The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 1268 Kidnap

Rachel thought, 'I'm the only woman that should be at Charles' side!' Clearly, she could feel anger, envy, and sorrow boiling in her heart, which made her feel very uneasy. All she wanted to do was shove Sheryl away from Charles! It was painful to see them being so close and affectionate towards one another!

Rachel wasn't even in the mood for the banquet anymore. She felt completely empty and as though she was unable to move her body. Her soul disappeared into thin air. It went to a faraway place where she knew that it wouldn't get hurt. However, even so, she was still eager to take a few more glances at Charles, the man she loved so much. Recalling her surroundings, she had forgotten why she was there in the first place. While the crowd was chatting about, drinking and having fun, she felt like she was an outcast. Even though she tried, she couldn't see, nor hear anything. It was as though someone pressed a pause button, and the world went completely silent.

The only person that she was able to see in the room, was Charles. In silence, she moved over to a dim corner to hide. Actually, she didn't really want to see Charles at all, because he was enjoying himself. To make things worse, the disgust he had in his eyes for her, was literally killing her!

She continued observing Charles holding Sheryl's hand tenderly. He smiled affectionately at Sheryl and even introduced Sheryl as his wife to others.

For no apparent reason, she couldn't move her eyes from Charles. Her eyes had captured every single move he made. Every scene playing out in front of her was deeply engraved at the bottom of her eyes and replayed itself over and over again. She felt tormented!

Perhaps the only way to ease her pain was to imagine herself as Sheryl at that moment. She couldn't help but picture herself next to Charles' side, which only brought her a brief moment of peace. Dejected, she drank alone in the shade. The experience was bitter. Was it because of the alcohol? Or, perhaps due to the bitterness she'd felt in her heart? She couldn't come to a conclusion.

In her mildly drunken state, she couldn't resist the urge to approach Charles. Holding her glass of wine, she walked up towards Charles and Sheryl.

Sheryl was still holding Charles' hand, greeting the attendants whom she was acquainted with. She then saw Rachel standing close by, whom she hated with every fiber in he being.

Recalling what had happened between her and Rachel in her mind, Sheryl went completely silent.

Sheryl's abrupt mood was quickly noticed by Charles. He turned his head to Sheryl, only to replace that her vision was fixed at someone in front of them.

Following Sheryl's gaze, he found her target. The next moment, his brows shot up.

Rachel could see the anger brewing in Sheryl's eyes. What was hurting her more, was Charles' impatience.

Her heart immediately sank. When she saw Charles pull Sheryl to another direction away from her, an ironically pleasing smile appeared on Rachel's face. Rachel then moved forward to block their way. "What? Are you afraid of me? We can't even have a drink together now?" It was evident that Rachel wanted to provoke them. When Sheryl frowned, Rachel felt excited about her response. The people surrounding Sheryl and Charles noticed their somewhat hostile presence.

"Did you say, 'drink together'? Well, do you worth it?" Charles was being mean to Rachel. Her invitation was coldly rejected. Immediately, Rachel's face turned pale. The incident drew the crowd's attention, who were quietly exchanging glances and gossiping with one another. Being judged by the public, Rachel only wished she could vanish from everyone. Even though the idea thereof was painful, it seemed far better than being hurt by Charles or even being judged by others.

The colder Charles was towards her, the more she wanted him back. How could she accept her fate like this? In the past, she was the woman whom Charles treasured the most! He would always check up on her, even if the slightest thing bothered her.

"After all, we were a couple. Why am I not worth it?" Brows furrowed, Rachel looked deeply into Charles' eyes. It wasn't her intention to embarrass him, but the pain boiling in her heart was just too much for her to bear, so she blurted her words out. Soon enough, she managed to make up an excuse for her counter attack. 'You bastard... You've hurt me and now that I've caused you embarrassment, it's only fair.' However, there was no fairness in their relationship whatsoever. If there were, most people wouldn't end up thinking about the other halves alone, while the people they were longing for were enjoying their lives with another love.

Charles didn't want to have a connection with Rachel anymore. He definitely didn't want to see Sheryl get hurt by her either. He proceeded to give Sheryl a hug and left. Rachel was left alone and stunned by what had happened.

It was only until the banquet was over and everyone left, that she managed to finally regain her strength. Forcing out a bitter smile, she shook her head at the empty room and left.

As she walked out to the street and alone in the night, her mind was empty. Luckily there were street lights, lighting up the pavement where she walked. The road ahead seemed endless. Despite the distance in front of her, the darkness in her heart couldn't be expelled.

Suddenly her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and saw the caller ID. It was Bernard. She then picked up the phone.

"Hello, Bernard. Thank you for replaceing out the truth for me last time. I never even had the chance to thank you." She forcefully infused some strength into her voice.

"Oh, that's fine. There's no need to thank me. I did it out of my own will." Secretively, Bernard always wanted to see Rachel. He missed her so much, in fact, that even listening to her voice was satiating enough for him. However, it was only until now that he had mustered the courage to do so.

Rachel laughed and replied, "Bernard, I do appreciate your help. When will you be free for a meal? My treat!"

Bernard was exhilarated to hear Rachel's response. A big grin was plastered onto his face. Suppressing his euphoria, he tried to sound as normal as possible as he answered, "Alright, I'm free at any time. It will be my pleasure to have a meal with you." For Bernard, however, it wasn't just a pleasure. He was overjoyed.

"Okay. I will tell you when..." Before she finished her sentence, her voice ended abruptly.

A stranger appeared from behind her and swayed her phone to the ground. Then she blacked out. At the other end of the call, Bernard could only hear the noises in the background. Rachel didn't say anything else. He tried to end the call and call her back again, but she didn't pick up.

His immediately thought the worst. Something must have happened to Rachel. Anxious, he scratched his head to try and think of ways to replace her.

Rachel woke up in an unknown place.

When she tried to make sense of what had happened, all she could think about was her headache. The confined space was filled with darkness and her one hand was tied to a heavy pillar. There was no way for her to figure out where she was or what time it was.

She then remembered what happened before she woke up. She must have been kidnapped, but who would do this?

Thinking about all of the names of people that she might have caused trouble to, and the people who might take action against her, she just managed to increase the intensity of the pain caused by her headache. At last, she gave up the attempt to think and closed her eyes, pretending to be in a coma as she patiently waited for the person in the dark to appear.

After what felt like a long time, she finally heard a sound.

A door was slowly opened. Light shed into the room, which hurt her eyes, as she had been accustomed to darkness for too long. The sudden light caused her eyes to well up with tears. After finally being able to see her surroundings vaguely, she found herself in an abandoned warehouse.

Squinting her eyes, she saw someone approaching her. To her surprise, one of the people was Miranda. Rachel was at a total loss and had no idea of what to do.

"Ms. Bai, are you still waiting for my investment in your company? You couldn't have imagined that you'd end up like this, right? Hah!" Her laugh reverberated in the spacious warehouse, which terrified Rachel.

"Mrs. Zhan, I thought we had an agreement. If you dare to do anything to me, the evidence of you killing Mr. Zhan will surely end up with the police!" Thinking to herself that she still had her bargaining chip in hand, she managed to calm herself down.