Chapter 121
Sophia was left speechless, thrown off balance by his relentless argument. She felt like she’d lost the plot and without realizing it, her confidence took a nosedive.
But Brandon was still on the offensive, “Sophia, you’ve crashed and burned under my watch five times already. Are you really willing to gamble your future on a sixth?”
Sophia managed a forced smile, “That’s a pretty bleak way to put it.”
“What’s there to be bleak about? You’re over it anyway, right? To you, I’m just another Joe Blow, no different from any Tom, Dick, or Harry on the street. Doesn’t that make it easier for you to focus on your career?”
Sophia pretended not to catch the sarcasm in his voice and kept her lips tightly sealed.
Brandon then sat back, stretched his long arm behind his seat, pulled out a contract and a pen, and handed them to her, “Sign this.”
Sophia glanced at it. It was the same contract he had shoved into her hands at the restaurant, just a fresh copy, probably one of several he had printed out.
Sophia didn’t reach out to take it.
“I need more time to think about it.”
Brandon turned to look at her, “How much more time?”
Sophia didn’t know. Her emotions had been a rollercoaster today, and she hadn’t had a moment to stop and think it all through. “I can only give you a week and a half.”
“The new company launches next Friday. If you’re not there, consider it a forfeit,” Brandon said as he thrust the contract into her hands. “If you don’t show, I’ll replace you on the Zenithan-style resort project. I’d rather ditch the plan than have to bring someone new on board halfway through.”
Without waiting for her to respond, he started the car again, “I’ll drop you back at the hotel.”
After dropping Sophia off at the hotel and just as he got back into his car, Don called.
“How are you two doing?” Don sounded worried on the phone, “Everything okay?”
“It’s fine.”
“And the designer, I mean Sophia.” Don corrected himself, “How’s she holding up? Is she feeling better?”
“She’s fine.”
Don said, “What about the project? Is she taking it? And the position of head designer?”
“I don’t know.”
Don didn’t know what to say.
“Let’s wait until next Friday,” Brandon said, “If she shows, she stays on. If not, we find someone else.”
“Come on,” Don tried to persuade him, “It would be such a waste if she quit.”
Brandon said, “What else can I say? Didn’t you see your star designer is ready to pay up just to avoid me?”
Don was at a loss for words, “Alright, I’ll figure something else out.”
As he was about to hang up, Brandon cut in, “How long has Sophia been at your firm?”
“A year.”
Brandon said, “Anything out of the ordinary?”
Don was puzzled by the question, “What could be out of the ordinary for a girl? Just the usual work, off work, attending classes, you know.”
Then, remembering how Brandon had grilled Sophia at the restaurant about whether the child was still there, Don hesitated, “You’re not suspecting she had a kid behind your back, are you? That’s not likely. I met her the first time you came to Wye City, and she hasn’t changed much over the year. She hasn’t gained weight, and there’s been no talk of a child. Plus, her classmate works with us and has never mentioned anything,” Don analyzed earnestly.
“Give me her classmate’s number.”
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“Huh?”
“I need to talk to her.”
“Okay, I’ll let her know first,” Don hung up with Brandon and called Sylvia to explain the situation before passing her number to Brandon.
Brandon was still in his car downstairs at the hotel.
He immediately dialed Sylvia’s number but stopped midway, thinking it over. She was close to Sophia, and it might not yield any useful information.
Eventually, Brandon backed out, took one last look at the brightly lit hotel, and drove off.
He didn’t head straight home but went to the Frost family instead.
The Frost family lived in an old villa in the West district. Even though it was over twenty years old, the house didn’t look overly aged. Instead, it had a quiet dignity that comes with time.
Yolanda was born and raised in that house until she was over five years old.
The Frost family had all lived there for over two decades. It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford to move, but the Frost patriarch feared that if they did, Yolanda wouldn’t be able to find her way home if she ever came back.
Since Yolanda’s disappearance, Brandon rarely visited, so his late-night arrival took everyone by surprise, especially Louis, who was already in his pajamas ready for bed. Hearing that Brandon had come, he made an effort despite being unwell, “Brandon, what brings you here?”
As he spoke, he called up the stairs, “Martin, Brandon’s here.”
Martin appeared at the top of the staircase, looking down at Brandon.
The two hadn’t been in touch since that incident in Wye City two years ago.
Brandon glanced at Martin, then turned to Louis, “I’m here to see Marian.”
Louis’s eyes lit up with excitement, “So you came especially for Yoli, eh? She’s in her room.”
He called out to Martin, “Tell Yolanda to come down, Brandon’s looking for her.”
Then looking back at Brandon, “How did you know Yolanda was back?”
“I heard.”
He had already looked up at the staircase.
Marian was reluctantly following Martin down the stairs.
Brandon had no idea why Marian had agreed to move into the Frost family home.
Sophia mentioned once that Marian was heading back to the homeland, and Patricia and Daniel kinda let it slip a few times in front of him too, hinting that she had moved back into the Frost family’s digs and suggesting he should swing by for a catch-up.
When Marian caught sight of Brandon, she was taken aback, “Huh? What brings you here?”
“I need to talk to you about something,” said Brandon. “Can we step outside for a sec?”
Marian glanced hesitantly at Martin and Louis, then back at Brandon, not daring to agree right off the bat.
“Just by the door, no sweat,” Brandon assured her.
Marian hesitated, then nodded, “Alright, fine.”
And with that, she followed Brandon outside.
Brandon didn’t wander off too far, just to the yard right in front of the living room, within plain sight of Louis and Martin inside.
He turned to look at Marian, who was trailing with a touch of hesitation, “Ms. Barlow, during your first master’s year, did Sophia ever take a long leave?”
Caught off guard by the question, Marian took a moment to think, then shook her head, “Nah.”
“What about short leaves?” asked Brandon.
Marian couldn’t recall that. She couldn’t even remember her own days off, let alone someone else’s.
“I don’t remember, Marian admitted honestly. “But as far as I know, probably not. Sophia’s super dedicated and disciplined, never late or leaves early, let alone taking time off.”
“Got any photos from back then?” Brandon probed.
“Sophia’s not the picture-taking type, how on earth would I have her photos?” Marian responded.
“Not asking for her selfies, but what about group shots from any events?”
Marian thought hard for a moment, “There might be some.”
She whipped out her phone, scrolled through Facebook, and sure enough, came across a photo from the previous February. “This was when our class went to check out a construction site, it’s a group pic we all snapped together,” Marian explained, turning her phone screen towards Brandon, “Sophia’s in it, right there in the top right corner.”
