Chapter 48: Kidnapping
Chapter 48: Kidnapping
The taxi stopped outside the gate of Eric’s villa. Drew paid the fare and got out. The Black driver, who resembled Jordan somewhat, glanced at the bruise on Drew’s knee beneath her short skirt and could not help asking, “Miss Barrymore, do you need any help?”
Drew shook her head. “Thank you, but no.”
After speaking, she limped forward and rang the doorbell. The Black driver glanced at the high walls. Because the tabloids had been going wild recently, and because several paparazzi cars were obviously parked not far away, he quickly realized this was Eric Williams’s house. Still, that had nothing to do with a taxi driver like him. Shrugging, he started the car and drove away.
Hearing the familiar voice coming from the intercom by the gate, Drew suddenly felt her knee hurt so much she wanted to cry. Only in front of Eric did she have the chance to act like a soft little girl, because only he cared about her.
“Eric, it’s me,” Drew said into the intercom.
“Drew, wait a moment. I’ll be right there.”
A while later, the gate opened. Seeing Drew looking somewhat disheveled, Eric quickly let the girl inside. Turning around to close the gate, he asked with concern, “Drew, what happened? How did your leg get hurt like this?”
Drew’s voice carried a trace of grievance. “My mom suddenly went crazy and locked me in the house so I couldn’t come out. I could only climb down from the second floor. The bedsheets weren’t tied tightly enough…”
Eric quickly understood that Drew’s mother really was doing something foolish, but he did not rush to say it aloud. Squatting down to examine the girl, he discovered it was nothing serious, only some bruising and scraped skin. “Come on. Let’s go inside. I’ll treat it for you.”
Drew softly responded with an “Mm,” then unconsciously grabbed Eric’s sleeve and limped forward a few steps.
Eric glanced at the girl’s appearance and sighed lightly. Bending down, he picked her up in his arms and carried her toward the villa.
On the living room sofa, Eric fetched the first aid kit and treated Drew’s wound while continuing to talk. “Don’t do this again in the future. It’s too dangerous. Luckily this time it was only a minor injury. Your mother may…” At this point, Eric suddenly did not know how to evaluate Drew’s mother, so he vaguely skipped over it and continued, “But she wouldn’t really do anything to you.”
Drew stretched out her fair legs and let Eric busy himself around them. After a while, she suddenly asked, “Eric, did something happen?”
Eric paused while wrapping the bandage. “You figured it out?”
Drew nodded. “Mom’s been acting strange these past few days. Not only has she been secretly making phone calls behind my back, but she also unusually locked me in the house, saying it was for my own good. Before, the newspapers also reported about my drinking and drug use, but she never acted like this.”
Eric tied off the bandage around Drew’s knee and put the gauze and disinfectant back into the first aid kit. “I don’t really know how to explain this to you.”
Drew stayed silent and looked at Eric uneasily, quietly waiting for him to continue. She obviously understood the matter had started because of her.
“At noon, Annie called me from New York and said someone wanted her to testify in court that… you and I had a relationship.”
With Drew’s sharp mind, that single sentence was enough for her to quickly understand the entire situation.
She shot to her feet. Her face was filled with grief and anger, and her voice became hysterical. “It’s her. It has to be her. I was wondering why she’d been acting so sneaky lately, and why she locked me up saying it was for my own good. When has she ever actually cared about me? I’m going to sever our mother-daughter relationship. That bitch—”
“Drew, don’t say that.” The Eastern values deep in Eric’s bones made him quickly stop Drew before she could curse more viciously. “Kiddo, no matter what other people say about your mother, you can’t curse her. Even if she isn’t very qualified, she’s still your mom.”
Seeing the seriousness in Eric’s expression, Drew knew he would definitely get angry if she continued cursing. At home, when she argued with her mother, both of them could spit out any foul language imaginable. But if Eric felt it was wrong, then it must really be wrong.
“Sorry, Eric,” the girl apologized weakly.
“It’s alright, Drew.” Eric gently pulled the girl into his arms and hugged her. “Actually, someone else must be directing this behind the scenes. Otherwise, your mother definitely wouldn’t do this, because sending me to prison doesn’t benefit her much.”
“Sorry, Eric. Um… she definitely took money. She already squandered all the salary I earned from Back to 17. Is there anything I can do for you?”
“You don’t need to apologize, Drew. This has nothing to do with you. I already had Edward prepare some things. Don’t get involved in this anymore. You’re still too young.”
The two chatted for a while. Eric glanced at the sky outside. The setting sun had scorched half the sky red. “Drew, rest for a while. I’ll make dinner. What do you want to eat?”
“Pizza, steak, pasta…”
Drew showed absolutely no intention of being polite.
Before she could continue, Eric flicked her forehead. “There’s no way I can make any of that. I’d better order takeout instead. Also, if you keep eating things like that, aren’t you afraid you’ll turn into a little chubby girl someday?”
“Not afraid. Don’t you like chubby girls?” Drew giggled.
Just as Eric picked up the phone, the doorbell rang. He casually handed the receiver to Drew. “You call. I’ll go check.”
Drew agreed and took the receiver, opening the thick phone book nearby to look up the numbers of takeout restaurants.
Eric walked to the inside of the gate and asked through the intercom. A man’s voice came from the other side. “Mr. Williams, I’m with the Los Angeles Police.”
Opening the gate, Eric saw a chubby white police officer standing outside along with a woman in her thirties. Just from her appearance alone, Eric roughly guessed her identity, because the woman looked very similar to Drew.
The white police officer wore an obvious look of reluctance. Although the young man in front of him was young and had recently gained a rather poor reputation, he was still someone with status. The officer really did not want to get involved in this kind of messy nonsense, but the woman beside him had pestered him so much that he could not refuse, or she would file a complaint.
“Hello, Mr. Williams. I’m Matt Bryson.” The white officer shook hands with Eric before awkwardly saying, “This Ms. Jaid Barrymore claims that you kidnapped her daughter…”
Eric frowned and shot Jaid a sharp look. When the woman noticed Eric looking at her, she raised her chin slightly, trying to appear arrogant. But under Eric’s somewhat oppressive presence, her gaze flickered. She probably was not even certain whether Drew was actually here, so she lacked confidence.
“Drew is indeed here, but I didn’t kidnap her. She came here herself. Ms. Barrymore, I think we need to talk.”
Seeing Eric unexpectedly admit it so directly, Jaid’s momentum inflated like a shriveled balloon suddenly filled with air. “What’s there to talk about? Hand my daughter over right now. I’m taking her home, you rapist!”
Eric’s expression darkened. “Ms. Barrymore, please watch your language. There’s a police officer standing right here. Based on that sentence alone, I can sue you for defamation, and the evidence is undeniable.”
“You…” Jaid shrank her neck slightly and glanced at the police officer beside her, her gaze clearly seeking help.
But Eric spoke first to the officer. “Officer Bryson, sorry to trouble you with this trip. Things aren’t as serious as Ms. Barrymore made them sound. Drew and I are good friends. Her coming over to my house this afternoon to play is perfectly normal, isn’t it? Ms. Barrymore is probably just overreacting. So if there’s nothing else, you can leave now. We’ll settle this privately.”
Matt Bryson also disliked the woman beside him very much. Hearing Eric’s words, he readily went along with them. “Then that’s settled. Mr. Williams, Ms. Barrymore, I’ll take my leave.”
“Officer Bryson, you can’t do this. He…” Jaid clearly did not want to face Eric alone and hurriedly grabbed Matt Bryson to continue pestering him.
Matt Bryson shook off her hand. “Ms. Barrymore, the situation is already clear. Your daughter merely came to play at Mr. Williams’s house. If you continue causing trouble, I’ll charge you with obstructing official duties!”
Watching Matt Bryson drive off in the police car, Jaid lost her greatest support and became noticeably less confident facing Eric. Although Eric was only a young man who had just reached adulthood, in any society, factors such as wealth and status naturally created pressure. Jaid may have had a child-star daughter, but she herself could only barely count as middle class. Combined with her own past experience as a minor actress, she unconsciously felt much smaller in front of a rising young director like Eric.