A Lead
By the time Zayn awoke the next morning, Carla had already left.
When he touched her pillow and the space beside him, inevitably, he felt desolate. All of a sudden, a sense of emptiness crept into his heart.
Before he knew it, he heard his phone ring. It was a message from Carla: Hubby, I'm boarding the plane now and will be back in the evening. Be a good boy and get some rest! Wait for me to come home!
Her gentle words felt like a ray of sunlight that filled the void in his heart with warmth.
Moved by her gesture, Zayn broke out into a smile. It never crossed his mind that she could behave so obediently.
If only time could slow down and my life could be extended, everything would be perfect.
With that thought in mind, Zayn supported his frail body up. He had no time to lose, as he still had to deal with a lot of things.
By the time Carla arrived at Mount Phoenix in the afternoon, Hapilia and Sam were waiting for her at the village entrance. When they saw her car approach, both of them waved at her excitedly.
After alighting from her car, Carla chatted with them while walking.
Given that she had missed Dr. Feroma's memorial service, she headed to his grave to pay her respects first.
When they returned home, Carla's subordinates stood guard outside while Sam went to cook. In the meantime, Hapilia led Carla to the study.
Inside were old wooden shelves filled with all sorts of books. Some of the books were even handwritten. Other than that, there were also medicines on the shelves. Everything was neatly categorized.
Hapilia explained them to Carla one by one, hoping that she could find something useful.
"Did Dr. Feroma ever talk to you about Derelo?" Carla asked while flipping through the books. "What does he look like? How old is he? Where does he stay? Do you have his contact information? Any old information would be useful."
"Actually, Brandy has asked me the same questions before, " Hapilia replied. "Dr. Feroma seldom talked about him. In fact, he would be infuriated every time Derelo was brought up. Dr. Feroma would call him a rascal, a rebel, and nothing else."
"Try and think harder to see if you can remember any other clues." Carla was persistent.
"As for his age…" Hapilia thought hard about it. "I remember now. Dr. Feroma did scold Derelo for his desire to leave the mountain when he thought he had learned everything. Also, he berated him for being conceited despite being just a teenager."
Counting with her hands, she added, "I was taken in as Dr. Feroma's apprentice one year after Derelo left. At that time, I was fourteen. In other words, Derelo is probably about my age."
"That can't be!" Carla was shocked. "Hapilia, you're only nineteen this year. Are you saying that Derelo is around the same age as you?"
"Perhaps, he might be a little older." Hapilia scratched her head. "But anyway, he is still relatively young."
"A teenager is someone below eighteen. Even if he were eighteen then, he would only be twenty-three now." Carla was baffled. "Is the legendary Derelo only twenty-three? Before this, I assumed he's
a middle-aged or elderly man."
"No, no, no." Hapilia shook her head repeatedly. "He's definitely a young man. When Brandy asked me about him, he didn't inquire about Derelo's age. Hence, he must have also assumed that Derelo's someone much older."
"This is good news. At last, we have a lead." Carla was brimming with excitement. "Hapilia, do you have other clues? Try thinking about it harder."
"Other clues…" Knitting her eyebrows, Hapilia continued to rack her brain. "I'm afraid I really don't have anything else for you."
At that moment, Sam walked in with coffee and interrupted them, "There's one notable thing about him. He likes to keep beasts as pets."
"That's right!" Hapilia shuddered at that thought. "When I first came here, there was a wolf in the backyard which belonged to Derelo. Dr. Feroma instructed me to feed it, and I was frightened to death. In the end, he released it instead."
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