Just as Grady was about to respond, he paused mid-step when he heard voices coming from the elevator. Turning around, he saw a group stepping out, and to his surprise, it was Robert and Mirabella's three friends.
Grady's face was a mix of shock and confusion. "What’s going on?" he wondered. Hadn't Miss Mira just told him she was having dinner with these very friends?
On the other end of the line, Mirabella, blissfully unaware that her little lie had been exposed, said cheerfully, "Alright, Grady, you go on. We're about to have dinner. Bye!"
Grady just stood there, speechless, his cheek twitching slightly as he slowly pulled the phone away from his ear.
Robert, spotting Grady as soon as he stepped out of the elevator, felt a bit intimidated by his presence but walked over politely. "Mr. Davis," he greeted.
"Hello," Grady replied with a slight nod, his face giving away nothing. He glanced at the group behind Robert and asked, pretending not to know, "Isn't our Mira with you?"
"Oh, she should be having dinner with her friends," Robert replied.
Grady had already pieced it all together. He nodded to Robert, thanked him, and walked off, his expression blank. Clearly, someone had led Miss Mira astray.
---
By two in the afternoon, the mathematics department’s professor arrived with a team of students to meet up with Robert and the others, ready to head to Riverside University. They gathered outside the hotel entrance.
“Why are you missing a student?” the professor asked, glancing behind Robert.
The university wasn't far, so they decided to walk. Yara’s mind drifted back to last year when she had a chance to study there as an exchange student, but life had other plans.
With a faint smile, Yara shook off her disappointment and glanced back once more.
Mirabella was trailing behind the group, looking relaxed, like she was just another tourist.
Blaze slowed his pace to walk alongside her, striking up a conversation, "Oh, by the way, Mira, we ran into your uncle downstairs earlier. He's got quite the presence, like one of those crime bosses from TV shows."
Mirabella, who had been focused on the ground, suddenly stopped in her tracks at the mention of her uncle.
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