Married On Paper To The Billionaire
Chapter 31: The Vicious Cycle

"Fix it!" "How?"

"I don't care. Just fix it and make it go away. I'm not going to let that demented demon take the public's attention away from my daughter's search."

"Do you realize what you're saying, Emilia? Fixing this means letting Serena walk free."

"So be it. If you'd had the decency to keep your dick in your pants, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now."

Kane groaned. "I've already explained that to you a million times. I was drunk that night and I still don't remember what happened. I didn't do it deliberately." "So you say..."

"You still don't believe me?"

"That's not important right now. Do everything you must to make sure that Serena doesn't spill her gut to the world. It's bad enough that the police are already aware of our shame. Let's keep it that way and not increase the audience." He sighed. Serena's plan was working perfectly. This situation was driving a bigger wedge between him and Emilia with every passing second.

His sweet, loving wife who looked up to him with respect had been replaced by an angry and bitter woman that he did not recognize. Still, it was all his fault. He created this mess.

"Fine," he said finally. "I'll get in touch with my lawyers and see if we can draft an ironclad NDA for her to sign. It's another thing to convince the police to let her go because this isn't just about us anymore."

"I don't care about the details, Kane. Just get it done!"

"Emilia - "

"No. Not another word from you. I've heard enough of your stories and lies. Save the rest for your adoring fan who's waiting for you in the police cell. I just want my daughter back, that's all."

She walked out of the room, leaving him there feeling dejected. Serena was right - his marriage would never recover from this disaster.

A few hours later, armed with the NDA and accompanied by one of his lawyers, he arrived at the police station to set his new enemy free. It was a huge challenge, to convince the police to let her go. However, he succeeded and in return, got a new tip from her.

"Joyce is in Mexico!" He announced to his family later that day when he got home.

"Is that where she took Tiara to?" Asked Elsie.

"Possibly. I've hired a private security detail to go there with me."

"You can't be serious, Kane," said Lillian. "Why didn't you inform the police instead and let them do their job?"

"Serena said it wasn't a good idea and that I should go alone if possible."

"Serena, huh?" Said Emilia sarcastically.

"I hope you realize that it could be a trap too?" Samuel asked him.

"Yes. That's why I'm going with armed security."

"I could go with you if you want," Jack offered.

"No, bro. But thanks for offering."

"Did she give you a specific location?" Elsie asked.

"Yes. It's a trailer park on the outskirts of a small town. It shouldn't be hard to find."

"I'm going with you," Emilia said calmly and all eyes at the dinner table swung to her. "Sweetheart, I don't think - "

"I wasn't asking your permission," she said, cutting off Kane's protest. "I am going, whether you like it or not. I'm tired of sitting in the house and wringing my fingers all day until you return. Tiara is my daughter too and I want to be actively involved in looking for her."

"What about Travis?" Elsie asked her.

"What about him?"

"He needs you here. Both of you can't just leave at the same time and leave him behind."

"Does that mean he's not safe here in the mansion anymore? What am I saying? Wasn't everyone around when his sister got stolen? Of course, he's not safe."

"Emilia, that's not fair," said Lillian. "Mother already feels guilty enough about Tiara's abduction even though it wasn't her fault. What if the incident had happened while you and Kane were in the mansion? Would you blame yourself too?" "Excuse me," said Elsie and she stood up from her seat and hurried out of the dining room while holding a napkin to her nose.

"Damn," Emilia muttered and stood up too. "I'll go and apologize to her. I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean what I said."

After she left, Samuel turned to Kane and asked, "Will you let her follow you?"

He sighed and shrugged. "Do I have a choice?"

"It's not a good idea, bro," said Jack. "You two will be too busy fighting to even locate the address. I think you should convince her to stay back."

Kane scoffed. "Convince her? Have you met Emilia?"

Everyone laughed. They knew he was right. Once Emilia set her heart on something, it was nearly impossible to convince her otherwise.

They made the trip the next day on one of Kane's private jets. They were accompanied by six armed security men comprising mostly ex-marines. The security company they worked with was a covert outfit known to only a small percentage of the population who were wealthy.

"As far as everyone is concerned, we're just a bunch of tourists looking around," said the leader of the team.

"Sure," said Kane. "We know the drill."

"Good. Once we land, you and your wife will do the talking. I'll play your bodyguard while the rest of the team will spread out and scan the area."

"Sounds like a solid plan. Let's do this!"

When they arrived at the address given to them, they went straight to the registration booth of the trailer park to request a spot.

"Como puedo ayudarte?" Said the friendly front desk lady.

"Oh, shoot. I don't speak Spanish much," Kane laughed.

"Do you speak English?" Emilia asked her.

"Sure. How may I help you?" Replied the jovial woman.

"We'd like to book a trailer in the park," said Emilia. "do you have any vacancies?"

"Aww, no. All of the trailers are occupied at the moment, I'm sorry."

"That sucks," said Kane. "We were actually referred here by a friend. Her name is Joyce, I mean Jane Becks."

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Kane was still trying to get used to the fake name that Serena claimed Joyce had traveled under. It was probably why the police never succeeded in tracking her down because they were searching for her with her legal name. "Maybe you can come back next week," said the receptionist. "Some of our lodgers would be gone by then."

"That's fine, but can we say hello to our friend? She's still lodging here."

"Really? What's her name again?"

"Jane Becks. She's a middle-aged woman with blonde hair and green eyes. She came here with a little girl. A toddler."

The woman flipped through her books for a few minutes, mumbling the name as she checked the pages.

"I'm afraid there's no Jane Becks listed here. Nobody by that name ever stayed here. Are you sure you got the address right?"

"Yes. Is there another trailer park around here?"

"It's in the next town but it's not organized like this one. Any random person can show up there and pick a spot. We run an organized setup here and we only request a small fee for our luxurious trailers with excellent views." "But do you remember ever seeing any woman here with a little child?" Emilia asked. She wasn't interested in the woman's inspirational campaign.

"No. Our lodgers are mostly couples and singles. Only one family is here but they're young and they have two sons."

"Oh..."

"I'm sorry I couldn't help," said the woman, noticing their disappointment. "you should probably check the other trailer park in the next town. It's pretty popular, so just ask around." "Sure, thanks," said Kane.

They entered their rented SUV, followed closely by the rest of the team. The drive took them an hour and a half.

When they arrived at the location, they sighted a handful of trailers parked at different points in the park. The grass here was overgrown and the surrounding looked messy with discarded waste items.

"I'll take it from here," said their bodyguard. His team was already spreading out quietly and checking out the area.

The bodyguard went from door to door, asking the occupants of the trailers if they'd seen Joyce and the toddler. Out of the seven trailers parked there, only four were occupied.

Unfortunately, none of them was Joyce and each person claimed never to have laid eyes on the woman or the child they were looking for.

"That bitch lied to us!" Emilia snapped. "She just sent us on a wild goose chase. She has no clue where Joyce is."

Kane was mad as hell. He whipped out his phone and dialled Serena's number. She answered almost immediately.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Is this a game to you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You told us Joyce was in a trailer park in San Tarillo. Well, she isn't!"

"Oh, that's surprising. She mentioned it to me the last time she sent me a text. It was from an unknown number but I knew she was the one because she mentioned that the child was still with her." "So?"

"Look, she obviously lied to me. Maybe you should keep asking around. There might be someone who may have recognized her or your daughter."

Emilia snatched the phone from Kane's hand and snarled into it. "Listen carefully to me, you idiot. If I don't find my daughter here and I end up returning to the U.S. empty-handed, I will find you and kill you with my bare hands."

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She ended the call before Serena had a chance to reply. She was so angry, she felt like screaming.

"What you looking for, huh?"

They turned around and saw a man dressed in dirty clothes approaching them. The bodyguard stepped in front of him, staring the man down.

"Sorry, I no look for trouble," he said in broken English with his arms raised in surrender.

"Do you live here?" Kane asked him.

He nodded and pointed to one of the empty trailers. It was the dirtiest one in the lot.

"We're looking for a woman," Kane continued. "She might have stayed briefly in one of these empty trailers."

"Yeah? Why you want her?"

"She came here with a little girl," Emilia said desperately. "We're looking for both of them. Have you seen them?"

The man's eyes lit up as if he'd remembered something. "Si! I see old woman and little nina come here."

"You did?" Emilia was almost breathless with relief. "Where are they?"

The man looked at Kane and smiled, then he rubbed his thumb and middle finger together and said, "You gimme something, gringo?"

Kane didn't like being addressed in that manner but he knew what the guy wanted. He dipped his hand into his pockets and brought out some dollar bills. "Wait," said the bodyguard. "Let him tell us their location first before you give him the money. I don't trust this guy."

"Where are they?" Kane asked the man.

"Deposito de chatarra. You drive to the road, you see the sign."

"Doesn't chatarra mean scrap or something?" Kane asked sceptically. "My Spanish isn't good but I think that's the word for scrap."

"It could be some kind of slang or whatever," said Emilia impatiently. "Please, give him the money, let's go."

Kane reluctantly gave the guy two hundred dollars and they hurried to their car. The adrenaline high in the vehicle was so palpable it felt like a fourth passenger. They spotted the sign they were looking for after driving a few kilometres across a dirt road. The sign had a slash across it as if it had been canceled.

The group was undeterred and they continued their drive to the final destination. To their dismay, when they arrived, the place turned out to be an abandoned junkyard. "I knew it," Kane sighed. "the bastard tricked us."

Emilia was too stunned to speak. This wasn't what she'd been expecting to see.

At Kane's insistence, they drove around to see if they could find any sign of life but they were disappointed. The place was completely deserted.

"I can't believe this," Emilia whispered and began to cry.

Kane wanted to gather her in his arms to console her but she wouldn't let him. She wanted to howl in frustration and rip her husband to shreds.

"Let's go back to that son-of-a-bitch and have another chat with him," he suggested. He cracked his knuckles, ready to do some bodily harm to that thief.

It didn't surprise them one bit when they got back to the trailer park and couldn't find the dirty stranger. He'd played a smart one on them and disappeared into thin air.