Alpha Hayley’s Destined Mate

Chapter 280: Prayer

Hayley’s POV:

Finished. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to remain calm as I answered, “I know him; we’re on good terms.”

At first, I thought Benjamin would continue asking questions, but instead, he said nothing more. He quickly changed the subject. “Any updates on Christine?”

Just hearing her name made my heart heavy. I shook my head, feeling defeated. “No, nothing yet.”

Even though Ivana had been helping search for her, there still hadn’t been a single lead after all this time. The situation couldn’t be hidden any longer, so I had discreetly informed Christine’s family. Her parents should have arrived in Smuilia by now, and they were probably getting there in the next few days.

“It’s okay, don’t worry. Christine is lucky; she’ll be fine,” he tried to reassure me.

All I could do was silently pray in my heart, hoping that Christine would stay safe.

The next day, Christine’s parents arrived. They were clearly devastated, but they didn’t blame anyone. They simply joined the rescue efforts, helping search for Christine.

Soon after, Ivana rushed to find me, her face serious. “Hayz, I have some bad news for you. I hope you’re strong enough to handle it.”

The grave look on Ivana’s face filled me with a sinking feeling. I silently clenched the fabric of my clothes and asked, “Is it bad news about Christine?”

Ivana looked at me and nodded slowly. I stumbled back, and tears immediately began to fall. “N-no, it can’t be. Christine will be fine; she couldn’t be.”

Ivana gently tried to comfort me. “We aren’t sure yet, but the rescue team found a body near the accident site. It looks very similar to Christine. The features match hers pretty closely.”

The news hit me out of the blue, and I couldn’t process it right away.

Just then, Christopher appeared out of nowhere. He grabbed Ivana and asked frantically, “Is this true? She’s there? Where is she? Tell me now!”

Ivana furrowed her brow. She knew Christopher, but she hadn’t expected him to be so rough. Judging from how panicked he seemed, she had suspected what was going on. She didn’t chastise him for his rude behavior and calmly explained the situation.

“The body is at the shelter. No one has claimed it yet.” The moment Ivana finished speaking, Christopher ran out. Tears still in my eyes, I followed him.

When Christine’s parents heard the news, they broke down and fainted from the shock.

Finally, we all hurried to the shelter’s morgue. I trembled as I stood in front of the body covered by a white sheet. “Christine,” I whispered her name, tears streaming down my face.

Christine’s parents were sobbing uncontrollably, gasping for air between their cries. The atmosphere was heavy with grief, and Benjamin stayed beside me, silently holding my hand.

I shakily stepped forward and lifted the white sheet. What I saw was a bloody mess, but her shape was similar to Christine’s.

At that moment, my heart felt like it had dropped to the ground. Everyone around me was drowning in sorrow. Christopher was beside me, looking like a lifeless puppet when we arrived. But as soon as he saw the body, his eyes regained their spark. He looked at me and said, “This isn’t her!”

His short, forceful words completely changed the atmosphere. Through my tears, I looked at Christopher. He said, his voice firm, “This isn’t her. She wasn’t wearing this outfit that day. And she always wore a fishbone necklace, but this body doesn’t have one.”

I glanced at the body as Christopher pointed it out. Sure enough, there was no fishbone necklace. Confused, I asked, “W-what does this mean?”