The Heiress Nobody Saw Coming (Natalie and Marcus)

"Thank you." Natalie leaned against Marcus' arms. After being in the car all day, she was exhausted.

Elijah followed the GPS to the edge of the county and parked in front of a small motel. Zachary pulled up alongside them and stopped as well.

Sophia opened the door and stepped out. After sitting so long, she felt like she couldn't even feel her bottom half anymore. Zane and Connie also got out of the backseat. Everyone stretched their limbs to loosen up.

"There's a place to eat over there. Let's head there later," Natalie said, pointing across the street from the motel. "Conditions here will be rough, so I appreciate everyone's effort."

"Ms. Walker, don't say that. I may not be able to deal with much, but I can at least handle hardship." Zane grinned, trying to be endearing. "Ms. Walker, you'll see that bringing me along wasn't a mistake."

Natalie only smiled and didn't say much. She turned to Sophia, asking, "Are you okay?"

Sophia looked a little tired, but her eyes were bright. "Don't worry. I'm fine."

"Let's stretch a bit, book the rooms first, then we'll go eat."

"Ms. Walker, I'll handle it," Connie volunteered, grabbing Zane by the hand and heading into the motel.

"Let me count how many rooms we need," she said. "Mr. Holden and Ms. Walker in one room, you and Zachary in another, me and Sophia in one, Elijah gets a room alone. Sounds good?"

"Why not have Zachary and Sophia in one room, and you and me in another? Elijah gets a solo room," Zane blurted out before thinking.

Connie smacked him on the head. "Keep dreaming. What kind of relationship do we have that I'd share a room with you?

"And who gave you the right to decide that Zachary and Sophia are to share a room? Did you ask them?"

Zane rubbed his head, looking pitiful but not daring to argue.

"Zane, just listen to Ms. Sterling," Zachary said nearby. "Don't stir up trouble, or we'll leave you on the roadside."

"Zachary, you're so biased." Zane pouted and whimpered, but no one paid him any attention.

Connie collected everyone's IDs, booked the rooms, and they all went across the street for dinner.

After eating, no one was in the mood for a stroll. They headed back to the motel to rest soon after.

In the room, Natalie pulled some tools out of her bag and started scanning the room. Marcus watched her. "Checking for hidden cameras?"

"Yeah." Natalie nodded. "Small motels like this aren't very secure. It's better to be sure. Connie knows to check. I already told Sophia, and Zachary will take care of it."

Once the room was cleared, Natalie lay down on the bed with her outside clothes still on.

"Marcus, don't bother changing. Just sleep like this."

"Okay."

Marcus was actually a bit of a neat freak. This was his first time in places like these, including that restaurant earlier. In the past, he would have turned around and left without a second glance. But with Natalie beside him, he found he could handle it.

From what Natalie had told him, Marcus realized the place they were heading— Coalmarsh-was probably going to be much tougher.

He now understood why she told him to wear outdoor jackets, work pants, and sneakers.

After a quick wash-up, they lay down to rest. After constantly switching with Elijah during the drive all day, they were both exhausted. They didn't talk much. Once the lights were off, they fell into a deep sleep.

Next door, it was more or less the same routine. But Connie and Sophia, being two women alone, were too scared to sleep by themselves. After some discussion, they switched.

Sophia shared a room with Zachary, Connie with Zane, and Elijah had a room to himself.

When Elijah heard the final arrangement, he shed the silent tears of a lonely single man.

At 7:00 am the next morning, Natalie and Marcus woke up to the sound of their alarm. They got up quickly, washed, packed, and were ready to hit the road again.

By the time they stepped outside, Sophia and the others were also packed and ready.

"We'll eat at the same place across the street, then head out," Natalie said, glancing at the group. "Did everyone sleep well last night?"

Everyone nodded. "We slept fine."

"Good. Let's go."""

"After breakfast, we'll depart. Bring your things down to the car. Once we leave, we're not coming back to check out."

"Got it."noveldrama

Everyone followed Natalie's lead without question. Marcus followed quietly, feeling his admiration and love for Natalie grow a little more.

After breakfast, the group hit the road again. This time they left the county and entered a narrow, unnamed rural road.

It was a tar road, still manageable but narrow-only wide enough for one car. If another vehicle came from the opposite direction, things could get tricky.

But since it was such a remote and underdeveloped area, traffic was sparse. The drive was smooth and uninterrupted.

They drove for several hours. By 3:00 pm, they reached the foot of a mountain. From there, the road changed. There were no longer any tar roads, just bumpy, muddy paths.

This was where the self-heating meals Natalie had prepared came in handy.

"Let's rest and eat something first," she said, calling everyone over to unpack the supplies. She opened and activated the meals, then handed out bread and milk. "Eat up. The road ahead won't be easy."

"Ms. Walker, how much farther?"

Zane asked. This was his first time

joining one of Natalie's charity

missions. At first, he found it

exciting, but after so many hours in

the car, he was clearly worn out.

"It's still quite a distance away. Once we reach the destination, the cars won't be

able to go in. We'll have to hike the rest of the way."

Natalie took a sip of water. "I've already informed the person in charge over in

Coalmarsh. They're all looking forward to our arrival.

"The journey is rough. Thank you all for your effort."

"Nat, this is how you and Marcus are spending your honeymoon?" Sophia asked, drinking her milk and looking up at the towering mountain in front of them. "Don't you feel like you're missing out? I can't believe there are stiff people living deep in places like this."

"A lot of the children from the Yvette Jenkins case were sold into these remote mountains.

"It's hard to rescue them. Even when

we save one group, there's always another. The only way to stop it change things at the roots. End poverty and transform their mindsets. That's the only way we can prevent trafficking from happening again.

"But that kind of change is challenging and can't happen overnight. It takes

massive amounts of time, manpower, and money.

"That said, it's not without results. One of the towns we started working with ten

years ago has completely transformed."

Natalie's smile deepened as she spoke of the successes.

"I'll take you all there on our next stop."