“Yes!” Neville paused, startled, then asked, “You know me?”

“Yes,” Hadley affirmed, her voice steady. “I’m a friend of Elissa’s.”

“Elissa… Elissa!” Neville’s voice quivered as he pointed to himself. “She is my daughter! You’re Hadley?”

Savannah had shared snippets about Elissa and Hadley with him.

“Yes, that’s me,” Hadley nodded through tears.

“Officer!” Tamara interjected, advocating for Neville. “He is the victims’ family. Please allow him through.”

“Of course,” the officer replied, stepping aside to let Neville pass.

“What happened?” Neville demanded, gesturing toward the spot where the red car had once stood. Piecing together fragments of the scene, he pressed, “Why did that car smash into theirs?”

Hadley’s lips parted, her emotions a tangled knot. “Mr. Brown, I’m so sorry, it’s because…”

“Hadley!” Tamara cut her off before she could finish.

Startled, Hadley turned to her. “Why stop me from explaining?”

Tamara shook her head firmly. “We don’t have the full picture yet. This isn’t your burden to carry!”

Hadley fell silent, wrestling with her guilt. How could she not feel responsible? Ayla and Elissa were strangers, so Ayla’s target had to be Hadley. Yet somehow, Elissa had ended up paying the price instead.

Tamara pressed on. “Right now, our focus must be on Elissa’s and Savannah’s safety. The police are handling it. They’ll be fine…”

As she spoke, a bodyguard emerged from the water’s surface.

“There they are!” Tamara’s sharp eyes spotted him first. “It’s one of our team!”

The bodyguard wasn’t alone; he carried someone on his back.

“Elissa!” Hadley cried out.

?: ν

“Let’s move!” Tamara steadied Hadley as they rushed forward, Neville trailing closely behind.

Before they reached the bodyguard, Neville’s gaze locked onto the figure on his back.

“That’s Savannah!” he shouted.

They had found Savannah.

The bodyguard gently lowered Savannah to the ground.

“Savannah!” Neville dropped to his knees, frantically patting her face in a desperate bid to rouse her. “Honey! Wake up! Can you hear me?”

“Step back, please!” Paramedics swooped in, swiftly evaluating Savannah’s condition. “She has a pulse and is breathing, but she is unresponsive. We need to get her to the hospital immediately! Oxygen! Stretcher!”

“On it!” another replied.

Savannah was swiftly placed on a stretcher and whisked toward the waiting ambulance.

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