Chapter 122 Ambush

Chapter 122 Ambush

"Find a way to stop them! Make sure you get that box from Kate!" Richard snarled into his phone, instructing his men.

Meanwhile, on the road, Ethan frowned as he focused on driving, pushing the car to its limits. He anticipated Richard would try to intercept them. Kate was completely fixated on the box, eager to open it.

As she began to examine it, Ethan suddenly called out, "Hold on tight!"

Kate's movements paused. When she looked up, she caught sight of two black sedans suddenly emerging from a side street through the rearview mirror, clearly in pursuit.

Richard's men? How did they respond so quickly?

Kate instinctively clutched the box protectively against her chest.

Ethan sharply turned the steering wheel, the car scraping against the roadside guardrail as it made a tight turn. The tires screeched against the pavement, producing a piercing sound.

Kate gripped the handle firmly.

"Brace yourself!"

Ethan floored the accelerator, and the car surged forward at full speed. The black sedans immediately followed, closing in fast.

The roar of engines filled the air. Kate glanced back and saw the two cars practically touching their bumper.

"How are they catching up so quickly?"

She clutched the box tighter, her heart racing.

Ethan quickly checked the navigation system, tapping the screen twice.

"This road leads to the Old Quarter. There are lots of side alleys and forks; I'll try to lose them there."

As he spoke, he made another sharp turn, steering the car into a narrow alley. Brick walls on both sides seemed to fly past, but suddenly, another vehicle appeared at the end of the alley, blocking their path.

With lightning reflexes, Ethan slammed on the brakes. The car stopped just inches from the other vehicle's hood. The sudden deceleration nearly sent Kate into the windshield.

They were trapped, front and back.

Several men in black suits emerged from the lead sedan, wielding baseball bats as they approached the car menacingly.

Ethan unbuckled his seatbelt.

"Stay in the car and lock the doors," he instructed.

As he moved to exit the vehicle, Kate grabbed his arm.

"No, there are too many of them."

But the men had already reached the car. One raised his bat to smash the window, and Ethan immediately pushed the door open and lunged out.

He knocked down the first attacker with a single punch, but the others quickly surrounded him.

Inside the car, Kate watched in terror, her eyes reddening. She wanted to help but feared she would only become a liability. She frantically honked the horn for help while trying to call 911.

The Old Quarter was sparsely populated, and no one responded to her honking. Before she could complete the call, one of the men yanked open the car door and snatched her phone.

"Thinking of calling the police? That's suicide! Give me the box!" he demanded, tossing her phone aside.

Kate panicked briefly but quickly regained her composure. She bit down hard on the man's hand as he reached in, her teeth digging into the flesh between his thumb and index finger.

The man howled in pain. "You're fucking dead!"

He raised his other hand to strike her, but Kate swiftly kicked his knee. As he staggered, she attempted to escape, only to be blocked by another attacker.

The man swung his bat at her. Kate ducked, but his elbow struck the box she was holding, nearly knocking it from her grasp.

She clutched the box tightly against her chest, but received a solid blow to her back, causing her to gasp in pain.

"Kate!"

Ethan caught sight of her being attacked, and his eyes instantly turned murderous. He threw off the two men grappling with him, ignoring the baseball bat swinging toward his back as he rushed to Kate's side, positioning himself between her and the attackers.

The bat struck his back with a sickening thud. Ethan grunted in pain but grabbed the attacker's wrist, twisting it sharply until a crack indicated the bone had broken. The man screamed and dropped the bat.

This display made the other men hesitate.

Ethan and Kate slowly backed away. Knowing they wouldn't give up, he whispered to her.

"Run through the back of the alley. There's a side door that leads to the main street. I'll hold them off."

His breathing was already unstable, and sweat beaded on his forehead from the pain in his back. Kate looked at his pale face, her eyes immediately welling with tears.

She felt incredibly guilty.

But she knew staying would only burden him further. With one last look at Ethan, she turned and ran toward the depth of the alley.

She hadn't gone far when she heard a heavy thud behind her.

Turning back, she saw Ethan caught between two attackers while another struck his leg with a baseball bat.

Ethan stumbled to one knee, his face contorted with pain, but still shouted to her.

"Run!"

Kate couldn't move. She started to run back toward him, but a sudden, sharp pain exploded at the base of her skull. Her vision immediately darkened.

Before losing consciousness completely, she glimpsed Ethan desperately trying to reach her, only to be restrained by more men in black. Someone was trying to snatch the box from her arms.

Kate didn't know how much time had passed when she finally opened her eyes again. She was in complete darkness, without a trace of light.

Her skull throbbed with pain. She tried to reach up to touch the back of her neck but discovered her wrists were bound, preventing any movement.

Suddenly, fragmented memories from before she lost consciousness flooded back.

She struggled frantically, feeling around in the darkness.

"Ethan! Ethan? Ethan!"

Her cries echoed hollowly in the dark space, met with no response. Kate began to panic completely.

She shouted angrily into the darkness.

"Richard! Where's Ethan? If you want to come after someone, come after me! Let Ethan go!"

She screamed into the void, truly frightened now.

She was terrified something had happened to Ethan. She trembled as she tried to crawl forward, hoping to find a door. Suddenly, a blinding white light shone directly at her, forcing her to squint.

"Awake, are you?"

A familiar, sinister voice came from the doorway. Kate lifted her head sharply to see Richard leaning against the doorframe. She struggled more violently.

"Where's Ethan?"

Kate stared intently at Richard. "What have you done to him?"

"What's the rush? Now that you're awake, I'll take you to see him right away," Richard sneered.

He motioned toward the door, and two men in black suits immediately approached, roughly grabbing Kate by the arms and dragging her to her feet.

They hauled her down a flight of stairs.

As soon as Kate emerged, she froze.

Rusted machinery, weathered doors, familiar layout.

It was identical to the warehouse where she had died in her previous life!

Her heart contracted violently, and she instinctively looked up. As her gaze swept across the center of the warehouse, her mind went completely blank.

There hung Ethan, suspended from the ceiling by thick ropes, his head slumped forward

His once-pristine shirt was now torn and bloodstained, revealing skin covered in purple bruises and bloody welts—clearly the work of a whip.