Chapter 19

The men are becoming more cautious of their surroundings with each passing second, and as I look around, I notice that not only on our side but also on the security of the other guests.

Since Rizzo left, it has already been like this. It had been a few minutes, and I hadn't seen him again. He might have already gone home, or, as Zach said, he might be planning something I don't know about.

The pressure rises even more as someone approaches Zach and whispers something to him that I can’t hear. But when I look at his face, I see a change that is so scary that he breaks the glass he is holding with his own hands.

“Zach!” I immediately reacted and held his hand, which was already bleeding. "What are you doing?" I yell, feeling a little upset about what he did.

However, as I lift my head again, our eyes meet. I went stiff, surprised by the way he was looking at me. It's not with fierce eyes, but something more frightening. A look that I never thought Zach would give me.

I can't even react as he violently grabs my hand and clutches it tightly, as if afraid I'll break free for a minute.

"What are you—" Zach didn't let me finish my question because he was already walking dragging me along with him, with no regard for my well-being.

“Spread out! Ensure our escape routes!” Zach exclaimed, dragging me, and I couldn't care less about the others as I struggled to keep up with him.

Escape routes? Why? Again, I don't know what to do, and asking Zach won't help. Is something already happening? Zach became like this after that man whispered something to him.

“Bastard!” Zach cursed, clenching his teeth, his pace quickening with each passing second; because we're in the center, we'll have to pass some tables and guests before we can exit the hall.

I can't see anything because it's dark, and I'm only following Zach's lead. The gown I'm wearing also makes it difficult for me. Despite all of that, Zach didn't look at me to see what I was doing. He just kept looking ahead.

Everyone has already caught on at this point, and the party is already ending, to begin with as some guests also start to leave the hall.

At first, it's still kind of calm, even though the tension in the air is growing. The guests don't seem to care and aren't panicking yet. But as we get closer to the door, we hear a gunshot and then the screams of the women.

At once, chaos broke out.

The security of each guest positioned themselves to protect their bosses. The hall got so messed up that we had to slow down. At the same time, the women's panicked screams could be heard echoing through the once quiet hall, which had now turned into a mess.

"It's Rizzo," says Zach, who is much calmer now than he was before. He tightens his grip on me again and looks at me as he stops. The guests rushed out, passing us by with their escorts.

“Zach...” I couldn't help but call out his name.

"Just follow me, don't do anything else." He ordered once more, not a hint of genteelness in his voice. He still sees me as his marionette, even at a time like this.

But what can I do? Yes, a nod is the only thing I can do at the moment.

He then looked to the side and nodded at someone before he started to walk again. Everyone is on their own now. With new rounds of gunfire resounding, the fight begins.

Then the lights went out, which brought more screams and some curses, but the footsteps kept going. Once they got out of that door, everything would be fine from then on.

Even though it's much darker now, my vision seems to still be working the same way it did that night.

The darkness does make it harder to get through the door, especially since some scared women can't stop crying. Inside, all that's happening is that the lights are going out, but the fight outside is still going on as gunshots continue to sound.

Even though the women are scared of the dark, none of them turned on any lights because the area is still dark.

With Zach dragging me around, I don't have much time to look at my surroundings. I still try to keep up with Zach, even though my feet are already hurting. All of a sudden, someone tripped over me and stepped on my foot, causing me to groan and stop because of the pain. As a result, Zach's hand was taken away from mine because of my sudden movement.

I didn't look at him for a moment because I was feeling my feet and wasn't sure if I had already sprained myself. Due to the darkness, I can’t still see clearly, but as soon as I raise my head, narrowing my senses which seem to have been heightened for some unknown reason, I can now see some faint silhouettes and in my front where Zach was before is now gone and running with someone in his grasp.

I blinked and fell silent, completely unconcerned about the people passing by. Actually, will Zach even make the low-level mistake of dragging someone because it is dark? It is possible if he is really in a hurry. However, as I recall the woman that replace me, with darkness shrouding most of my vision I thought I already see myself being dragged along.

Right, that woman looks exactly like my appearance this night. Even at a glance, I can't tell, and Zach probably can't either. This is not a coincidence.

Then, before I can think more deeply, my thoughts are cut short by the feeling of someone standing behind me in the dark. It could be other guests as well, but I know I'm the only one left inside because I can hear their footsteps getting farther away.

I didn't move and didn't look back as the person standing behind me, nor did I do anything else. In a few seconds, as I expected, something is put in my mouth, and darkness surrounds me.

And I only discovered that I’m here after I woke up, the man sitting at the side watching me.

And when I finally came to myself a few seconds later, I moved away from him right away.

“A-Are you insane?” I shouted and stumbled over my words.

I know that what he is saying doesn't make sense and that he really is a psycho who kidnaps me. Right, a realization finally dawned on me. I've been here since he abducted me.

"You... what are you going to do to me?" When I look at him, he is still in the same position he was in before. “Zach will definitely find me,” I added, although without much confidence in my voice.

I'm not sure if Zach will find me, but his reaction shows that he still cares about me, at least a little bit.

Rizzo then stood up and tossed the mask he was holding to the side before returning to where he was sitting right in front of me; I didn't take my gaze away from him.

Actually, aside from confusion and the realization that I have been kidnapped, I'm not sure if my heart is racing because I'm terrified or because of his presence. It could also be both.

As he sat on the seat, he crossed his legs and looked at me casually, as if we were just talking as friends and not as someone kidnapped and her kidnapper.

"Do you think Zach will be fooled by someone replacing you because it's dark?" he asks, cocking his head. He began with a deep tone and an inquisitive gaze that looked right through me.

I remained silent and began to consider his question. I'm not sure, everything happens so fast that I was only at that party a few hours ago and now I'm waking up in this strange place with this stranger who has obviously captured me.

We lock gazes as he appears to wait for my response with his calm gaze.

Shaking my head, I averted my gaze away from him and lowered my head.

"What exactly do you mean?" I ask, not understanding what he is implying. Did he mean that Zach left me there on purpose? No, that's impossible. He always said that I should follow him and held me tightly as if I were about to disappear.

No, this man is only making confuse and that his intention. For me to doubt my husband when he is the one who kidnapped me.

"I know you won't believe me, but you're right," his deep voice rang again, and I immediately lifted my head and turned to face him.

What did he mean when he said I was right? Perhaps the confusion is written on my face as he chuckles, amusement flaring in his green eyes.

"Gallagher won't leave you behind," he paused, staring directly into my eyes, and continued with a sly smirk on his lips, "but his calculations are a little off. He thinks he can fool me with a substitute?" This time he laughs loudly as if what he said was so ridiculous that he needed to get it off his chest.