<h4>Chapter 327: Chapter 327 Ashton’s POV: I Can’t Fail Her Again</h4>


    When I reached thekeside, the ce was already crowded with people, and police were everywhere.


    I turned to Harry. ‘Get divers. As many as possible. Call Cassian and Ryan.’


    ‘On it, boss.’ Harry nodded.


    I threw off my jacket and plunged straight into the water.


    ‘Boss!’ Harry shouted.


    The police on the bank yelled; the divers already in theke shouted too. But I didn’t hear any of them.


    I just kept swimming, kept searching.


    Logically, I knew it was useless. The professional divers would find her faster than I ever could. But I couldn’t help myself.


    Thest time Mirabelle had ended up in the water, she’d been terrified. She’d been pushed into a pool, and it brought back all her childhood trauma.


    I’d never forget how she trembled in my arms, how she mumbled, ‘Help...’


    I hadn’t protected her well enough then.


    I wasn’t going to fail her a second time.


    Straining to keep my eyes open underwater, I scanned for any sign of her, but theke was wide and deep, with thick weeds blocking my view. It was impossible to see far.


    When my lungs felt like they were about to burst, I had to resurface.


    Cassian was on the bank, pointing furiously at theke. ‘Get up here, Ashton! Are you out of your mind?’


    I shouted back, ‘Get more divers!’


    Then I went under again, pushing myself to keep looking.


    Eventually, I was forced toe up for air once more, gasping.


    I saw that Ryan Fenty had arrived too, and he’d brought his pregnant wife, Naomi.


    ‘Ashton?!’ Both Ryan and Naomi stared at me in shock as I treaded water.


    Police officers waded towards me, grumbling, and insisted I return to the bank.


    When I refused, they moved in and physically dragged me out of theke and back onto solid ground.


    One of them said, ‘I know the missing woman is your wife, and I understand you’re worried. But you jumping in doesn’t help anyone. It only gets in our way.’


    He tossed me a thick towel and turned to Cassian. ‘You a friend of his?’


    Cassian nodded. ‘As much as I don’t want to admit it, yeah.’


    ‘Keep an eye on him. Make sure he stays away from the water, alright?’


    ‘Leave it to me, officer.’


    ‘Ashton, what on earth happened? I heard Mirabelle fell into theke?’ Naomi sounded far more anxious than her husband Ryan, who remained calm and was already on the phone.


    I shook my head. ‘I don’t know.’


    I’d only got the call from the police fifteen minutes earlier. All they told me was that someone had phoned in saying they’d seen a person jump, and a phone left on a bench suggested it might be Mirabelle.


    Soon, boats appeared on theke—search teams called in by Cassian, Harry, and Ryan.


    I started toward the water again, but Cassian yanked me back.


    ‘Don’t even think about it!’ he shouted. ‘The water’s freezing! If you carry on like this, you’ll freeze to death before we find her. And if you’re dead, who’s going to save your wife?’


    Cassian alone couldn’t have held me back, but with Ryan, Harry, and several police officers blocking my path, I had no choice.


    I stood on the shore, tense and useless, as the search dragged on.


    Naomi gripped Ryan’s hand tightly. ‘Do you think something’s happened to Mirabelle?’


    Ryan held her close. ‘Don’t think like that. How about I take you home? I’ll call you the second we hear anything. You shouldn’t be standing out here in the cold.’


    ‘No. I don’t want to go.’


    ‘Then at least wait in the car,’ Ryan coaxed gently. ‘You need to rest. It’s not good for the baby.’


    Naomi rubbed her lower back and finally relented. ‘Alright. But promise you’ll tell me immediately if there’s news.’


    ‘I promise. The second I know anything.’


    Watching them, my heart ached all over again for Mirabelle.


    I refused to believe she would take her own life, or that she’d slipped in by ident. She wasn’t careless like that.


    But there were no cameras near theke, and the police still hadn’t found any witnesses. The call had been anonymous, and the number was no longer answering.


    I knew she was mad at me, but she wouldn’t punish me by taking her own life. That simply wasn’t her.


    I knew she thought I was protecting Genevieve, that Genevieve was behind everything.


    I knew she was waiting for me toe clean, to apologise, to exin.


    But I couldn’t exin, not until I knew the whole truth myself.


    The search continued all day.


    ‘Maybe we should call it off, don’t you think?’ Cassian finally said what everyone was thinking: if something had happened to Mirabelle, by now it was almost certainly toote.


    ‘What if someone pulled her out?’ Ryan suggested carefully when he saw the stormy look on my face.


    ‘If that happened, wouldn’t we have heard by now? Besides, no one’se forward saying they saw anyone rescue her, have they?’ Cassian said bluntly.


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    The air had turned bitterly cold. Between the chill wind and my earlier dip in theke, I was shivering uncontrobly.


    ‘Why don’t you at least go change into dry clothes?’ Ryan suggested for what felt like the tenth time.


    I shook my head.


    As evening drew in, theke grew darker and even colder.


    ‘Let’s go back. Standing here waiting isn’t helping anyone,’ Cassian said gently.


    I swayed on my feet.


    ‘Ashton!’


    Someone shouted my name just as everything went ck.


    ***


    I woke up in hospital.


    Cassian let out a heavy sigh of relief. Before I could even ask, he said, ‘I know what you’re going to say. The answer’s no—they still haven’t found her.’


    Iy there for a moment, my head pounding, my temples throbbing. My whole body was burning up with fever.


    ‘Where’s Harry?’ I asked, my voice rough.


    ‘Outside, making calls. Want me to get him?’


    I nodded.


    When Harry came in, I told him, ‘Put out a reward. Anyone with information about Mirabelle, tell them to call immediately. There’ll be a ten—no, make it twenty—there’ll be a twenty-million-dor reward.’


    Harry nodded. ‘I’ll get it done straight away.’


    ‘Wait,’ I said.


    Harry paused.


    ‘Also, check all the hospitals. See if there’s any record of Mirabelle being admitted. If someone pulled her out, they’d likely take her to A&E. And keep the search teams on theke going.’


    ‘Understood.’


    After he left, Cassian said, ‘Now we wait. You should try to eat something. If you copse too, who’s going to lead the search for Mirabelle?’


    I shook my head.


    Some timeter, Harry returned to tell me he’d already put the notice out. No one had called yet. He’d also checked the hospitals—no sign of Mirabelle being admitted.


    Morning came and went. Still no news.


    I told Harry to get my release paperwork.


    ‘No!’ Cassian blocked the door. ‘I’ll tie you to the bed if I have to. You jumping back into thatke isn’t helping. It’s not going to find her. Even if you spent days in there, it wouldn’t make a difference.’


    I ignored him.


    He sighed. ‘Ashton, you can’t throw your life away over a woman. What good will that do?’


    I was quiet for a long time before I finally said, ‘I need some time alone.’


    ‘Fine. I’ll be right outside. Don’t try anything stupid. This is the fifth floor. You can’t climb out the window.’