Chapter 1320

“I’m coming too!” she announced brightly.

The entire family mobilized as one force.

Meanwhile, Elliana slept soundly, unaware of the commotion unfolding beyond her door. The Thompsons had reserved the entire hotel for her comfort—every other guest had been quietly relocated, and the staff devoted themselves entirely to her care. Elliana rested peacefully while the Thompson clan kept a silent vigil outside her room.

Dawn gave way to midmorning, and it wasn’t until ten o’clock that Elliana finally rose from sleep’s embrace.

Cole, Arthur, and Milton had been unable to stomach the thought of leaving her alone in Yruzias; they had tagged along and taken rooms at a nearby hotel. The previous night, exhausted, Elliana had sent a short text to confirm she was safe, deliberately leaving out the detail about finding Rita at the Thompson estate. She had been too drained to explain, so after sending the message she silenced her phone and collapsed into bed.

Now awake, her first instinct was to reach for her phone and tell Arthur and Milton the news about Rita.

Elliana felt Cole had a right to know about Rita, so she made a group chat with him, Arthur, and Milton. Once they were all in, she explained how she had unexpectedly seen Rita at the Thompson estate the day before.

Milton practically exploded with joy and sent a voice note right away.

“Elliana, wait—are you serious? Is that really Mom?”

Arthur was just as shaken and quickly sent a voice message.

“Please don’t tell me you mixed her up with someone else!”

Elliana smiled as she typed.

“Do you honestly think I wouldn’t recognize my own mother?”

Milton rushed to explain himself.

“No! That’s not it! I’m just losing my mind right now—I can’t believe we found her like this!”

Arthur added, “Exactly! We know you’re sharp—I just got carried away and spoke without thinking.”

? ?ν[.]

Elliana replied with a smiling emoji.

“It’s really Rita. No doubt.”

Milton answered, “Hearing she’s been safe and loved… that’s a huge relief.” He went on to say that the Thompsons had no idea who she really was, but that many of them had treated her kindly.

Arthur went quiet in the group chat. Alone in his room, tears streamed down his face. Ever since Rita vanished, he had lived with constant worry for her well-being. Learning that she had, in fact, lived with her biological family for ten years eased a fear he’d carried for a decade.

Arthur typed, “Elliana, I want to see her—right now!”

Milton followed immediately: “Yeah! I can’t wait any longer!”

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