Rejected: A love story-Chapter 131: You’re fucking useless Nathan

Nathan sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the glass of whiskey in his hand. The liquid sloshed gently as his fingers trembled, but he didn’t take a sip. It was his third glass of the evening—or was it the fourth? He’d lost count.

Papers were scattered on the table in front of him. They contained reports, statements, etc but they were all useless. The police had been investigating for six days, but there was no progress, not even a leading clue as to where Fiona had suddenly vanished to, How could she just disappear without a trace? Even his spy was useless. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Nathan leaned back on the sofa, his head tilting toward the ceiling. His jaw clenched as he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the images that haunted him. Her face, her smile and the sound of her laughter. He could still hear it, like a cruel echo in the back of his mind.

"Damn it," he muttered under his breath, slamming the glass down on the desk. The sound echoed through the empty room, but it didn’t make him feel any better.

There was a knock at the door but he didn’t respond. He didn’t have the energy to deal with anyone right now.

The knock came again, louder this time. "Sir," a voice called from the other side. "It’s Detective Ben. May I come in?"

Nathan sighed heavily, running a hand over his face. "Come in," he said gruffly, his voice hoarse.

The door open slightly, and Detective Ben stepped inside. He was a tall man with brown eyes, brown hair and a defined jawline.

"Mr. Nathan," Ben began, mindful of his tone. "I wanted to give you an update on the investigation."

Nathan gestured vaguely toward the chair in front of him. "Sit," he said.

Ben sat down, placing a folder on the table. "We’ve been following up on every lead," he said, "We’ve interviewed witnesses, reviewed security footage, and went through her known contacts. But so far..." He hesitated, glancing at Nathan’s face. "So far, we haven’t found anything concrete."

Nathan’s face twisted in anger. He leaned forward, "Nothing?" he said, his voice rising. "It’s been six days, Ben. Six days, and you’re telling me you’ve got nothing?"

Ben’s expression remained neutral. "I understand your frustration, sir. But these things take time. We’re doing everything we can."

"Not enough," Nathan snapped, his voice rising. "You’re not doing enough. If you were, she’d be here right now. Do you officers even know how to do your fucking job?"

Ben didn’t flinch. "With all due respect, Mr. Nathan, we’re dealing with a complex situation. Whoever took her knew what they were doing. There’s no ransom demand, no communication. It’s like she vanished into thin air."

Nathan stood abruptly, he turned away from Ben, staring out the window.

"This is my fault," Nathan said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "I should have protected her. I should have kept her safe."

"Sir, this isn’t your fault," Ben said firmly. "You couldn’t have known this would happen."

Nathan laughed bitterly, shaking his head. "That’s where you’re wrong, Detective. This isn’t the first time." He turned back to Ben, his eyes dark. "I failed her once before. And now I’ve failed her again." he said amidst gritted teeth.

Ben frowned, leaning forward slightly. "What do you mean, sir?"

Nathan didn’t answer right away. He walked over to the side table, pouring himself another glass of whiskey.

"She was in danger before," Nathan said finally, his voice flat. "Months ago. And I couldn’t protect her then, either. She could have died because of me."

Ben’s brow furrowed. "I wasn’t aware of that, Mr. Nathan. Was it reported?"

"No," Nathan said sharply. "It wasn’t. And it doesn’t matter now. What matters is that I should have learned from it. I should have done better."

Ben sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sir, blaming yourself won’t help find her. We need you focused, first you need to come to the station and tell us all you know. Maybe the people who tried to harm before are the ones involved now."

Nathan turned to him, his eyes blazing. "Trust me detective, I’m a step ahead of you"

"I just—I only need her back. That’s all that matters."

Ben stood up, his expression calm. "We’ll find her, sir. I promise you that, but you still need to come to the station."

Nathan didn’t respond. He just stared at the detective until Ben nodded and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

Nathan sat back down on the sofa, staring at the folder Ben had left behind. He didn’t want to open it, that would just mean he’d see the dead ends and empty leads as usual But he forced himself to do it anyway.

The first page was a list of Fiona’s known contacts. Nathan’s eyes scanned the names, his heart sinking with every familiar one. None of them had seen or heard anything.

The next page was a timeline of her last known movements. Nathan’s hand tightened into a fist as he read it. She’d gone to the a small mall to get something and had left around 4:30 p.m. She never made it home.

He slammed the folder shut, shoving it away from him. His chest ached, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe.

"You’re fucking useless, Nathan." he muttered again, his voice breaking.

He was literally drowning in his thoughts, replaying everything over and over in his mind, trying to figure out what he’d missed. What he could’ve done differently.

By the time the sun was setting, he was still sitting there, the bottle of whiskey nearly empty. His shirt was wrinkled, and his eyes bloodshot. He looked like a man who’d been through hell—and he felt even worse.

There was another knock at the door. This time, it was softer.

"Sir?" It was one of the house servants. "Do you need anything?"

"No," Nathan said hoarsely. "Leave me alone."

The staff member hesitated. "Mr. Nathan, you should eat something. You haven’t left this room in—"

"I said leave me alone!" Nathan snapped, his voice frightening her. She knew better than not to say a word.

Nathan leaned forward, burying his face in his hands. He felt like he was drowning, and there was no one to pull him out.

The servants who had some cleaning to do moved quietly, avoiding him, their faces full of pity.

Nathan saw it and hated it, he hated their pity because he didn’t deserve it.

He walked around the living room, standing in front of the fireplace. The flames crackled softly, but the warmth didn’t reach him. He stared at the fire, his mind blank for the first time in days.

"Fiona," he whispered.

"Where are you?"

He closed his eyes, not knowing how much longer he could do this. How much longer he could live with the guilt, the pain, and the emptiness.

But he knew one thing for sure: he wouldn’t stop and he would never rest until he found her. No matter what it took.