Under the Heiress' Facade
Chapter 259

As evening approached, Bernard used satellite surveillance to scan half the mountain. Eventually, he found Hera's jacket deep in the forest. Bernard descended from the helicopter and notified Aaron of its location. The group then swiftly mobilized, combing the area surrounding where the jacket was found.

As darkness fell, Bernard's expression grew increasingly grim. He was clutching Hera's jacket so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

Aaron, who had been on more than a dozen S-class missions with Bernard, had never seen him this tense.

He tried reassuring Bernard, saying, "Don't worry too much. Hera will be fine. She grew up in the mountains and knows how to handle herself out here."

"Yeah," Bernard replied.

He then instructed Douglas through the earpiece, "Bring some searchlights," before returning to the helicopter to resume searching through the surveillance.

Night fell, and Nathan finally uncovered traces of Hera in a thicket half a mile away. There were freshly broken branches, snagged wool fibers, and bloodstains on the leaves.

After pushing through the bushes, they found an opening with signs of something that slid down the grass.

"Mr. Killian, Captain Ludden, over here!" Nathan called out to Bernard and the others.

Bernard set aside his laptop and joined Aaron at the scene.

Nathan explained the clues he found.

"It looks like Hera fell in here. No wonder we couldn't replace her."

Bernard still held onto Hera's jacket with a stoic face, betraying none of the turmoil he felt. Yet, the tension around him was palpable.

"Clear it," Bernard ordered after glancing at the bushes that were blocking the opening.

Aaron quickly summoned a few men to clear away the obstructing foliage.

Soon, the foliage revealed an

opening about six feet wide and 50 feet long. As it was hidden by the bushes, it was hard to spot even from aerial surveillance.

The group approached the edge and shone their flashlights down. However, the beam failed to reach the bottom.

Despite the flashlights' powerful

beams extending up to 1,500 feeret

they still couldn't prate

depths, indicating the holele

was

deeper than expected.

"It's more than 1,500 feet deep. We have no idea what the situation is down there," Nathan said.

Instantly, everyone's expression turned grave. The prospect of Hera falling from such a height loomed ominously.

"Mr. Killian, you'll have to prepare yourself. Even if she survives, from this height..." Stephen's voice trailed off. "Shut up!" Bernard snapped.

Stephen, who had been trying to offer some comfort, felt a suffocating pressure from Bernard's outburst and shuddered. No one else dared to speak. Bernard gripped Hera's jacket even tighter. He believed she would be okay. She had survived 11 years ago and would also make it alive now.

His primary concern was Hera enduring the darkness as night fell. They needed to replace her quickly.

Seeing Bernard's worsening expression, Aaron interjected, "Don't be so pessimistic. Ms. Youngworth is resourceful. She'll be fine."

Aaron knew all too well that a fall

from over 1,500 feet would likely be fatal, even for him. But as the team's leader, he couldn't afford to entertain negative thoughts.

"I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I'll go down and check," Nathan said, feeling guilty.