Chapter 397

Chapter 397

"You think killing me will make Robert suffer? Impossible! A selfish man like him doesn't give a damn whether I live or die. Killing me won't do anything to hurt him!"

"Besides, do you… do you really dare kill someone?" Alex stared at me in terror.

"When did I say I was going to kill you? I just need you to help me with something."

"What…" Alex's voice trembled.

"I told you. Come with me."

I repeated myself.

Alex's body shook uncontrollably. He knew resistance was pointless, knew he was completely alone with no one to help him. In the end, he was still just a kid who hadn't even graduated yet. His lips quivered as tears welled up. "Then promise me. Promise you won't kill me, and I'll go with you. As long as you don't hurt me, I'll do whatever you say."

"I swear I won't touch a hair on your head."

Maybe my tone was too flat, because the promise seemed to carry no weight when it reached Alex's ears. He couldn't bring himself to believe me right away.

His face crumpled. "Swear it. If you hurt me, then you'll… you'll…"

"I'll die a terrible death."

My voice remained calm.

Alex opened his mouth but seemed at a loss for words.

"Can we go now?"

A hint of impatience crept into my voice.

Reluctantly, Alex got to his feet and walked toward me, but then backed away slightly, as if afraid I might suddenly slap him across the face.

"Where are we going?"

Alex asked cautiously.

"Silver Creek."

"Huh?" Alex seemed surprised by the location. He muttered under his breath, "What for?"

"You'll find out when we get there."

……

Silver Creek.

Alex followed me into the villa anxiously. Before stepping inside, he hesitated at the threshold, craning his neck to peer in first, checking if I'd arranged for people to ambush him the moment he entered.

Seeing the empty living room, he let out a breath of relief and glanced at me. "Why are we here? Don't tell me you don't want to see me at the main house, so you're making me move here? But isn't this property under your name? You're willing to let me stay?"

"No."

"Huh?" Alex looked even more confused about my intentions.

"This place is to keep you locked up."

I turned and gave Alex a pleasant smile.

His pupils contracted. "What do you mean? You said you wouldn't hurt me!"

"Have I laid a finger on you?"

I asked him back.

Alex shook his head.

"From now on, just do as I say."

"Okay…" Alex nodded weakly.

I handed Alex a strip of cloth. "Blindfold yourself."

"Why?" Alex looked at me warily.

But when my gaze hardened slightly, he didn't dare question further. He took the cloth, hesitated for a moment, then covered his eyes. I couldn't see his expression anymore, but I could tell from the way his mouth turned down that he was fighting tears.

I watched him in silence, waiting for him to secure the blindfold. He didn't want to, but with just the two of us there, even if he called for help, no one would come.

Once Alex had covered his eyes, I took his wrist and led him upstairs.

Unable to see anything, he felt deeply insecure.

His voice took on a pleading tone. "Alice, what exactly are you taking me to do? Can't you just tell me? Not knowing like this… it scares me."

"I already told you. I'm keeping you locked up."

"But why do you need to lock me up? You haven't explained that…"

"Because Robert kidnapped James."

Alex's eye twitched beneath the blindfold. "So now you're kidnapping me to threaten Robert?"

"That… I think you're wasting your time. He stopped seeing me as his son ages ago. He already considers James his only heir. When I stopped going to school, he didn't care. He even said that from now on, whatever happens to me, he won't get involved."

"Using me to force him to release James won't work."

"I really don't understand why you'd come up with such a plan. Did someone give you this terrible idea? Kidnapping me really won't help!"

"Kidnapping? I'm inviting you to stay at a villa under my name for a few days. How is that kidnapping?" I said with a half-smile.

Alex had guessed wrong from the start. I had no intention of using him to threaten Robert. I simply wanted to cultivate a 'weapon.'

Alex opened his mouth but seemed at a loss for words, realizing that nothing he said today would matter—I was definitely keeping him in this villa.

"We're at the room. Go in."

After Alex entered, I had him sit in a chair, then took out rope and bound him to it completely.

Alex couldn't hold back his tears. "Alice, what are you doing? Just… just get it over with, will you? I can't take this torture anymore. Are you tying me up here to starve me to death? You said you wouldn't lay a hand on me, but if you tie me here unable to move, something bad will happen to me anyway! You lied to me! You swore an oath!"

"Quiet." I had no patience for Alex's hysterical outburst.

After securing him, I instructed, "All you need to do now is listen quietly."

"What? Listen to what?" Alex looked ready to cry again, still trying to plead. "Alice, you can kidnap me—keep me locked up, whatever—but can you please untie me? I won't run away without your permission, I swear! Trust me!"

"Shut up."

My tone turned harsh.

Alex immediately fell silent with a whimper.

I pulled out my phone and called Robert.

He didn't answer until the very last ring. His voice trembled on the other end. "Hello."

I got straight to the point. "I have Alex locked up. His freedom is now in your hands. For every day you refuse to tell me where James is, he stays locked up one more day."

I knew Robert felt so confident I couldn't find James because he'd already made connections with someone at BOC Gene Tech. After all, the country where James had been sent on his business trip was Novaria.

Once he landed, all communication ceased—clearly his movements had been restricted within Novaria's borders.

It wasn't that I couldn't find James's whereabouts just because he was in BOC Gene Tech's hands, but it would take time. And during that time, I couldn't guarantee James's safety. So I needed to create some leverage to ensure his protection.