The Bound Between Us

Chapter 390

Penny spotted Layna approaching and quickly darted out from the side, snatching Layna and swiftly stuffing a piece of cloth into her mouth.

With the light behind them and the shadow of the trees surrounding them, Penny, who was on her first kidnapping mission, was nervous and didn’t take the time to look at the child’s face. She quickly pulled out a rope, tied Layna up, and stuffed her into a burlap sack.

She had been planning this kidnapping for several days, visualizing every move and procedure over and over in her head, which is why she was able to execute it seamlessly.

After bagging Layna, Penny hoisted her onto her shoulder and started walking. When Layna began to struggle inside the sack, Penny just held her tightly.

Penny had Leo’s assistance. As a couple, they silently kidnapped Layna and brought her to an unfinished building. This place was secluded and absolutely quiet, with no chance of anyone coming by.

This was an old construction site where Leo had worked before. He knew this area well.

The couple carried Layna up to the fourth floor before stopping. Penny’s hand was throbbing. The cut Leo had given her before was deep. Despite the fact that their relationship had deteriorated to the point of harming each other, they were united on the issue of finding their son.

The police had provided no updates, driving the couple to desperation, which is why they resorted to this method.

The burlap sack was still, and Penny quickly said, “Untie her. She can’t suffocate. If she dies, we’ll never get our son back.”

Leo took a deep breath before untying the sack.

Layna wasn’t suffocated, just exhausted from struggling. The confined space of the sack made breathing difficult, and she was dazed and stopped moving.

When Leo opened the sack and saw Layna, he was stupefied. “Who is this? This isn’t Pattie. Where’s Pattie?”

Upon closer inspection, Penny realized that she had kidnapped Layna, not Pattie.

“This is… this is that Jewell’s girl. It was dark, and I saw her wearing the same dress Pattie wore during the day, I thought it was Pattie.”

“What are we supposed to do now that we’ve kidnapped the wrong person?” Leo complained. “You’re always messing things up. What can you ever do right?”

“How was I supposed to know?” Penny retorted. “It’s not my fault she was wearing Pattie’s

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dress. She’s Jewell’s girl, so it’s not like we kidnapped the wrong person…”

Penny squatted down and glared at Layna. “We lost our son, Jewell is pregnant and has another daughter. Why should all the good things happen to her? I want her to know what it feels like to lose a child, too.” Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

Layna, slightly regaining her strength, was terrified at the sight of Penny and the surroundings. She couldn’t speak, only cry and struggle, trying to escape.

Penny shoved her onto the ground. “If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for being her daughter.”

Leo asked, “Penny, what are you planning to do? Don’t do anything rash. We just want to find our son.”

Penny yelled at him, “You’re such a coward. You weren’t afraid when you stabbed me, but now you’re scared. Our son has been missing for so long, and it’s all that Jewell’s fault. If we can’t have our son, then they shouldn’t be happy either.”

Meanwhile, at the bus station.

Pattie was still waiting for Layna. Her sister had told her to wait, so she did, fearing that if she left, Layna wouldn’t be able to find her. Pattie was tired and found a step to sit on while she waited. She had no idea where her sister had gone.

A passerby saw her sitting alone and approached her. “Sweetheart, why are you here all alone? Where are your parents?”

“I’m waiting for my sister.” Pattie’s voice was sweet. “Pretty lady, it’s getting late, and I haven’t gone home. My mom will be worried. Can you please call her for me?”

The passerby asked, “Do you remember your mom’s phone number?”

“Yes!” Pattie nodded. “My mom told me her and Dad’s phone numbers, and I remember them all.”

To ensure that Pattie could always find her way home, Anastasia had made her memorize her and Herman’s phone numbers and their home address.

Children had good memories, and Pattie, who could recite many poems, found it easy to remember phone numbers.

“Alright, I’ll call your mom for you…”

Anastasia was frantic as both Layna and Pattie were missing. She and Salma were out looking for them, and even Herman had been called back.

Pattie’s disappearance had Herman extremely worried, and he was about to use his connections to find her. Just then, Anastasia received a call from an unknown number, informing her that Pattie was at the bus station. She and Herman rushed over.

Seeing Pattie sitting on the steps, Anastasia was overjoyed. “Pattie.”

Anastasia and Herman ran towards Pattie.

“Mom.” Pattie stood up. Seeing her parents, she was very happy. “Dad! Mom!”

During the two hours of Pattie’s disappearance, Anastasia was beside herself with worry, and Herman was equally frantic. Now seeing Pattie at the bus station, they were relieved but also puzzled.

Herman asked, “Pattie, how did you end up at the bus station? You left without saying a word. Do you know how worried we were?”

Anastasia also asked, “Where’s your sister? Didn’t she come with you?”

Pattie hung her head, knowing she was in trouble. “I’m sorry, Dad, Mom, I was wrong. My sister said she’d take me out to play and told me to wait for her here. I don’t know where she went.”

Anastasia asked, “How did you two get here? It’s so far away.”

Pattie confessed, “My sister and I took a cab.”

Upon hearing this, Anastasia and Herman exchanged glances. They could hardly believe that Layna, not even five years old, could do something like this.

Pattie was wearing Layna’s clothes, which made it clear that Layna had intentionally brought Pattie to the bus station and left her there. To confirm this, they checked the bus station’s surveillance footage and, indeed, saw Layna getting into a taxi at another exit and leaving on her own.

Anastasia was stunned. “She’s not even five years old…”

It was hard to believe that such a young child could be so cunning. She was able to bring her sister so far away and then discreetly leave on her own.

Anastasia remembered how Layna had been able to find her in the middle of the night before, and now she had taken Pattie to the bus station. It wasn’t entirely impossible.

Herman’s brows knotted in concern. “That child is too cold-hearted.”

Anastasia asked, “It’s been so long, why hasn’t she returned home yet? Where could she be?”

Considering the time Layna hailed a cab from the station, she should have been home by now. But Layna hadn’t returned.

Something was definitely amiss. Herman said, “The camera footage should have captured the taxi driver’s license plate. I’ll have someone look into it. It’s getting late, let’s take Pattie home first.”

Herman scooped Pattie into his arms. The young girl was worried about her sister. “Dad, could my sister have been taken by a bad guy in Pattie’s understanding, she was unaware that her sister had abandoned her, and

nnocently waited for her at the station. Now, she was worried that her sister had been kidnapped

Herman reassured her. “Let’s get home first. Maybe your sister has already returned”

Truth be told, Herman had no fondness, let alone affection, for that child. Knowing that Layna had intentionally left Pattie at the station, he found it even more difficult to harbor affection for her.