Chapter 343
"Missing?"
Marcus Monroe stared intently at Mason Hayes, repeating the man’s words unconsciously.
Mason Hayes’s body trembled involuntarily under that piercing gaze. He knew it was the pressure emanating from Marcus Monroe’s roiling emotions. Yet, no matter how unbearable, he could not look away.
His face pale, he replied, "Yes. Just three days ago, the Vice Base Chief and Mrs. Lowell suddenly disappeared..."
The whole thing was incredibly strange.
The night of the incident at Levi Young’s lab, everyone initially thought the zombie had actually vanished—including Levi Young himself. However, after they scoured the base without finding a trace of it and returned to the lab, they discovered the zombie was perfectly fine, locked in its small cell, completely undisturbed.
Someone had pulled a trick. That was undeniable.
It couldn’t have been anyone from the base, so suspicion fell on Shawn Monroe and his men from Central City.
The Vice Base Chief was still here that night. Nothing seemed amiss, other than the fact that she looked unwell.
Mason Hayes felt rather guilty for having disturbed her, so he quickly had his men persuade her to leave and escort her back to her quarters.
The next day, she must have been exhausted, as she never left her room.
Even when he went to ask for her opinion on Shawn Monroe’s group wanting to leave, she still seemed lethargic.
Mason Hayes’s inclination was to detain them.
His suspicions hadn’t been assuaged, and their rush to leave only made them look guiltier.
But the Vice Base Chief had said, "We didn’t actually suffer any losses, did we? Shawn Monroe claims he has urgent business. If we force them to stay, it will mean a complete falling-out."
Mason Hayes considered this and felt she had a point.
There was really no need to have a falling-out with Shawn Monroe. And it was true that aside from the scare the night before, they hadn’t actually suffered any losses, which was baffling. But with that alone, they had no reason to detain them.
In the end, he agreed with the Vice Base Chief’s course of action.
He let them go, but sent men to tail them at the same time.
But two days later, he was filled with regret.
After Shawn Monroe and his men entered Stoneridge Base, they vanished without a trace. The entire group seemed to disappear into thin air, completely shaking the trackers he’d sent.
And by the time his men reported this, the Vice Base Chief and Mrs. Lowell had both disappeared.
Mason Hayes recounted the entire series of events from start to finish. Only then did Marcus Monroe finally begin to recover from his shock. He struggled to suppress his fury and asked in a low voice, "Where’s Sean Raines?"
"Mr. Raines went into seclusion after returning from Mount Gorrow. He said he’d had a breakthrough..."
"And Ben? What was he doing that night when we thought the zombie had disappeared?"
"That’s another strange thing. The Vice Base Chief had told Ben to guard that zombie, but he wasn’t at his post in front of the cell that night. He only showed up after the Vice Base Chief had gone back. You know how he is... I tried to talk to him about it, but he completely ignored me."
Marcus Monroe’s brows furrowed deeply.
The whole affair was riddled with oddities.
Paige Summers was pregnant. She would never have left the base on her own. Someone must have abducted her.
But no matter how capable the culprits were, it should have been impossible for them to get two people out without alerting a single guard.
Besides, they disappeared *after* Shawn Monroe had already left...
’None of it makes any sense!’
Still, his gut told him that Shawn Monroe was definitely involved.
"You said just now that Shawn Monroe and his men vanished after they got to Stoneridge Base?"
"Yes," Mason Hayes said, frustrated. "Our men followed them into the city, watched them check into a hotel, and even stood guard outside the entire time. But their whole group just...vanished."
Marcus Monroe nodded, then shot to his feet.
"Go gather our people. I’m heading to Stoneridge Base immediately!"
He was heading for the door when Claire Chapman rushed in from outside, panting. "Paige Summers—what’s happened to her?"
The words had barely left his mouth when Marcus Monroe crossed the distance in two strides and threw a punch.
He threw the punch with the full force of his rage.
Claire Chapman staggered back, nearly losing his balance. A cut split his lip, and blood began to flow.
Claire Chapman touched his lip, his hand coming away bloody. He lowered his gaze and said nothing.
Marcus Monroe gave a cold snort and stormed away.
Only then did a look of profound regret surface in Claire Chapman’s eyes.
’I should have come back...’
’Whether as the Base Chief of Bloodfall or as Paige Summers’s friend and partner, I should have come back!’
But it was too late for regrets now. Claire Chapman gritted his teeth and turned to find someone to ask for the details.
’No matter what, I have to get Paige Summers back!’
In truth, Marcus Monroe was even angrier with himself than he was with Claire Chapman.
Paige Summers had sent messages to both of them, and while Claire Chapman was closer and should have returned sooner... Paige was his woman. ’When it comes down to it, I’m the one who failed to protect her!’
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