Chapter 107

Royce looked at me, worry etched on his face. "Caroline, you alright?"

I gave a slight shake of my head.

Behind him, Savannah pointed at the guy next to me. "Let Ms. Sharp go, or you'll regret it."

In front of them, a bunch of cops stood ready, guns drawn, looking like they were ready to take down the guy holding me hostage any second now.

The guy, though, didn't seem bothered. He had one arm wrapped around me tight and a gun pressed to my waist with the other. "Anyone gets closer, and I'll shoot her."

The situation was tense, and no one dared to move.

I took a deep breath.

I wasn't ready to die like this. I had too much left to do. I hadn't avenged Brandon and the Jordan family yet, and I had three kids to think about.

"Who sent you? Whatever they're paying you, I'll double it. I'll make sure your family is taken care of for life."

Given the circumstances, the guy would end up in prison even if he survived, so I chose my words carefully, aiming for his weak spot.

But I underestimated how ruthless these guys could be. He sneered, "My family's dead!"

My heart sank. "Isn't there anyone you care about? I can help you, just let me go!"

"If you die today, what happens to the people you care about? Don't you have a wife and kids?"

Sure enough, his grip loosened a bit at my words. I must've hit a nerve.

I kept going, "If you go to prison today but let me go, I'll make sure your kid goes to the best schools. I'll cover all the expenses."

"I won't let him know he had a father like you. I'll make sure he lives a happy and fulfilling life."

This clearly got to him. The gun in his hand lowered a bit.

He must've thought of his kid, feeling a pang of emotion.

Seeing that this was working, I pressed on. "Whoever sent you here has already abandoned you. There's no one here to back you up. Are you really gonna keep risking your life for them?"

"When you get out, you can reunite with your family. By then, your kid will have graduated from college. Don't you want to live a normal life?"

The gun in his hand wavered again, but he said, "I've already gone too far down this path. There's no turning back for me."

"No, if you let me go now, there's still hope. You can still turn things around. If you reveal who sent you, I promise I'll plead for leniency on your behalf."

Just then, a gunshot rang out from behind.

I felt the guy behind me go limp and heard a heavy thud as he hit the ground, his gun dropping beside him.

Startled, I turned to see the guy had been shot by someone and was now dead on the ground.

At that moment, Royce shouted, "Get down!"

Before I could react, he tackled me to the ground, and a bullet whizzed past us, slicing through the air.

I hadn't fully processed what was happening, but Royce, who was now on top of me, was already sweating and breathing heavily.

"What just happened?"

Royce held me tightly. "His accomplice took him out."

I was in shock, realizing that Royce had tackled me because the other person intended to kill me too.

The police quickly sprang into action, rushing to search the hillside for the shooter. This had escalated into a major criminal case, with armed suspects killing right in front of the police.

I stood up and looked at the man behind me. "He was starting to have second thoughts, but he still got..."

Royce pulled me away and glanced at the man on the ground. "He doesn't deserve any sympathy."

I understood what Royce meant, but I continued, "I just feel sorry for his family, having a father and husband like that."

"I want to help his kid with school expenses. Can you help me find his child?"

Royce hesitated for a moment before nodding.

He led me to a nearby police car. Savannah, seeing that I was safe, breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry, Ms. Sharp. I failed to protect you."

I shook my head. "It's not your fault. Even if it wasn't here, they would have found another way to kidnap me. That was their goal."

Despite my words, Savannah still frowned, looking deeply guilty.

I knew this wasn't the place to talk, so I got into the police car.

Inside, Simon was sitting in the front passenger seat, chatting with a police officer. He turned and grinned at me. "How does it feel to be kidnapped?"

Royce, sitting next to me, glared at him. "Can you shut up for once?"

I could feel Royce's tension. His hand gripped my shoulder tightly, making me wince. "It hurts a bit. Can you loosen your grip?"

He immediately let go. "Sorry, are you hurt anywhere?"

I shook my head. "The man didn't do anything to me. He even made sure I had meals on time."

Royce relaxed a bit at that. Simon laughed. "You have no idea how much he worried about you these past few days. None of us got any sleep."

I was taken aback. He had just casually revealed his identity.

"You..."

He smiled at me. "You already knew, didn't you?"

I nodded. I had suspected his identity for a while, but now it was confirmed.

Simon continued, "We suspected the Jordan family was connected to a major drug cartel. Then Royce asked me to help you. I thought it was a good opportunity to investigate the Jordan family and see if you were involved."

I looked at Royce. "How did you know about my situation?"

Royce hesitated before speaking. "I didn't know at first. Kathy noticed something and told me."

"I was abroad at the time and couldn't come back, so I asked Simon to help."

Seeing how familiar they were with each other, I couldn't help but ask, "What's your relationship? How do you know each other?"

They seemed like two completely unrelated people, yet here they were, working together.

Simon gave a mysterious smile. "Guess."

Royce shot him a look, and Simon's expression turned serious. "In short, his uncle is my dad. We're related by blood."

I was stunned, looking at the two of them in disbelief.

Now that I looked closely, I could see the resemblance in their features, though I had never noticed it before.