My Billionaire Ex-Husband Chase Me Back - Chapter 529

Chapter 529: Bella’s Friend
A few days later.

In the middle of the forest, far from the nearby town, Lucas Donovan sets his camping chair by the cold river and starts fishing, as he usually does daily.

He enjoys the stunning scenery as far as his eyes can see, with a mountain in the distance. The once-green leaves now turn yellow and crimson. Snow covers the tip of the mountain, indicating that winter is coming. And this year, it seems to come sooner.

Lucas Donovan no longer remembers how many days he has stayed in this place.

His life in this place seems so slow. In the morning, he walks around the property, enjoying the sun and the sounds of birds. After his late breakfast, he spends his morning in the garden behind the cabin, watering his crops and harvesting the ripe ones. In the afternoon, he spends all day sitting on his deck chair by the river’s bank, fishing, and often falling asleep.

Since he left everything behind, he has been surviving in this place, relying solely on the food the rich forest around him provides.

Only two times a month does he make the long journey to the nearest village, a 45-minute drive, to buy the essentials to keep him going.

But today, for some reason, he feels homesick. Utterly homesick to see his family. But, again, his promise to his daughter and wife buries his longing.

“This is your punishment, old man! Don’t try it! Don’t break what you have said. Or Bella will never trust you again,” Lucas Donovan reminded himself.

This wasn’t the first time he felt this way, but almost every day, when the darkness surrounded the place, and that time he remembered Natalie, his wife.

He smiled bitterly before taking a sip of his warm coffee. He continued waiting for the fish to bite, but after several minutes, there was no movement from his fishing rod.

Instead, he heard a faint car engine from afar; it seemed to be moving in his direction.

Lucas frowned while looking back toward his cabin, trying to hear clearly, but he still doubted his hearing. However, the sound became even more apparent.

“Who’s coming!?”

He stood from his chair and walked toward his cabin. His heart raced as he waited for someone who was now approaching.

This place was secluded, private property, and hidden from everywhere. It was too far from any other place, and the only sounds he could hear were from the river a few meters from the cabin, the wind, and the animals around.

He couldn’t even hear a car engine in the distance because this place was located three and a half miles from the road.

Sitting in the chair on the deck, he looked at the stone street ahead, waiting for the car to arrive.

Lucas believes that no one besides his father knows this place.

Now, he wonders if the person who has appeared might be someone his father sent or someone who got lost around this place.

“Why did my father send someone? Did something happen in the house?”

He feels alert because this is the first time something like this has happened.

A black jeep soon appeared, stopping not far from his car. Lucas squinted to try to identify the person. However, when he saw a young man emerge from the car, he didn’t recall ever meeting him. He immediately stood from his seat, feeling alert with this man.

“Are you lost?” he calmly asked.

Even though the man looked harmless, the tattoo across his neck seemed slightly strange, making him uneasy. He subtly rubbed his chest to make sure his pistol was still under his jacket, ready in case this man tried to harm him.

“No, sir,” the man stopped a few meters before Lucas. He smiled at him politely before continuing, “I’m here to meet you, Mr. Donovan.”

Lucas was taken aback. “Did my father send you? Is something wrong in the capital?” Lucas asked, sounding worried.

“No, sir. But your daughter, Bella, actually asked me to stop by to check on you,” the young man answered.

Instantly, Lucas’s tense expression slowly faded upon hearing Bella’s name. He felt his heart warm with happiness, knowing his daughter had asked her friend to check on him.

“So, you are Bella’s friend…” A wide smile spread across his lips as he gestured to the young man to join him on the deck.

After they exchanged a warm handshake, Lucas asked him to sit, and he returned to his seat.

“Do you want a hot coffee?” Lucas politely offered him.

“No need, sir. I will not stay long here. I need to continue my trip before dark.”

Lucas nodded slightly.

“Young man, thank you. It must be difficult for you to drive to this place,” Lucas smiled apologetically at him. This area was so far away from other places that this man stopped by just because Bella asked him.

“It’s fine, sir. I happen to have business not far from this place,” he said with a smile, gazing at the beautiful trees in the distance.

“By the way, how did you know my daughter?” Lucas curiously asked, turning to see the young man again. He looked neat in his long black coat.

“I’m Bella’s business partner,” the man said, turning to meet Lucas’s curious gaze. “Have you heard about Stellar Entertainment?”

“Yes, of course. That’s my daughter’s company,” Lucas said proudly.

“I’m working with her at Stellar Entertainment. And now, I’m heading to the movie set in the north and passing this place. When Bella heard I was in this area, she asked me to stop by to check on you because she is worried about you, sir.”

Lucas couldn’t hide how happy he was hearing that Bella still cared for him.

“Thank you, young man. You are so kind,” Lucas said with a smile. “She doesn’t have to worry about me. I’m fine here.”

“I can see that, sir. You look happy to stay in this heaven, surrounded by a beautiful view. But it looks like Bella is only sad because she just lost her father-in-law. So maybe she is worried about you, too,” the man casually said.

Lucas Donovan was shocked to hear that. “What?” He didn’t have the internet in this place, and there was no signal for his cell phone. This place was disconnected from the outside world—an off-grid place. “William Sinclair, dead?” he asked to confirm what he heard.

“Yes, sir.”

Lucas Donovan could not believe what he heard. Why did that man suddenly die? He is the same age as him. Did he have a health problem? How about my father? Natalie? Is she alright?

Countless questions were now dancing in Lucas’ mind. He wanted to ask, but it seemed impolite. This man, Bella’s colleague, might not know about their family matters.

“Thank you, young man, for telling me. I haven’t returned home for the past few weeks, so I didn’t know what happened outside,” Lucas expressed his worry and sadness after hearing about William Sinclair.

“It’s fine, sir. I understand,” the man replied.

“Oh, right, I forgot to ask, what is your name?” Lucas smiled at him.

The man turned to look at Lucas. He slightly rubbed his eyebrow before answering, “I’m Marco Lombardi—”