Eliot had never seen Sydnee since he knew that the money was given by Emily.
He thought Sydnee cared about him so much because she liked him. But he felt a little disappointed as he knew that it was because of Emily.
Probably it was the so-called sense of unevenness.
It was just like the moment he came back from work. When he opened the door to his rental apartment and entered the empty room, he remembered that he had moved out of the Britt's.
He felt the same at that moment.
Every day he travelled from home to work. The farthest place he would go was the supermarket and nearest one was the convenience store in front of his apartment. He would stay in either the company or the room in the rest of time.
Sydnee would occasionally make phone calls to inquire about his situation. Eliot seemed to have completely forgotten about him pretending to be her boyfriend and frequently appearing in front of her, or, he had pulled himself out of that. The only thing left between them was nothing but greetings and estrangement.
Sydnee might have noticed his indifference, but she did not ask. Perhaps it was in line with her expectations, so the two of them thought in the same way and returned to the right track.
Eliot sometimes remembered that day when he was squatting on the floor, and Sydnee was busy in the kitchen. The fragrance of the food filled the room. But when he opened his eyes, he was the only one in the room.
He was just too lonely, he thought.
When he received Lynn's call, Eliot couldn't remember he knew such a person. He was stunned for a while before he understood what she was saying.
"I'm sorry to disturb you. I ... I'm locked in a room and no one comes to rescue me. I ... I'm a little scared. I finally get my phone, and it may be the last time I do so. Brother, can you save me?"
Kidnapping?
Eliot thought of this word first, then he denied it. No, Uncle Jim was not rich enough and his daughter wouldn't be kidnapped for ransom.
He jotted down the address on the paper, then picked up his phone and coat and rushed out. Coincidentally, he saw Sydnee's car parked there when he got downstairs, and Sydnee had just got off the car.
"Good timing. Lend your car to me." Eliot took the key from her hand and got into the car.
Sydnee didn't know what had happened, but she hurriedly walked to the passenger seat and sat in. She fastened the seat belt and asked, "What happened?"
Eliot tilted his head and looked at her. At this moment, he asked an irrelevant question, "You come round and see me?"
"Well, there is..." She paused for a moment and said, "Leave it to when we get back. What happened?"
"Do you have the number of that policeman?" He input the address in the navigation.
"Yes." Sydnee became nervous.
"Call him now."
"Alright!"
Town South was not far from City Y, but it would take at least two hours to drive there. Eliot was worried that he would arrive late, so he asked that policeman to contact the local police in Town South in advance.
Halfway through, Eliot received a call from that policeman, saying that Lynn had been rescued. Eliot didn't ask about the specific situation and that policeman asked Eliot to go to the police station of Town South or the hospital beside.
Eliot almost knew what happened when he heard about hospital. After thanking that policeman, Sydnee hung up the phone and put it away. It immediately became quiet in the car again.
To Eliot, Lynn was just a sister who was more related to him than a stranger. They only met a few times a year without much contact. He only remembered that she was a girl with tanned skin, and he couldn't even remember her appearance very clearly. But this year, because Emily suddenly handed over his business card to her, he finally remembered Lynn and her name.
At that time, because of Beverly's incident and the fact that he still had the annual meeting to attend, he was too busy to ask Emily why Lynn wanted to get his business card. He now thought about it. It was as if Emily knew what was going to happen in advance.
When Sydnee saw Eliot frown and reveal an expression of confusion, she couldn't help but comfort him. "It should be fine. We will be there soon. Don't worry too much."
She thought he was worried about Lynn.
Eliot did not explain. Instead, he tilted his head to look at her. Their gazes happened to meet. Sydnee smiled comfortably at him and then turned her head to stare ahead.
Not long after, she took out the thermos cup and took a sip of water. Then she asked him, "Are you thirsty?"
"What kind of tea?" Eliot glanced at her thermos cup, not pink, which was for women, but lime green. It had eight large words carved in a mist-like manner on its edges, which was 'Be firm and unswerving. Happy and blessed forever.'
"Kuding." Sydnee was just about to close the lid when she realized that Eliot seemed to want to drink her tea.
She intended to hand him a bottle of water, but after thinking for a while, she handed over her thermos cup.
"Do you mind?" He tilted his head to glance at her wrist.
Sydnee wanted to nod, but she controlled herself and did the opposite.
Eliot took a sip and said, "I didn't sleep well last night. I'm a little sleepy." He said this as if to explain.
Sydnee let go instantly and said, "Why don't I drive later?"
"No need." He handed over the thermos cup, and Sydnee reached out to take it. His hand was in the middle, and Sydnee caught it from below.
Eliot remembered that in the school library, many of his younger female schoolmates shyly asked him if he could got them the books on the top of the shelf. It wasn't difficult for him. Those girls would deliberately touch his hand.
Sydnee was discreet. She had never gone too far. Even if she asked him to pretend to be her boyfriend and make a call, she had chosen a good reason of rejection for him.
"Have you been in close contact with that policeman recently?" He asked casually.
Sydnee tilted her head and said, "What? He's very busy, and we do not contact much." She recalled what Eliot said to the policeman in the restaurant last time. She added, "I'm not planning to be in a relationship yet. I'm too busy now. Everyone is very busy. I don't have the time or energy to start a relationship. I'm afraid that if I do, I won't be able to have a happy ending."
"Yeah, it's good." Eliot said.
Sydnee noticed that he seemed to be a little brighter than when he got downstairs. She turned around and looked at the main road. Well, they were about to arrive.
They first drove to the police station of Town South. When they reached the entrance, Eliot stopped and got off. Sydnee lowered her head to look at her phone and said, "Find someone called Mark."
Eliot nodded and entered. The entire police station was in a mess. Gangsters of all kinds were there, standing in a row. Their hair was in various colors and styles. Each of them held their heads and stood by the wall. Two uniformed policemen were scolding them with iron bars in their hands.
As soon as Eliot and Sydnee entered the door, all of those people in the row all looked over. Seeing that they didn't know these two people, they immediately lowered their heads in disappointment.
"How can I help?" The policeman yelled at Eliot after scolding those gangsters.
"Mark, I'm looking for Mark." Eliot said, "I'm from City Y. I just asked a friend to call the police for me..."