Chapter 218
218
Once they entered the house, Caitlin immediately noticed that the old mansion seemed to have been abandoned for a long time. The inteñor tasked worn , and many pieces of furniture were covered in white sheets.
Standing there, Caitlin realized she had been imagining things too perfectly. She had envisioned walking in and immediately seeing her brother, but now, there was nothing.
Her hopes shattered in an instant.
Disappointed and heartbroken, she turned to Sebastian. “Sebastian, there’s no one here! Where is Harrison?”
Sebastian walked over and gently explained, “Caitlin, actually, this was Brian Lee’s home. Harrison lived here for three years. Brian Lee was a chemist He had no children of his own and adopted Harrison. Harrison took his surname and became Harrison Lee. He spent three years here, and those were good years for him.”
“Unfortunately…”
“Unfortunately what? Keep going!” Caitlin gripped Sebastian’s arm tightly, her fingers trembling as she tried to keep her emotions in check. She didn’t want any more twists or obstacles
on her i
er journey to find her brother.
“Caitlin, I need to tell you something, and I want you to be mentally prepared for it.”
She nodded.
“When Harrison was eight, Brian Lee passed away due to an explosion during one of his chemical experiments. It’s said that Harrison was severely injured that day too. After his adoptive father passed away, Harrison was once again left without guardians, becoming an orphan and was sent away.”
Caitlin’s eyes filled with tears, and her heart ached terribly. Her brother had been sold when he was five, and had wandered far from home. No one could know what trauma his young heart had experienced along the way.
Finally, he was adopted, but it lasted for only three years before disaster struck. He was injured again, abandoned once more, and became an orphan.
What did this second blow do to his heart? Caitlin couldn’t bear to think/about it.
Fighting back tears, she walked upstairs to see where Harrison had lived.
In one of the rooms upstairs, she found an old, cracked photo frame covered in a thick layer of dust. She gently wiped the dust from the glass and saw the photo of a middle–aged man with a child.
The child in the picture looked like Harrison when he was five or six years old.
Harrison…
“Sorry, I’m late…”
Caitlin reached out to touch the photo.
Looking at her brother’s face, she blinked back her tears, but they still fell. Her heart hurt so much.
“Harrison , no matter where you are, I will find you!”
She swore to the picture, then turned and walked out.
Caitlin wiped away the tears on her face, but her eyes were still red.
Coming down the stairs, she approached Sebastian and asked, “Did you find out where he was sent after this ? ”
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“Yes , he was sent to a convent.”
“ A convent? Let’s go to the convent and check! He might be waiting for me there Caitlin said excitedly.
Sebastian nodded and agreed, driving them both to the convent.
When they arrived at the convent, they went to find one of the nuns. “Hello, we are looking for Sister Mary, Sebastian asked
It was said that Sister Mary was the one who had taken care of Harrison when he was there.
“Sure, please wait a moment.”
A young nun soon appeared and asked, “Can I help you?”
Sebastian compared her face to the picture he had. The woman wasn’t the person they were looking for. “We’re looking for this Sister Mary, Have you seen her?”
The nun took the photo and said, “I share the same name, but unfortunately, Sister Mary passed away from illness five years ago
Sebastian and Caitlin exchanged looks before asking again, “Do you know if she took care of a boy named Harrison Lee?”
The nun looked uncertain but said, “I’m not sure, but I can check the records for you.”
“Thank you!”
The nun led them to the archives and left them waiting outside. Sebastian gave Caitlin a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder.
Caitlin didn’t speak, her mind full of complicated emotions. She was afraid that, once again , they would come up empty–handed.
After a while, the nun returned with the old records. Sure enough, they found a record of Harrison Lee.
The old Sister Mary had cared for him, and the record detailed the dates of his stay, his physical checkups, and even the injuries he had sustained in the
explosion.
The report stated that Harrison had suffered brain damage and required a year to recover. He had lived at the convent for another year after that.
But after that, there were no further records.
“Why is there no record after that?” Caitlin asked.
The nun replied, “I’m not sure. If there’s no record, it could mean that he was adopted by someone else, or perhaps he left the convent.”
“Please, look again! Could you find any adoption records? Can you help us track down where he went? Please! Caitlin grasped the nun’s hand.
The nun nodded and went back to search for adoption records. After searching through the files, she returned empty–handed.
“I’m sorry, but there are no adoption records for him here. We really don’t know where he went after that. If Sister Mary were still alive, perhaps she would have known.”
Once again, their lead had vanished. Caitlin felt completely defeated and almost staggered.
Sebastian was quick to catch her, gently steady
ing her in his arms. “Caitlin…”
She looked up at him, trying to reassure herself, “It’s okay. We can still keep looking. Maybe my brother is still in Willow City , all grown up now. He’s definitely alive!”
Sebastian nodded. “Yes, he’s alive. I’ll have people continue to look into it. Don’t worry. Let’s head back for now . ”
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With no other options, Caitlin followed Sebastian back to the car.
As they walked past the church’s main hall, a young man in sunglasses carrying a bouquet of flowers walked toward the door.
They brushed past each other, the bouquet of flowers partially hiding the man’s face.
The young man strode into the church, his steps confident as he headed towards the inner fall, where he greeted the nuns, asking, “is Sister Mary here?”