desolate. It was surrounded by mountains, and there was no light.

The old house that belonged to the Jones family was constructed in an enclosed style. From the main
door, it seemed that the house was a few decades old.



Shaun knocked on the door, yet there was no response. As such, he climbed over the wall straight
away.

The minute he stepped on the ground, a ray of light shone on him.

“Who are you? Why are you barging into the house in the middle of the night?”

Shaun turned around and saw an old lady who was holding a torchlight. “I’m looking for someone. I
knocked on the door just now, but you didn’t open it.”

“I’m the only one living here. Get out now.” The old lady gave him a push.

Shaun then pushed her back. He took the torchlight and headed to the two-story house. As he glanced
around, he got a shock.



He noticed that all the windows were nailed shut on both levels while the door was locked.

“Hurry up and get out now, or I’m going to call the police.” In a panic, the old lady pushed him even
more violently.

“You’d better call the police. Don’t let me catch you imprisoning someone illegally.” Her expression
further confirmed his assumption.

He took a big step forward, then kicked the door hard. After a long while, he still failed to kick it open.
Upon noticing the ax at the side of the house, he broke one of the windows using it and leaped into the
house.

A rotten smell filled his nose. Since there was no electricity in the house, he had to search for
Catherine room by room. At last, he found her curled up in a corner of the wooden bed.



She was still dressed in the same thin top that he had seen before he left that afternoon. The material
of the top was very thin, while the temperature had reduced by ten degrees over the last two days.
However, there were not any blankets and pillows on the bed she was sleeping on. There was not even
bed linen.

As he approached her, he could sense the smell emanating from her body. However, he could not be
bothered about it.

He dashed toward her and shook her forcefully, but she showed no reaction. Her body was as cold as
ice, while her face was as white as a sheet.

Luckily, he found out from the tip of her nose that she was still breathing faintly, or he would have
nearly thought she was dead.

He carried her and rushed to the main door. The old lady who was hiding behind the door panicked
upon realizing Catherine’s situation. Afraid to stay any longer, she immediately fled using the back
door.

Shaun did not have the time to seize her. If he did not send Catherine to the hospital right now, she
would be dead for sure.

On their way to the hospital, the woman remained motionless in his arms.

Shaun lowered his head, gazing at her face. Her originally chubby cheeks had become slim, while her
jelly-like lips were dry and chapped.

He found the incident incredulous. Catherine was the Jones family’s biological daughter, after all. How
inhuman they were!

Deep inside, Catherine must be consumed by frustration and torment.



Shaun was sympathetic toward the woman. At the same time, he kicked himself for not looking for her
earlier.


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