Ethel continued, “Brett was ready to leave, but at the last moment, he decided to retrieve the money Jamie gave him. He had buried it somewhere only he knew. He took Callie with him, left her in the car, but never came back. Callie went looking for him and found his brutalized body. The scene was so horrific that it left her mute.”

Ethel did not mention the full horror. Brett had been stabbed over sixty times, his body mutilated, and his face unrecognizable from the wounds. It was a miracle Callie had not lost her mind after witnessing such a terrible scene.

"Can you arrange for me to see Callie?" Nicole asked.

Ethel had been considering the same thing. No one had managed to get Callie to speak, and time was running out to find the perpetrator.

If Nicole could get Callie to talk, it would be a significant breakthrough.

As Nicole ended the call, Jarrod looked at her with concern. "What's going on?"

Nicole didn't hide it from Jarrod and gave a brief account of the situation. This might involve Jamie, and Jarrod needed to know the dangers Jamie or the mastermind behind Jamie posed.

Jarrod's brow furrowed as he listened. "Try not to worry too much. Nothing is confirmed yet, but your safety is crucial for the next few days. I'll increase security at Austin and assign four bodyguards to stay with you at all times."

To ease Nicole's hesitation, Jarrod added, "You're carrying our child, so this also protects the baby."

Nicole didn't object this time. Jarrod was right. She needed to take precautions until everything was resolved. The bodyguards arranged by Jarrod for her security were the best available. It saved her the trouble of finding her own security team, who might not be trustworthy. Even Brett, once her father's most trusted man, had betrayed them. There was no room for blind faith anymore.

“Let me drive you there," Jarrod said, noticing Nicole hadn't rejected his suggestion. He escorted her to the hospital.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Nicole followed Ethel to Callie's ward.

As the door creaked open, they saw a small figure curled up on the bed. Callie was sitting with her knees tucked under her chin, her face buried in her arms. She had become shockingly thin over the past few days, her delicate form pulling at Nicole's emotions.

Nicole stepped closer, her voice gentle. "Callie."

Callie barely reacted. She sat still, her gaze lowered, seemingly detached from everything around her.

Nicole's voice broke a little as she spoke. "Callie, I know what you're enduring. We need information, or we won't find the person who took your father from us..."

Nicole understood Callie's agony all too well. Her own father's violent death had left a vivid, painful image burned into her memory.

Regret and remorse had relentlessly tormented Nicole since that tragic day, reminding her incessantly of what she had lost, the chance for one last farewell with her father.

Nicole longed to relive moments spent with her father, to cherish meals together, and to have deep, meaningful conversations. The emptiness left by his departure was a deep, unending pain, a poignant reminder of all the moments that had slipped through her fingers.

Having spoken the comforting words, Nicole quietly sat next to Callie, holding Callie's frail form closely in a silent watch.