Silly Bride novel (Winnie and Xavier)

“What about him? Have you found any information? He’s still alive, isn’t he?”

Seeing how happy and hopeful Sebastian was, Winnie suddenly couldn’t bring herself to break the

news.

After a while, she frowned and said, “No, Master. Didn’t I tell you before that I found out he has a

property in Avenport? I had to stop the investigation back then for personal reasons, and it was only

yesterday that I asked Xavier to help me with it. Thanks to him, I was informed earlier that we finally

tracked down Harrison’s residence in Avenport. That’s why I wanted to share whatever information I

currently have with you.”

As disappointed as he was, Sebastian quickly recomposed himself. “Oh, well done! I didn’t even know

he had a property in Avenport! Show it to me, then!”

The truth was, he knew he had reacted too emotionally. After all, what were the chances of his

grandson surviving when the latter had gone missing in the Arcvas Desert for two long years?

That said, it’d still be a consolation to Sebastian if he could find out anything about Harrison, no matter

how trivial.

Now that she had gotten his consent, Winnie promptly took out the collated information and handed it

over. “Here’s the property in question. The house got purchased five years ago, but Harrison didn’t use

it often. In total, he probably stayed there for less than a year.”

“Indeed! That’s because I’ve always kept him busy in the research institute, so he barely had time to

head out,” Sebastian explained before looking through a stack of photos. “What about these? What are

they supposed to be?”

“These photos show the items we found in Harrison’s mailbox, which include utility bills and postcards.

However, those postcards were all sent anonymously, so we have no idea who the senders were.”

“Do you have a clearer picture of these postcards?”

“Yes, I believe there are two more. Give me a second,” Winnie replied as she swiftly dug them out.

Alas, the moment Sebastian held the photos up for a closer look, his hand started trembling.

“That’s Harrison’s handwriting. I recognize it! Where are my glasses? Yolanda, fetch me my reading

glasses! Hurry!”

Yolanda, who was standing behind her grandfather, couldn’t help but sigh. “Grandpa, you’ve been

wearing your glasses this whole time. Where do you want me to go?”

Upon hearing that, Sebastian quickly felt his face, and only then did he realize his folly.

He carefully studied the content on the postcards, and even though there weren’t any names, the dates

on them were clear as day.

Wait a minute. There’s something odd about this. The sign-off date on one of the postcards is after

Harrison had been reported missing!

“Take a look at this, Yolanda,” Sebastian piped up. “The date written on this postcard was after your

brother had gone missing, and I’m sure that’s his handwriting. Furthermore, the postage stamp is from

Epea! Do you think he could still be alive? He clearly wrote this to his future self, saying he wanted to

drink his own homemade beer and watch his favorite movies two years later. Two years from the date

on this postcard is this year! That means he must still be alive! He’ll be back, won’t he?”

Yolanda took the postcard from her grandfather and glanced at it. Her reaction, however, was less than

enthusiastic.

“So what if he’s still alive? It’s been two years, Grandpa, but has he bothered to contact any of us?

That shows he doesn’t want us to know anything related to him,” she reasoned. “Besides, the postmark

and sign-off date are different. I think the sign-off date was merely an error, and he mailed the postcard

before he went missing. He probably visited Epea before going to Alendor and felt happy enough to

send himself a postcard to motivate his future self. Nothing unusual about that.”

Naturally, that angered Sebastian. “Harrison’s your brother, Yolanda! Why can’t you wish the best for

him?”

“Ha! Is that what you think?” Yolanda scoffed. “In your eyes, your new student’s the only one who cares

about Harrison, isn’t it? Fine! The two of you can continue playing detective to your heart’s content! I’m

leaving!”

Whenever anyone mentioned Harrison, Yolanda would always feel heavy-hearted, to the point where

she’d find it hard to breathe. As such, she couldn’t bring herself to stay with Sebastian or Winnie for a

minute longer.

Tears started welling up in Sebastian’s eyes as he watched his granddaughter storm off.

“Nini, am I overthinking? Do you think Harrison might still be alive?”

“I don’t have an answer to that, Master,” Winnie replied with a frown. “What I do know, however, is that

the truth is out there. I’ll get someone to look into this matter and check out the place where Harrison

allegedly sent the postcard from.”

“Thank you so much, Nini. I’m very grateful that you’ve helped me uncover so much. By the way,

there’s a two-year period mentioned in the postcard, and that day is coming soon. I’m thinking of going

to Avenport and waiting at his house to try my luck.”

“Sure, I’ll make the necessary arrangements. Xavier and I live in Avenport, so you can depend on us

once you’re there.”

“Thank you. I’ll start packing up now,” Sebastian said before striding off.

Unfortunately, he had barely left for a few minutes when Yolanda marched back into the room with a

grim expression.

“Winnie Garland. What’s the meaning of this?”

Winnie furrowed her brows. “What do you mean by that?”

“Did you persuade my grandfather to go to Avenport? Other people who had come to him to learn or

seek medical treatment have had to stay in Yaleview. You, however, decided to make things convenient

for yourself and lured Grandpa to your place. Tell me. Is that why you’re looking into my brother’s

disappearance?”

“That has never been my intention,” Winnie retorted. “Even before this, we’ve already made plans to

stay here long-term for Xavier’s treatment. If Master wants to go to Avenport, I’ll arrange it for him. If

and when he wishes to return to Yaleview, I’ll also be more than happy to make the arrangements.”

“What makes you think I’ll believe that? It’s all just too much of a coincidence! Who knows what ulterior

motives you have…”

“Indeed, it’s very coincidental, but I can’t explain how fate can sometimes work in the most mysterious

ways. If you’re worried about your grandfather, you can always tag along. Since you’re his

granddaughter, I’ll make sure you settle in nicely in Avenport too.”

Needless to say, Yolanda wasn’t willing to do as Winnie suggested.

I don’t want to give in to her wishes, but then again, it might not be a bad idea to go to Avenport. Nate

has been telling me he’s too busy to visit me in Yaleview, so why don’t I go to him instead? After all, he

lives there! He won’t be able to run away from me anymore!

Just like that, the plan of going to Avenport was finalized, and everyone began packing for the trip.

Winnie and Xavier didn’t have much to pack, especially since the latter had bought a mansion in

Yaleview where they could leave their luggage behind.

They left Yaleview that afternoon and arrived in Avenport a little after eight at night.

Even though Winnie had already booked a hotel stay for Yolanda and Sebastian, the latter was too

eager to visit Harrison’s condominium.

Not wanting to go against her master’s wishes, Winnie complied and led him to the residence.

Despite the condominium having a password lock, it only took Sebastian two attempts before he

managed to unlock the door and step into the house.

Winnie followed him inside, and what greeted her was a thick layer of dust everywhere. From the looks

of it, there was no doubt the house had been empty for a long time.

Regardless, Sebastian wanted to stay the night in the condominium and wasn’t taking no for an

answer. Because of that, Winnie had no choice but to get a cleaning team to tidy up the place.

However, when they got to the study, there were so many of Harrison’s personal effects strewn around

that Sebastian insisted on cleaning the room himself.

Winnie helped out as much as she could, and by the time they completed their chores, it was already

way past eleven.

During the whole time that Winnie was cleaning and packing away, Xavier never once left her side.

Even when they eventually left the condominium, they walked out of the residential area hand in hand

and drove home.

With them looking like a match made in heaven, it was no wonder other people were envious of them.

Yolanda took a picture of the loving couple from a window upstairs and promptly attached it to her text

message to Nate: If you don’t meet me soon, chances are these two will live happily ever after. Do you

see how loving they are? I bet you must be on pins and needles, huh?

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