You Hit My Heart
Chapter 2042: Premeditation

Chapter 2042: Premeditation

The other side had premeditated everything. They never intended to extract any information from Elsa. The plan to have Elsa infiltrate the island, poison the water supply, and disrupt the wedding was merely a diversion. The real objective was to mislead them, making them misjudge the intentions and overlook the fact that Elsa's actions were just a cover. While they were busy discovering and interrogating Elsa, their adversaries used the opportunity to send their people through the reef tunnel into the underground passage, waiting for the right moment.

This explained how the intruders managed to infiltrate despite the island being tightly secured and everyone being thoroughly checked. They had been hiding in the secret passage, waiting for Joyce to be alone before swiftly taking her away. The transport tool used to abduct her was likely a small submarine pod, as mentioned by the experts earlier. These pods could accommodate two or three people, move stealthily underwater, evade most radar systems, and utilize advanced technology.

"It's over. The maritime surveillance was withdrawn after the wedding. No wonder we didn't detect anything," Kane said, slapping his forehead in regret. He had rushed over upon hearing about the discovery of the secret passage.

"It's all my fault. I should have waited until everyone had left before dismantling the surveillance system. Who would have thought something like this would happen after the wedding?" Kane kept blaming himself, having guarded diligently for two nights only to fail at the last moment.

"They knew we would lower our guard after the wedding. That was their real goal. Disrupting the wedding was never their intention; their target was Joyce from the beginning. Whether the wedding succeeded or not didn't matter to them. We misplaced our focus, and now it's too late to regret it," Luther sighed.

"Mr. Warner, should we go down and take a look?" Aaron asked, feeling equally heavy-hearted.

"Yes," Luther nodded.

Captain Stevens said, "I'll lead the way." He then turned on a large flashlight, its strong beam illuminating the entire passage.

They began descending. Contrary to their expectations, it wasn't damp but grew colder as they went deeper. After walking about a hundred meters, they were astonished by what they saw-a massive air-raid shelter. The island was hollow underneath, with strange rocks on the ceiling and jagged walls on both sides. No one would have guessed there was such a hidden world below.

Aaron exclaimed, "My God, such a large air-raid shelter underground. Even geologists couldn't detect it."

Captain Stevens led them further until the path narrowed and became increasingly damp, with a distinct seaside smell in the air.

"It seems we're nearing the sea," Kane remarked. "We took every precaution but never thought there'd be something underground."

Kane glared at Luther, "You really picked this place well. Even with all our defenses, we couldn't guard against a secret passage."

Aaron shot Kane a glance, thinking he was being deliberately unhelpful. No one wanted this outcome, and no one knew about the passage-not even archaeologists. How could Mr. Warner be blamed? Luther indeed felt guilty, his face darkening.

Aaron consoled him, "Mr. Warner, I believe their target was clear. Even without South Island, they would have found another way. If not this time, then another. Don't blame yourself; let's focus on rescuing Mrs. Warner."

Luther didn't respond, his expression showing a hint of confusion.

The hard-won peace was shattered once again.

As they moved forward, light gradually appeared and grew brighter until they reached an opening in the cliff. The opening wasn't large but could accommodate several people standing. Golden sunlight streamed in from the sea.

Luther stood at the opening, looking out at the turbulent sea and foamy waves. At that moment, his last bit of hope vanished-Joyce had indeed been taken.

He didn't know how to face this reality.

Kane sighed as well and asked Luther, "Brother-in-law, what should we do now?"

Luther looked at Kane, "Didn't Joyce ask you to open a branch in Rohomes?"

"Yes, I've almost finished preparing," Kane replied.

"Leave immediately. Take with you the gun-shaped brooch you gave Joyce and the pen-shaped gun Karl gave her. I'll have someone bring them to you. They might come in handy," Luther instructed. "But if I find Joyce, why would I need these things? Can't we just rescue her?" Kane questioned.

"I have a feeling it won't be that simple. Just do as I say," Luther said with a furrowed brow.

"Alright, I'll leave now," Kane nodded. Joyce's safety was his top priority.

"Aaron, get those items for Kane from the safe," Luther ordered.

After Kane and Aaron left, Luther took out his phone and called Cecelia.

A moment later, Cecelia answered.

"Mom, just as the archaeologists said, South Island has an unknown history. A hundred years ago, it was under Rohomes' military jurisdiction. There's a secret passage and an air-raid shelter beneath South Island that leads to a cliff by the sea. Joyce must have been taken through there. Initially, there were probably several people following Elsa who hid in the shelter and waited until after the wedding to act. By then, we had let our guard down and didn't notice the small submarine pod coming and going. That's likely how it happened," Luther explained. "I'll leave here soon; we need to discuss our next steps."

Cecelia paused before responding, "Alright. There's nothing else we can do now. I'll keep the children calm and take it one step at a time."

"Okay," Luther replied and hung up.

Standing at the opening with the blue sea and sky before him and waves crashing below, he felt extreme frustration despite the fresh sea air filling his lungs. The situation was far from simple. The peace he longed for seemed so elusive now that he and Joyce were separated. How could he quell his longing for her?

Closing his eyes, he sighed deeply.

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