Moana immediately panicked.

"It was just a moment of anger!" she said quickly. "They did have a fight, but—"

"Sean is a psychopath!" Mrs. Freddy interrupted sharply. "He once kicked my son out of the apartment! He cut off all financial support! He even threatened Freddy!"

"Mom, that’s enough!"

But her mother was already too worked up.

"Freddy said Sean was furious because of the media reports! Because of the company documents!"

A few police officers were starting to pay attention now.

Moana could feel her heart racing.

Because she had come to the police station only to report a missing person.

Not to drag Sean Weasley’s name into the investigation.

The female officer finally spoke more seriously,

"Has Mr. Sean ever been violent before?"

Silence.

Moana immediately recalled Sean’s face in the lobby yesterday.

That vacant stare.

The cold tone of his voice.

The words: "My life is already ruined."

And strangely...

That actually made her even more afraid.

Because Sean looked like someone who no longer cared about the consequences.

"No..." Moana finally answered softly. "He’s never laid a hand on me."

Mrs. Freddy snorted derisively.

"Because he’s too smart to get his own hands dirty."

"Mom!"

The officer looked back and forth between the two of them before finally writing something on the form.

"We’ll file a missing person report first." His tone was professional. "If there are any developments, we’ll contact you."

Moana nodded slowly.

But before they left...

A male officer who had been listening to their conversation all along finally approached.

"Excuse me," he said cautiously. "At which bar was Mr. Freddy last seen?"

Moana immediately named the bar.

The officer thought for a moment.

"That place has a rear parking lot camera."

Moana’s heart immediately began to race.

And for some reason...

That simple sentence sent a chill down her spine.

Mrs. Freddy, on the other hand, reacted emotionally right away.

"See! Just check the camera!"

The officer gave a small nod.

"We’ll look at the footage."

Moana immediately bit her lip gently.

Because for the first time since Freddy went missing...

Something started to feel real.

It was no longer just a drunk man who hadn’t come home.

But the possibility that something had indeed happened that night.

And Sean’s name slowly began to enter a circle of far more dangerous problems.

★★★

Meanwhile...

On the top floor of the Weasley Group building, the atmosphere was completely different.

Calm.

Quiet.

And expensive.

Sean stood in front of the large glass window in his office, gazing out at the overcast Texas sky.

The city looked small from up there.

Cars moved like dots.

People seemed insignificant.

The door to his office opened slowly.

Nathan—the Weasley Group’s head of legal—entered carrying a tablet and several documents.

"There’s been a development."

Sean didn’t turn around.

"Speak."

Nathan took a slow breath.

"Freddy’s family filed a police report this morning."

Sean’s gaze remained fixed out the window.

But his jaw tightened slightly.

"Did they mention my name?"

"Yes."

A brief silence.

Nathan continued cautiously,

"The Southern District Police have started checking the last location where Freddy was seen."

Sean finally turned his head slowly.

His gaze was cold.

"That bar?"

Nathan nodded.

"They said there’s a rear parking lot camera."

Silence.

For a few seconds, Sean just stood there motionless.

Then, slowly...

He walked toward his desk with a calm stride.

Too calm.

Nathan had worked for the Weasley family long enough to know one thing:

When Sean looked his calmest...

That was usually the most dangerous moment.

"The footage?" Sean asked flatly.

"We don’t know yet if the camera was active that night."

Nathan paused briefly before continuing in a lower voice,

"But I’ve contacted someone at the police department."

Sean sat down slowly in his chair.

"I don’t want my name to appear in any official report."

"Understood."

Nathan placed a black folder on the desk.

"The district captain is still willing to cooperate." His tone was calm and professional. "Especially after the Weasley Foundation’s donation last year."

Sean gave a hollow chuckle.

Of course.

Money always works faster than the law.

Nathan continued,

"If necessary... the CCTV footage can disappear before it’s examined."

Sean was silent.

His gaze was blank as he stared at the table for a few seconds.

Then he finally spoke softly,

"Do it."

There was no emotion in his voice.

No anger.

No panic.

That was precisely what made everything feel even colder.

Nathan gave a slight nod.

"And Freddy’s family?"

Sean gave a thin, humorless smile.

"They have nothing."

His gaze dropped to the phone screen displaying a small news article about the disappearance of Freddy Sullivan.

A drunk.

A gambler.

Unemployed.

People like that disappear from the world easily, with few caring.

But Sean knew...

The real problem wasn’t the police.

It wasn’t the media.

It was Moana.

Because that woman was desperate enough to do something foolish.

And desperate people...

Often destroy everything before they go down.

Sean leaned back slowly into the chair.

Tired.

So very tired.

Nathan watched him for a few seconds before finally asking cautiously,

"Sir... is everything really clean?"

Silence.

Sean raised his eyes slowly.

His gaze was piercing.

And Nathan immediately knew he shouldn’t have asked any further.

"Make sure it stays that way," Sean replied coldly.

Nathan nodded immediately.

"Yes, sir."

Shortly after, the door closed again.

Sean was alone once more.

Silence filled the luxurious office.

He stared at his faint reflection in the windowpane.

Neat.

Elegant.

Wealthy.

But deep inside him...

Something felt more broken with every passing hour.

And strangely...

What bothered him most wasn’t the police.

It wasn’t Moana’s threat.

It wasn’t the company beginning to crumble.

But a simple reality:

Clara still hadn’t returned.

★★★

That afternoon...

Freddy’s family’s small rented house felt increasingly stuffy.

A light rain was falling outside again.

The tin roof was leaking in several places, so small buckets had been placed on the floor to catch the water.

Mrs. Freddy sat on the worn-out sofa, drinking cheap beer.

Meanwhile, Moana had been pacing restlessly ever since returning from the police station.

She clutched her cell phone tightly.

Waiting for news.

Waiting for anything.

And finally—

Her phone rang.

It was the number for the Southern District Police Station.

Moana answered immediately.

"Hello?!"

The man’s voice on the other end sounded calm and formal.

"Miss Moana? We’re from the Southern District Police regarding the report on Mr.Freddy."

Moana sat up straight.

"Yes! Any news?!"

Mrs. Freddy also jumped up in panic from the sofa.

The officer continued,

"We’ve started checking some of the last places your father used to frequent."

Moana swallowed hard.

"And?"

A brief silence.

"For now... we haven’t found any indication of Mr. Sean Weasley’s involvement."

That statement immediately changed Moana’s expression.

"What?"

Mrs. Freddy immediately moved closer, trying to hear as well.

The officer continued professionally,

"Mr. Freddy is known to have a lot of outstanding debts. There are records of altercations with debt collectors, as well as several reports of minor violence."

Mrs. Freddy immediately muttered under her breath.

Because all of that was true.

"Based on previous patterns," the officer continued, "the current possibility is that he’s deliberately hiding or has fled."

Moana shook her head quickly.

"No... that’s impossible."

"We’ll still proceed with the standard search, Miss. But so far, there’s no evidence of criminal activity."

Moana gripped her phone tighter.

"What about the bar’s CCTV?"

"The rear parking lot camera wasn’t active that night."

Moana’s heart sank.

For some reason...

That answer felt too neat.

Too easy.

But the officer remained calm,

"If your father returns or contacts the family, please let us know immediately."

Click.

The call ended.

The room fell silent.

Mrs. Freddy exploded first.

"Bullshit!"

The woman slammed a beer can onto the table, spilling its contents.

"They must have been paid off!"

Moana didn’t answer.

She stood there silently, staring at her empty phone screen.

Her mind was in chaos.

Because deep down inside...

She knew one thing.

Sean Weasley wasn’t an ordinary man.

He was rich.

He has lawyers.

He has connections.

He has enough money to make people turn a blind eye.

And now...

Everything started to feel like an insurmountable wall she couldn’t fight against.

Mrs. Freddy began pacing back and forth in a panic.

"I told you so!" she gasped. "The police must be afraid of the Weasley family!"

Moana slowly slumped into a plastic chair.

Her head felt heavy.

Because for the first time...

She truly felt alone.

If even the police were starting to distance themselves from Sean’s name...

Then who would believe them?

Outside...

The sound of drizzle continued to fall gently, soaking the streets of Texas as darkness fell.

And somewhere else in the city...

Sean Weasley sat quietly in his office, reading the police report email that had just come in a few minutes ago.

His face remained expressionless.

Not relieved.

Not satisfied.

Just cold.

Nathan stood near the desk, speaking softly,

"The case is starting to be treated as a routine missing person case."

Sean didn’t answer right away.

His gaze fell on a single sentence on the screen:

> No evidence of third-party involvement was found.

Sean gave a faint, hollow smile.

That’s just how the world works.

The poor go missing.

The rich control the narrative.

And the rest...

Just a minor news story that’s slowly forgotten.