Debbie's face displayed an expression of stunned disbelief. "How did it come to this?" She felt her chest tighten into a knot, like a cramp.

"Someone kidnapped the boys on purpose and tried to kill me and Rika!" Matthew explained, as he clenched his fists, barely managing to contain his anger. If his calculations were correct, then the person behind all of this had to be none other than Michel. Although Matthew didn't have any evidence to support his allegations, he was certain that the people he had sent to investigate would eventually find out who had hired those gangsters to kidnap the boys.

"Don't worry. Rika and the boys will be fine," Evelyn comforted her brother.

Closing his eyes with frustration, Matthew nodded to indicate his agreement. 'Rika and the two boys will be fine, ' he told himself continuously. If anything bad were to happen to them, Matthew would be consumed by guilt for the rest of his life.

Thinking of her daughter-in-law, Debbie paced back and forth in the corridor.

Not long after, Matthew, who had gone to the nursing station to get his wound taken care of, reappeared at the door of the resuscitation room. "Mom, Evelyn, you stay here and wait for Erica. I'll check on the boys and come back right after," he told the mother and daughter.

"Sure, go ahead. I'll inform you as soon as Rika comes out," said Evelyn with a nod.

Debbie reminded Matthew to be careful before she watched him leave the hospital in a hurry.

Before he left, however, Matthew took one last look at the light above the door of the resuscitation room. Then, without changing his clothes, he rushed over to the last known location where the boys had disappeared.

Meanwhile, after making sure that the man who had been following him was far behind, Boswell slid down the hillside from behind the rock.

Disregarding the mud on his clothes, the little boy took advantage of the last light to pluck two pieces of wood from the ground in hopes of building a fire.

Fortunately, his father had taught him how to make fire using two pieces of wood rubbed against each other.

However, he had never once tried it before. Despite his best efforts, the poor boy was unable to make fire.

Without heat from the fire, he would surely freeze to death. Not only did he need the heat, but he also hoped that it would help to signal to the people who were looking for him and his brother.

Strange unknown noises from afar took him by surprise from time to time, reminding him that he wasn't exempt of fear. However, he knew that it would be pointless to be afraid. The

h of his body.

When the distance between the bear and the child was less than three meters, he raised his hands in surrender and tried to negotiate with the bear. "Uncle Bear, I'm just an innocent child. I don't want to hurt you. Please don't hurt me, okay?"

The bear was gigantic compared to the little boy. In fact, it was taller than the two of Boswell combined.

"As long as you don't hurt me, I will leave right away and never come back. I promise!

Please don't come any closer! I'm too skinny! Look at me! I don't have any meat on my body and my bones are too small. Why don't you just let me go? Maybe I'll bring you a fat pig some other day!"

When the bear was just about a meter away from him, it suddenly fell to the ground, its eyes still staring at him.

Boswell swallowed nervously.

After staring at the bear for a long time, he tried to stand up slowly from the ground. When he was certain that the bear wasn't going to harm him, he slowly tiptoed away.

Perhaps, it was his good fortune that the bear didn't attack him. He walked ahead with weary legs, while the bear followed him without any intention of attacking him.

When Boswell was about to take another path, the bear suddenly ran ahead and blocked his way.

Frightened, Boswell stood still and wondered what the bear was trying to tell him.

Silence permeated the air between them. Only the sound of the drone in the air and the small creatures squeaking in the distance could be heard.

When the bear saw him stop, it turned around and took the path that went deeper inside the forest.

Boswell couldn't figure out what the bear was trying to tell him, but when he tried to carry on in his way, the bear blocked his way again.