Chapter 159
I was dragged into the same room from before.
He sat down, picked up the coffee beside him, took a slow sip, and said with a smile, "You had a perfectly good business to run, so why do you still insist on doing hacker stuff? Is it worth losing your life over this?"
I gritted my teeth and looked up at him. "I want to ask you the same thing. You're a deputy mayor with power and money—how is that not enough for you? You've destroyed so many families. Aren't you afraid they'll come after you for revenge?"
He burst out laughing and looked down at me lying on the floor, unable to get up. "Good question. The truth is, I still don't have enough power or money. Cutting off someone's income is like killing their parents. I won't hold it against you that you and your boss monopolized the market in Solstice, but now you've put me in danger, so don't blame me if I take your life first."
He looked at me with contempt and told someone nearby, "Stop her bleeding first. Don't let her die just yet—she still has other uses."
I was dragged out and they quickly bandaged my wounds. Soon I understood what he meant by "other uses."
When they brought me out again, there were two helicopters in front of me. I was taken onto one of them with Aubrey.
Were they preparing to escape?
The helicopter lifted off quickly. From high above, the entire estate came into view. I saw a black SUV racing to the spot directly below us, and a tiny ant-like figure got out of the car and fired countless shots at the helicopter.
The gunshots were so faint they were almost inaudible. His figure got smaller and smaller until the helicopter flew into the clouds, blocking everything from view.
"Where are you taking me?" I tried to ask.
He looked ahead with a calm expression. "To a safe place, of course."
It seemed like he wanted to flee the country.
I tried again to get more information. "You really think you can just leave and thateverything will be fine?"
He glanced at me. "What do you want to know? You don't think I can get out, do you? Don't worry, I have backing. There are people waiting for me on the other side of the border. As for you, you should seriously think about whether you'll still be alive after we land and you've lost your value."
He had backing? That meant there were even more powerful, harder-to-deal-with people behind him?
"Aubrey, how about we make a deal?" My life isn't so worthless that you can just kill me. You can name your terms. What would it take for you to let me go?"
He looked at me with disdain. "Now you want to live? You're the one who brought us all down. Even if I let you off, you really think the rest will? Why didn't you think about the consequences before acting? Now you're scared? Too bad it's too late."
I gritted my teeth and gave him a smile. "I wouldn't be so sure, Aubrey." You're a big shot here, but overseas? You'll be dancing to someone else's tune. You like pulling the strings—I bet you won't like being the puppet."
"What are you trying to say?" he asked, looking at me with interest.
I licked my dry lips and said seriously, "Your destination is Solstice, right? You might not know this, but over there, people don't care what you used to do—they only care whether you're useful."
He looked at me with contempt. "Don't tell me that in Solstice I'll need you to survive."
I nodded confidently. "Like you said, in Solstice, my boss has monopolized almost every market. So, do you think I'm reliable or not?"
He didn't take the bait at all. "I don't know whether you're reliable or not, but when it comes to enemies, eliminating them completely is necessary."
"You're afraid I'll get revenge?" I made a mocking expression.
He said nothing more, staring out at the clouds with his lips pressed tightly together.
I asked coldly, "Since you're afraid, you should understand this—my fiancé in Solstice is just as powerful as Michael. If you kill me, what do you think he'll do to you? And Michael—do you think he'll help you deal with Oscar, or team up with Oscar to kill you?"
He still looked at me calmly. "After all that talk, it turns out you're afraid of death too? Good that you're scared. Gag her. I don't want to hear another sound."
Someone quickly came over with tape and sealed my mouth.
So he was scared too—that was why he didn't dare let me keep talking.
Unable to speak, I could only calm down and think. There was no way I could escape on the plane. As long as he didn't kill me the moment we landed, I’d still have a chance.
He hadn't denied my earlier probing, which meant this plane really was heading to Solstice. A private plane couldn't cross the border, so he'd definitely have to switch to another form oftransportation at the border. Once he crossed the border, he'd be in the clear.
How could I let Oscar know their movements and get to their landing spot quickly to wait for them?
If we didn't intercept him before he entered Solstice, dealing with him after he got there would be simple—but I was afraid I wouldn't live that long.
What should I do?
All I could do was pray that Oscar could track my location and guess their route.
The plane flew for who knows how many hours before it started circling above a certain spot.
After Aubrey took a phone call, the plane slowly began a slow descent.
I was shoved to my feet and, limping and gritting my teeth, finally got off the plane. Feeling the change intemperature and humidity in the air, I was certain—this was the border.
After getting off the plane, Aubrey carefully looked around. The person there to meet him was a very tall man surrounded by more than a dozen burly men . Under their thin clothes, I could see bulges at their waists—no need to guess: they were all armed with real guns.
"Mr. Hagen, the car is ready. Our leader is waiting for you in the vehicle," the man said respectfully.
Aubrey glanced back at me and told his subordinates, "Leave one person to watch her. The rest of you come with me."
The man followed Aubrey's gaze to me, then quickly led the way toward an RV not far away.
Theguard grabbed my arm and dragged me to the side. The handcuffs rubbed against my already raw wrists, but I'd long since lost any sense of pain—I was numb.
"Move faster." he shoved me again, looking impatient.
"Don't move. Don't make a sound. Put your hands up." A familiar voice suddenly rang out. As we approached a corner, the man walking behind me froze, let go of my arm, and slowly raised his hands.
I turned around in surprise and saw Oscar pointing a gun at the man's head, his eyes bloodshot as he looked at me.