Chapter 265

Over the following days, Eleanor bounced between the Hope House and Podium Apartments like a restless spirit.

Since they weren't living together, Nolan felt utterly abandoned.

Without her constant presence, Nolan felt like a forgotten relic gathering dust. That day, he missed Eleanor so much that he headed for her apartment early i the morning.

Cradling his coffee cup, he savored each sip with deliberate slowness.When Eleanor emerged ready to leave, he sprang to his feet like a coiled spring."Eleanor, venturing out somewhere? How about I chauffeur you around?"

As luck would have it, Eleanor genuinely needed transportation. Myah's frantic call had just come through about a forgotten notebook lurking at the Hope House's abandoned site, and she desperately needed Eleanor's assistance in hunting it down.

Eleanor tilted her chin upward, masking her thoughts behind a theatrical pause. "Where did Erick go?" she probed.

Nolan's lie rolled off his tongue like silk. "Shipped him off on urgent business to the neighboring city.He's trapped there for the next few days."

The universe had other plans. Footsteps echoed from the entrance at that precise moment.

Erick materialized in the doorway, briefcase clutched in his grip, having absorbed every word that had just spilled from Nolan's mouth.

Time seemed to freeze around him.

Was he showing up at the wrong time?

When exactly had Nolan sent him to the neighboring city? Why was he completely in the dark about this?

Despite his bewilderment, Erick grasped the situation perfectly. Nolan was desperate for private moments with Eleanor, and retreating gracefully was his only option.

Eleanor crossed her arms with amusement, watching in the unfolding scene.

Embarrassment flashed across Nolan's features before vanishing behind his carefully constructed mask.

He coughed deliberately and launched daggers at Erick with his gaze. "Why you here? Weren't you supposed to be on a business trip in the neighboring city?"

Erick's entire frame quaked as enlightenment struck,and he bowed his head in swift surrender. "I... I just rushed back to check for any additional orders."

Nolan's hand cut through the air dismissively."Nothing else required." Relief flooded through Erick as he bolted from the scene likea man escaping wildfire.

Nolan's attention swiveled back to Eleanor, hope blazing in his expression.

Eleanor shook her head with resigned amusement before striding toward the exit without ceremony.

Nolan trailed after her like a devoted shadow.

The sleek black Bentley soon glided away from the apartment building.

Time had not been kind to the Hope House's original location. Crimson brick walls now wore thick coats of emerald moss like forgotten armor.

Together, they forced open the protesting iron gates and ventured into the abandoned grounds.

Drawing on muscle memory, Eleanor navigated straight to Myah's old office and located the hefty notebook buried beneath layers of neglect.

She brushed away the accumulated dust and caught Nolan's eye, signaling their mission complete.

But fate had other plans. As they pivoted toward the exit,they collided with an unexpected gathering.

At the front stood Wray, absent from their lives for countless days.

A garishly dressed woman clung to his arm while Wray's chin tilted with arrogant satisfaction. "Baby,I'll demolish this place and erect a magnificent villa in your honor," he said.

The woman pressed herself closer, her voice dripping artificial sweetness. "Thank you, Mr.Stewart. That's so kind of you."

Wray basked in her theatrical worship, then his gaze landed on Nolan and Eleanor standing nearby, along with the weathered notebook clutched in Eleanor's grip.

Victory melted from his features, replaced by cruel amusement. Nolan?

What business did he have skulking around this forgotten wasteland?

And why was Eleanor clutching such worthless refuse?

What a golden opportunity to humiliate him!

Malice sparked in Wray's eyes as he projected his voice with theatrical flair. "Well, well! Nolan! W/hat delightful timing! Has fortune abandoned you so completely that you've resorted to scavenging through ruins for scraps? If money troubles are plaguing you, a simple conversation would have sufficed. Despite my modest means, I'd gladly spare some charity for a distant relative!"

Nolan and Eleanor treated him like empty air,continuing their exit.

Unfortunately, Wray's entourage formed a human barricade across their escape route.

"Trying to leave?" Wray's smile turned predatory,"Certainly, but first surrender that stolen stuff." His contemptuous stare fixed on the logbook in Eleanor's possession. "This property belongs to Stewart Group, after all. Should inventory go missing,explaining such losses to my superiors would prove...challenging."

The woman draped across Wray's arm released a tinkling laugh, each note poisoned with mockery. "Oh my, look what the cat dragged in. If it isn't the illustrious Nolan himself. Who could have predicted you'd escort this lovely lady on a common burglary expedition?"