Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee

Everyone stood frozen, staring at Tina as if lightning had struck the room. Her sudden outburst was utterly baffling.

Ruud, however, was unexpectedly elated. His daughter had given him an order-how could he refuse?

"Listen up, everyone! Women carry 10 pounds, men carry 20 pounds. We're running a 20-kilometer extreme cross-country route around the outskirts. Start and finish here-at the Brookes family estate!" The Brookes family gawked at him, their disbelief palpable.

"You're joking, right? A 20-kilometer run? Carrying weights? With one hand? What do you take us for, superheroes? We'll be dead halfway through!"

Ruud quickly realized he couldn't treat the Brookes like his soldiers. Adjusting his approach, he leaned toward Ian and lowered his voice.

"Dad, come on. Tina's serious! If we ignore her, she might come up with something worse. Let's just go along with this-it's safer."

Ian cast a wary glance at Tina. He didn't know what had gotten into her, but between a grueling run and some unknown chaos, he figured the former was the lesser evil-even if his aging body protested the thought. After a long sigh, Ian relented. "Fine. Everyone, follow Tina's orders!"

Resigned, the Brookes began scouring the estate for anything that could weigh 10 or 20 pounds. They stuffed their backpacks with books, pots, and even bags of rice before lining up in a loose formation. Within moments, the group set off down the road.

Tina, meanwhile, climbed into a car with a bamboo stick in hand, her expression stern. "Follow them. Don't let anyone slack off," she instructed the driver.

Brandon, jogging alongside Jared, glanced back at Tina in disbelief. "What the hell did you do to her?"

Jared frowned. "Me? I didn't do anything!"

"Then why is she acting like this?" Brandon grumbled. "This is insane. I haven't even married Angela yet-I'm too young to die!"

Jared ignored him, pulling out his phone. He scrolled through his contacts and called Dexter. No answer. Annoyed, he tried Hayden, who picked up almost immediately.

"Serena? What's up?" Hayden's casual tone was at odds with the chaos around Jared.

"It's me," Jared muttered.

There was a pause. "Mr. Farrell? Why are you calling me from Serena's phone?"

"We've got a situation. Tina's acting... strange. She's making us run some crazy cross-country route. Do you have any idea what's going on?"

Hayden sounded bewildered. "Strange? No clue. She seemed fine last time I saw her."novelbin

Jared sighed. "Dexter might know. He called earlier, but as soon as I mentioned Tina was drinking, he hung up. Can you call him and figure this out?" Hayden's voice shot up. "Wait-did you just say Tina was drinking?"

"Yeah. About ten bottles."

"Ten bottles?!" Hayden's shock practically reverberated through the phone. "Jared, are you out of your mind? You let her drink?! She's a complete disaster when she's drunk! If all she's doing is making you run, consider yourselves lucky-she could've turned the entire estate upside down!"

Hayden's panic was palpable, and Jared had no chance to respond before Hayden abruptly said, "I need to disappear before she remembers me. I'm not sticking around for this!" and hung up.

Moments later, Jared's phone buzzed with a notification from their Serenity Ridge group chat. Hayden had sent a single, ominous message:

"Serena's drunk. Ten bottles."

The replies were instantaneous: "What?! Run!"

"Every man for himself!"

Jared stared at his phone, speechless. He'd never seen Tina drink before. He always assumed she avoided it because she didn't like alcohol-not because she couldn't handle it. Now, this bizarre cross-country run was apparently the mild side of her drunken chaos.

Brandon overheard the conversation and groaned. "She's drunk? Oh, great! We're doomed."

"Just run," Jared muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

Brandon didn't need to be told twice. Sprinting ahead, he reached Ruud, who was jogging effortlessly and giving orders to the group. Brandon fumbled with his phone, calling Gabe.

"Gabe! Get some cars out here and stop my daughter's vehicle. Block her, distract her-do something!"

Gabe, confused, asked, "Didn't you say you wanted to win her over? Now you want me to block her?"

"Just do it!" Brandon snapped.

Soon, a convoy of cars arrived. One sped ahead and deliberately sideswiped Tina's vehicle. The driver skillfully controlled the impact so no one was hurt, but the damage was enough to bring the car to a halt. Gabe and Armel stepped out, their expressions apologetic.

"Sorry about that," Gabe said, forcing a smile. "We'll cover the repairs."

Tina's icy gaze pierced them. "If you can't drive properly, then just stand aside."

Before they could react, she flicked two silver needles at them. Gabe and Armel froze in place, their bodies stiff as boards. Then, to their utter humiliation, they wet themselves right there on the street.

The two men were mortified. What was this? No one had warned them that General Praevion's daughter had such terrifying skills!

Ignoring them, Tina turned to her driver. "Can you still drive?"

The man hesitated. "The car's totaled. Maybe we should head back and get another one?"

Gabe had already whispered to the driver earlier, urging him to stall Tina. Ian couldn't endure the run, and this was the only way to protect him.

After a moment's thought, Tina nodded. "Fine. Let's go back."

Meanwhile, Ruud had everyone pile into the other vehicles. Instead of returning home, he ordered the drivers to take a long detour, hoping Tina would sober up by the time they got back. When they finally returned to the estate over an hour later, they were greeted by the sight of Tina standing in the courtyard, smiling brightly.

"Back already?" she chirped, as if the entire ordeal had been nothing out of the ordinary.

Ruud and Ian exchanged wary glances.

"Is she sober?" Ruud whispered.

"Who knows?" Ian muttered sharply. "And stay away from me-I still haven't acknowledged you as my son-in-law."

As the two bickered in hushed tones, Tina approached Ruud, holding a glass of water. Her smile was sweet-too sweet.

"Here, Dad. Have some water," she said warmly.

Ruud's heart swelled. His daughter was finally showing him affection! Overcome with emotion, he accepted the glass and downed it in one gulp.

The moment the liquid hit his stomach, his face twisted in horror. "What did you put in this?!"

Tina's smile widened. "Just some sugar water... and a little laxative."

Ruud froze, his expression one of betrayal, before bolting toward the bathroom.