Chapter 159 Signs of Trouble
As soon as Robert left, Max came downstairs with his laptop in hand.
He placed the portable computer in front of Alexander and said, "I've found everything."
Alexander picked up the laptop and scanned the screen.
Max continued, "Robert—a fugitive with a fifty-million bounty on his head. He's connected to multiple dark web organizations. Behind him is an organization called Black Mass, though he's not their leader."
Alexander had heard of the "Black Mass" organization. Its members were scattered across the globe, committing every conceivable crime. They were essentially a malignant tumor in the criminal underworld, incredibly brazen in their operations.
However, Black Mass's influence had been significantly reduced domestically, but internationally, they remained lawless. Some members were even involved in multiple terrorist attacks, making them an infamous criminal syndicate.
Alexander couldn't understand how Jenny had gotten entangled with this organization.
And why would they target Grace?
Max said, "I spent several days setting up surveillance networks and investigating the background of Children's Healthcare Hospital."
He carefully laid out the intelligence he'd gathered for Alexander, "Loving Child General Hospital had its operating license revoked years ago. I suspect they have dealings with Black Mass, secretly trafficking people and selling human organs. So... my brother was very likely sold overseas by them."
Alexander replied, "I've uncovered the same thing, but haven't been able to confirm it yet."
Max asked, "What do we do next? I'm worried about Mom..."
Alexander said, "Do you think we should call the police?"
Max was stunned.
He hadn't expected Alexander to ask for his opinion.
In Alexander's eyes, Max wasn't an ordinary seven-year-old child. On the contrary, he was calm, intelligent, and highly opinionated.
Max said, "I think... it would be better not to call the police. If it really is the Black Mass organization, they want money, not lives. As long as we pay them, they shouldn't resort to murder."
He had overheard Robert's demand through the living room surveillance earlier.
One billion dollars.
Whether for him or Alexander, one billion wasn't an insurmountable sum.
The challenge lay in converting that billion-dollar figure into cash.
Alexander said, "He wants cash. Acquiring that much physical currency overnight will be difficult."
Setting everything else aside, even if the mint worked through the night, they might not be able to print that much cash. If they had to withdraw it entirely from banks, it would require mobilizing massive human resources and bill-counting machines.
Alexander turned to Jeremy, "Jeremy, I need to withdraw one billion in cash before tomorrow night."
Alexander's private banks were spread across the globe, with dozens of bank accounts under his name.
Even if they had to transfer funds from overseas accounts and fly the cash in via chartered flights overnight, they had to raise the billion dollars.
Max said, "I also have bank accounts. No matter what, we must meet their conditions and raise that billion first."
Jeremy looked worried, "Once we raise the billion, will they honestly release her? I have a feeling this isn't going to be that simple."
Intuition was a mysterious thing.
Alexander shared the same bad feeling.
He also sensed something was off about this situation.
That Robert character was highly suspicious.
In the early hours of the morning, Alexander's premonition was confirmed.
An explosion had occurred in the city.
On a downtown overpass, an Audi A8 had exploded. Though it was nighttime with few passing vehicles, innocent civilians were still affected.
Besides the Audi A8, over a dozen other cars parked roadside and five passing vehicles were hurled fifteen feet into the air, blown to pieces.
Police immediately cordoned off the scene.
Jeremy, receiving the news, rushed to the accident site.
At the epicenter of the accident, firefighters continuously carried out charred remains from the destroyed vehicles.
The Audi at the center of the explosion had been completely obliterated. Human remains were found in the wreckage, but until the medical examiner could piece together the fragments, they couldn't confirm how many people had died in the Audi.
The license plate blown off the Audi was indeed from Robert's vehicle.
By morning, police received a report from citizens who had discovered two bodies at an abandoned chicken farm on the outskirts.
One male, one female.
The female body was identified as Jenny, who had been reported missing by her family. Preliminary cause of death indicated both victims died from gunshot wounds.
Jeremy brought the news to Alexander.
Though police hadn't yet released case details, Alexander astutely realized that Robert was dead.
...
Grace finally regained consciousness.
The prolonged darkness felt as long and distant as a century.
When she awakened, she found herself trapped in a square box.
Her hands were bound, her eyes blindfolded, her mouth gagged with something wedged deep in her throat, preventing any sound and making her want to retch.
She lowered her head and rubbed her face against her knees, managing to dislodge one corner of the blindfold.
There was a round hole in the box, apparently an air vent.
Through the hole, she glimpsed the world outside.
Evening approached, with sunset painting the horizon and stretching across the vast ocean surface in brilliant colors.
She heard the sound of a cargo ship's horn.
The mingled sounds of waves and sea wind reached her ears.
The air was thin, and she lost consciousness again.
When she came to once more, everything was dark, and she found herself locked in a cage.
Grace slowly sat up in the cage and discovered she wasn't alone—a little girl was imprisoned with her.
The child appeared malnourished, about five or six years old, wearing tattered, ragged clothes, with wounds covering her face and body.
Upon seeing Grace awake, she stared with wide, timid eyes, her gaunt little face lighting up with a glimmer of hope in her dark pupils.
She had thought Grace was dead and was surprised to find her still alive.
Grace asked weakly, "Where are we...?"
The little girl shook her head.
Grace looked around and discovered they were in a large ship's hold. The entire space was sealed from light, with only small air vents. It appeared to be the lower deck of a cargo vessel.
Besides themselves, the hold contained dozens of cages of various sizes, with wooden crates of different dimensions stacked neatly above them.
Suddenly, footsteps approached.
The little girl let out a startled cry, and Grace quickly covered her mouth.
A flashlight beam swept over them.
Grace shielded the little girl and lay down, closing her eyes and not daring to make a sound.
Two men's conversation drifted over.
"Did I just hear a cat meowing?"
"You're probably hallucinating."
"Did you hear? Robert and his crew got silenced."