Filed to story: My Husband Regrets Divorcing Me (Audrey & Cornell)
Petals spread out everywhere.
Cornell hurriedly left the airport.
In Burwood. At the site of the calamity.
Cornell stood silently at the edge, his presence radiating a dignified, solitary coldness.
The scene in front of him looked nothing like the quaint village Audrey had depicted in her photos. What confronted him was a landscape of mud, stones, and wreckage ??complete ruin.
Cornell felt shattered. “Audrey…” He seemed unable to bear it any longer and collapsed to his knees, his mind praying for Audrey’s safety.
The two elite guards arranged by Cornell for Audrey’s safety, now covered in dust, approached Cornell and reported in a dry, raspy voice, “Mr. Clement, we’ve searched this whole area and found no sign of Miss Foster…”
The disaster had been ferocious. Yet, due to effective emergency response, casualties were minimized. The village’s population was small to begin with.
Nearly all the volunteers had gotten to safety. At present, only five individuals were missing, Audrey and Misael included.
“Miss Foster stayed behind to rescue a child, which delayed her escape…”
Before the guard could finish, blood burst forth from Cornell’s mouth.
Cornell’s pale lips were stained crimson, the blood trickling down.
“Mr. Clement!” The guards hurried over, trying to lend him some support.
Yet, Cornell waved his hand dismissively. He slowly rose to his feet, his voice cold as ice, “Get a helicopter, bring more rescuers, and widen the search perimeter. We must find Audrey, even if we have to search every corner of this damned village!”
The guards wasted no time and got right to it.
A helicopter soon landed in an open field.
Cornell climbed aboard, adjusted his specialized glasses, and signaled to proceed.
The helicopter swept low across the area.
After multiple passes, no signs of life appeared, not even a small indication of any living creature. The whole ground was a dull gray.
No signs of life anywhere.
Debris continued to cascade down from Mount Burwood. This spot remained the heart of the disaster, deemed too hazardous for entry.
After making a second pass, the sense of despair in the helicopter’s cabin was noticeable among the guards. It seemed impossible to locate a breathing Audrey.
Cornell’s gaze was locked on the gray landscape beneath him, his handsome features filled with sorrow. Given the situation, was there any chance of making it out alive?
Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to accept Audrey had died. It was unthinkable that fate would be so harsh on him! It just couldn’t be!
Seeing Cornell’s ghastly pallor, one of the guards softly suggested, “Mr. Clement, maybe you should take a break. Let us continue the search.
“Head toward latitude 45 degrees. Angle it!” Cornell’s voice turned cold as he spoke abruptly.
The pilot adjusted the helicopter’s course accordingly.
To the guards’ amazement, they noticed a red ribbon moving on a bare tree branch. Approaching, they spotted a little boy, covered in dirt, waving a red scarf.
Cornell’s pupils contracted sharply. That scarf belonged to the volunteers. Audrey had one just like it. And such a layer of dust was unusual for a child to equip with.
Cornell grabbed the gear from the guard beside him and hastily strapped it on. “I’m going down!”
Caught off guard, the guard began to protest, “Mr. Clement, you..”
But before the guard could even complete his sentence, Cornell had already descended from the helicopter using a rappelling rope.
The pilot skillfully adjusted the helicopter’s position.
Taking the chance, Cornell leaped and grabbed a thick branch. He then gestured with his white glove, signaling that he had landed safely on the tree.
Misael had been clinging on without sleep for so long that he felt utterly drained, yet he continued to shiver uncontrollably. visibly frightened.
Cornell gently took Misael’s hand, embracing him firmly, and asked with a deep voice, “Can you talk?”
Misael nodded and then quickly shook his head.
Cornell’s eyes were pitch-black, his body colder than it appeared.
“Who handed you this scarf…”
Cornell seemed to be suppressing his voice, as if afraid that even a slight carelessness would shatter his hopes.
Misael’s face was streaked with tears and fear. “A lady… A stunning lady…” The fear of the night and his empty stomach made it hard for Misael to put his thoughts into words. But the most crucial message stuck in his mind. “She told me she’s Janey’s mother…”
At that moment, Cornell’s deep, dark eyes filled with intensity, his heart sinking.
“Uh…” Audrey woke up, coming back to consciousness. Without meaning to, she moaned from the pain.
Gradually, she opened her eyes, feeling bruises and discomfort everywhere. Yet, through the pain, a spark of happiness ignited. She was still alive!
Audrey lifted her arm, trying to move the hair blocking her view to take in her surroundings.
At a glance, everything appeared okay, but a closer look nearly scared her senseless.
She found herself in a small hollow partway up the mountain. Directly beneath her was a sheer drop, plunging hundreds of meters down! Next to her, an old, oversized tire rested.
Back when Audrey teetered on the brink of unconsciousness, she recalled how mud had shoved her away, triggering her survival instinct to grasp onto whatever was within reach. It seemed this tire had saved her from being buried alive.
Yet, her current predicament felt almost as dire as a burial. The depression was barely large enough for one person. Any slight movement threatened to dislodge more stones.
She even questioned if the ground under her could hold anything heavier than fifty kilograms.
Moreover, the night looked to be falling in less than two hours.
Audrey knew she couldn’t count on luck to prevent her from dozing off and falling.
Looking around in desperation, panic started to set in. When hope seemed lost, she spotted slight movements in the vines close to her hollow. An idea sparked. She tried reaching out for the vines.
But the moment she moved, rocks above tumbled down.
Frightened, Audrey flattened herself against the mountainside, and the stones hit the tire, rolling off silently. This showed just how deep the drop was.
Audrey dared not even breathe, worried more rocks would come crashing down.
Maintaining still for a while, the ache in her body grew worse.
With no signaling devices and unable to call for help loudly, Audrey didn’t know how much longer she could hold on. In this dire situation, waiting meant certain death.
In her deepest despair, voices echoed nearby.
“Anyone here?”
“Is somebody out there?”
“Miss Foster!”
“Audrey!””
It sounded like salvation! Audrey heard it clearly. It was Cornell!
How had he come here? Wasn’t he supposed to be in Ardlens?
Overwhelmed with relief, Audrey began to call out, “Mi…”
But before she could say more, the sound of her voice dislodged another stone.
Audrey was paralyzed with fear, afraid to move or make any noise.
The sounds of the search party calling for her slowly disappeared.
Panic surged within Audrey. Feeling completely lost, she noticed the vines beside her moving gently. This sparked an idea. She reached out again and this time, successfully grabbed two vines.
Carefully, she tied the vines together and started swinging them. The length of the vines meant even small movements could cause noticeable disturbances on the ground.
Audrey’s goal was to catch the attention of the rescuers with these movements.
Now that she glimpsed a chance for rescue, Audrey naturally refrained from recklessly attempting to climb the vines. Given the vines’ exposure to the elements, there was no certainty they would hold her weight.
On the ground.
Cornell and his four agile guards were searching through the area.
It was still a dangerous zone, not easily accessible to the public.