The Worthless Son-in-law: Hidden Legend

The Race against Time

“Maya! Maya! Can you hear me?” Lauren shouted, desperately calling for her daughter.

“Mummy, I want... Daddy. Maya shouldn’t die without knowing Daddy. Mummy, I want to sleep, and I want Daddy.”

“Maya isn’t going to die, okay? Daddy will come soon, I promise.” Lauren spoke softly, trying to reassure her daughter.

“No, Mummy, I want Daddy now,” Maya cried, tears streaming down her face as the pain overwhelmed her. She squirmed in her mother’s lap, struggling.

“I’ll get him, but you need to stay still so I can remove the pin, alright?” Lauren said, trying to stay calm.

“No! I want Daddy!” Maya’s voice cracked with desperation.

Lauren, helpless and panicked, had no idea what to do. Where could she possibly find Ethan? He had disappeared without a trace since the day he left. He had never reached out to her nor did she hear of him. With shaking hands, she grabbed her old phone and dialed the number she knew by heart. The call went unanswered, only to be met with a cold, automated message.

“The number you are calling is temporarily out of service.”

She tried again. Same result. Her throat tightened with fear and frustration. Maybe Ethan had discarded the SIM card to avoid being found. After all,he was been hunted and the SIM card could lead to his location.

Meanwhile, Maya’s pain worsened, and Lauren could no longer bear to see her suffering. She scooped her daughter into her arms and rushed out of the hotel room.

As Lauren hurried down the hotel with Maya, Asper, waiting in his car, grew increasingly impatient. He began to suspect Lauren had fled, but where could she possibly go? The hotel was on the sixth floor, she couldn't have jumped to her death, and his bodyguards were on alert outside the hotel room.

As he was about to exit the car, he spotted Lauren carrying Maya toward a commercial car. His face twisted with irritation. How dare she keep him waiting because of that bastard?

Though furious, Asper couldn't confront her directly. His reputation was too important, and any public scene could jeopardize his image.

At the hospital, Maya was admitted quickly. The doctors insisted on immediate surgery, explaining that the pin had become embedded in her skin and couldn't be removed without a procedure. Lauren didn’t hesitate to make the payment, and preparations for the surgery began.

Just as the doctors were about to begin, Asper stormed into the room, flanked by his bodyguards, and ordered everyone to leave. They complied out of fear, knowing who he was. The heir to the Starlight company,they wouldn't dare disregard his orders for the fear of been implicated.

In a fit of rage, Asper slapped Lauren across the face. “Didn’t I tell you to meet me in the car in five minutes? What’s the meaning of this delay?”

“Please, Asper, Maya is about to die!” Lauren cried, trying to keep her composure.

“So?” Asper sneered, his eyes cold. He turned to his bodyguards and commanded, “Cripple anyone who helps that bastard.”

Furious, Lauren screamed, “If my daughter dies, I’ll never forgive you! I’ll hunt you for the rest of my life!”

“You don’t have the ability to do that,” Asper said dismissively, ordering his men to drag her out of the room.

Outside, two doctors who couldn’t bear to ignore Maya’s suffering approached the bodyguards, but were brutally beaten for their compassion. They were carried out by their colleagues to tend to.

Maya, in immense pain, clutched her mother’s phone and, without fully understanding, managed to dial the last number that had been called.

The phone rang, and after a few moments, it was answered.

“Daddy...” Maya whispered weakly. “Daddy, please come and help... Mummy and I... I want to sleep but I can’t...”

Meanwhile, at the airport, Ethan stared at his phone, in shock. A little girl had just called him “Daddy.” What was happening? Was he the father of this child? Was Lauren pregnant? He didn't change throw away the SIM card because of Lauren and he had limited the number of who can call him to only two people and Lauren was one of them.

Ethan’s mind raced. He remembered leaving Valeria City three months after his wedding to Lauren, and three and a half months after they were set up by Aster Stanley and Katherine, Lauren's step sister.

" Ethan? Captain? " Raymond shouted his name as he had never seen him an a daze.

“Raymond,” Ethan muttered, still in a daze. “Call Derek and have him trace this number, now!”

Raymond, surprised by Ethan’s sudden urgency, nodded and made the call.

Moments later, Raymond returned with the news. “Captain, Derek tracked the number to Miracle Hospital.”

Ethan’s expression hardened. “To Miracle Hospital, now!” he commanded, turning to his team.

The race against time had begun.