Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 274

Emma Bennett grabbed a cab straight from the airport, Larson by her side, both heading directly for her grandmother’s apartment complex.

Sebastian Remington and Ms. Brown, equally anxious, insisted on riding with them in the same car.

“Emma, don’t worry, we’re almost there,” Ms. Brown said gently, noticing how uneasy she was.

Sebastian chimed in, “Yeah, my sister was just here yesterday to see your grandmother.”

Emma nodded, trying to calm herself. Genevieve had indeed visited yesterday, and even on the day she flew out, Emma had video-chatted with her grandmother. But despite all that, a strange sense of dread gnawed at her, impossible to shake.

An hour later, they arrived at the apartment complex.

Emma dashed into her grandmother’s temporary home, only to stop dead in her tracks once the door swung open.

The apartment was empty.

Utterly empty.

And the place was a mess—furniture overturned, drawers yanked out, belongings scattered everywhere.

Everyone stared, stunned.

They snapped into action at once.

Ms. Brown went to find the building manager, while Larson stuck close to Emma, scouring the neighborhood with her. Sebastian left to file a police report, setting up a group chat so they could all stay in touch.

Emma switched her phone to her home SIM card, and a flood of missed calls and messages poured in. She barely glanced at them, too frantic to care. She just kept dialing her grandmother’s number over and over, alternating with video calls.

But every time, the phone was off.

Half an hour later, Ms. Brown returned with security footage from the building. Emma and Larson, meanwhile, had found nothing.

On the surveillance video, Emma’s grandmother was seen leaving the building with three people—Emma’s parents and Jonathan Bennett.

“Those damn wolves,” Emma muttered, clutching her phone, feeling utterly drained.

“Come on, let’s take this to the police. We’ll show them the footage and ask for help,” Ms. Brown said, putting a comforting arm around Emma as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Let’s go back to Cresthaven. We have to,” Emma said, her hand trembling as she gripped her phone. She couldn’t care less about Mr. Whitman.

She had no idea what had really happened to her grandmother.

No idea how her family had even found her.

And hadn’t her father been in custody? The kidnapping case hadn’t been closed—how on earth was he walking free?

Too many questions, and not a single answer. On the flight back to Cresthaven, Emma’s mind raced nonstop. Larson and Sebastian tried talking to her, but she couldn’t process a word.

Larson could only watch her helplessly, making sure she was alright. When Emma refused the airline meal, he opened a carton of yogurt and pressed it into her hand. “If you don’t eat, I’ll have to feed you myself,” he teased, trying to lighten the mood.

Emma’s nerves were frayed, but she gulped down the yogurt in one go, mind already spinning with what to do when they landed in Cresthaven.

“I wonder if I can even visit the holding facility…” she murmured to herself.

Yes, that’s it—go to the holding facility. She was her father’s daughter, after all. Surely no one could deny her a visit.