Chapter 675 Cruise
Nathaniel’s expression turned frosty as he stared at the woman who bumped into Christina. “Apologize right now!”
The woman flashed them a big smile as she apologized, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to bump into you. I was rushing to get on the ship to look for my friend. Are you okay? Do you need me to find a doctor for you? I’ll take care of the medical expenses.”
The woman’s gaze and tone made Christina feel uneasy. Since she wasn’t hurt and the other party apologized, she let it slide.
“I’m fine. Be careful next time. Otherwise, you might accidentally hurt yourself.”
“Thank you for understanding. If fate allows it, I hope we can be friends. Goodbye.”
The woman went ahead and boarded the cruise ship.
Christina turned to Nathaniel and said, “Don’t be upset. She didn’t do it on purpose.”
Nathaniel hummed a response.
Christina did not take the incident to heart. After they boarded the ship, she slept in their guest room until nightfall.
A masquerade ball was held on their first night on the cruise ship. Christina and Nathaniel dressed up and attended the ball. She accompanied him and met with many influential people. However, she felt overwhelmed after some time. She found an excuse to escape the ball and went to the deck for fresh air.
She took off her mask and breathed a sigh of relief.
As Christina stared at the vast and dark ocean before her, she felt a sense of fear surge within her.
She closed her eyes as painful memories flooded her mind.
“Are you unwell?” A familiar voice rang from behind her.
Christina quickly opened her eyes and instinctively turned around to see who it was. Oh. It’s the woman that bumped into me this morning at the stairs.
Seeing that Christina was silent, the woman reached forward and touched Christina’s forehead. Christina flinched and jumped back when she felt the woman’s cold touch.
The woman smiled apologetically, seeming to understand that her friendliness might have shocked Christina. “Although something unpleasant happened between us today, I’m not approaching you with bad intentions, so you don’t have to be so wary of me. I’m simply worried about you. Most of the people on this ship are having fun in the hall, yet you’re alone in such a remote area. No one will be able to save you if something were to happen.”
As the woman slowly approached her, the uneasy feeling Christina felt grew stronger. Her subconscious mind was telling her to stay far away from the woman.
Christina tried to keep her distance but remained polite as she said, “Thank you for your concern. I came
out to get some air because I felt stuffy inside the hall. I’ll be going back now. Feel free to do whatever you like here.”
She was about to leave when the woman grabbed her wrist.
Christina turned back to look at her. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“For starters, my name is Vera. I told you, I don’t have ill intentions. You don’t need to worry that I’ll do something bad to you.” Vera Ludwig’s lips curved into a sweet smile. “It’s fate that we meet again. Why don’t we get a drink together? My best friend got off the ship at the last minute, so I’m left here alone. I wouldn’t have stayed at such a boring place if I didn’t have to negotiate a project for the company.”
While saying that, Vera called over a waiter not far from them. She took two flutes of champagne and handed one to Christina.
Christina took it from her politely, but she did not drink it. Instead, she swirled it gently.
Vera cleared her throat and tried to find a topic for them to talk about. “Was the man standing beside you today your boyfriend? He’s so handsome!”
Christina turned sideways and showed off the diamond ring on her right ring finger that gleamed under the light. “He’s actually my husband.”
Vera nodded. “I see. I can tell that he loves you very much.”
Christina smiled but did not respond.
Most of their following conversation was initiated by Vera, to which Christina replied cautiously. When a sensitive topic came up, Christina would give half-hearted answers.
After some time, Christina yawned and felt her eyes were heavy. “I’m sorry to cut the conversation short, but I have to go back and look for my husband. I’ve been out for too long. He’ll start to worry.”
Vera smiled and bid farewell to Christina. “All right. I look forward to meeting you tomorrow. Perhaps there might be other surprises awaiting us.”
Christina grinned before she went back to the hall to look for Nathaniel.
Christina searched high and low in the hall for Nathaniel but failed to find him. She went to a quiet corner in the hall and dialed his number.
The call rang a few times before it was cut off. She tried again and again, but all her attempts resulted in the same end. Her last attempt was different-a robotic voice told her his phone was turned off.
Christina was worried that something might have happened to Nathaniel. She quickly returned to their room, but no one was there.
Not knowing what else to do, Christina resorted to calling Sebastian. “Mr. Taggart, is Nathaniel with you?”
Sebastian was taken aback. He let go of Victoria, who was in his arms, and replied, “Mrs. Hadley, Mr. Hadley isn’t here. Did something happen?”
Christina furrowed her brows. “Nathaniel’s phone is shut off and I can’t find him anywhere in the hall. He’s not in our room either. I saw him drink quite a lot tonight. I’m worried something might have happened
to him. Mr. Taggart, can you and Victoria please help me?”
Sebastian seemed to have realized the seriousness of the situation. He immediately said. “Mrs. Hadley, please wait a moment. Victoria and I will meet with you right away.”
“Thank you, and I’m sorry to trouble you.”
Victoria noticed the solemn expression on Sebastian and curiously asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Mr. Hadley is missing. I’ll tell you more about it on the way. Let’s go and meet Mrs. Hadley,” Sebastian tugged Victoria and ran toward the lounge.
Soon, Sebastian and Victoria met up with Christina.
With much consideration of Christina’s condition, she and Victoria teamed up to look for Nathaniel on the cruise ship while Sebastian searched alone.
Christina and Victoria returned to the hall. When Christina saw a businessman she had chatted with previously, she quickly approached him and asked about Nathaniel.
The businessman answered, “I saw Mr. Hadley in the lounge on the third floor. He seems to be quite drunk, but he has his a*sistant with him. I think he might’ve returned to his room by now.”
Christina and Nathaniel’s guest room was on the topmost floor of the cruise ship-the VIP presidential
suite.
On the other hand, the normal guest rooms were located on the third floor. More importantly, Nathaniel had only brought one a*sistant, Sebastian, for this business trip.
“Let’s head to the third floor.” With that, Christina turned and left. Victoria, who wore a long gown and high heels that limited her movement, had trouble catching up to Christina.
“Jeez, Christina. Slow down.” Victoria leaned against Christina’s shoulder to catch her breath. “Please remember that you’re pregnant. Besides, I’m sure nothing happened to Mr. Hadley, so don’t get all worked. up.
An ominous premonition crept inside Christina. She grabbed onto the railing and took in a deep breath. Trembling, she whispered, “Victoria, I’m scared… I’m scared of making the same mistake.” She did not have the time to explain Madison’s incident on the cruise from back then. At that moment, the most important thing was to find Nathaniel.
Victoria was utterly confused. Before she could ask about it, Christina had already knocked on the door of the first guest room on the third floor.
The door opened to a foreign woman. She was wrapped in a bathrobe and was eyeing Christina up and down. She cursed and scolded Christina in Anglandurn before slamming the door shut.
It was obvious what the people in the room were doing.
Christina was about to knock on the door of the next room when Victoria suddenly grabbed her hand.
“Look over there…”
