“I’m truly worried about my daughter. Kendall, please, set aside your jealousy and allow Team Leader Aidan to go in and negotiate!”
“If you’re still uneasy, then I’ll stay out, let only Team Leader Aidan and the others go!”
Then, with a sharp bang, Cassidy suddenly fell to her knees.
“Kendall, I beg you, stop blocking our negotiation!”
“My daughter’s heart is weak; she can’t withstand this kind of shock!”
Cassidy wept pitifully, her forehead swollen red from a knock.
I ignored her, bent down, and picked up my phone. A message from my brother lit the screen.
[Kendall, I’ve arranged top-tier mercenaries and a private jet. Please wait for me!]
The panic in my chest eased slightly, and I turned off the phone.
Aidan, however, struck me hard across the face.
“Put restraints on her!”
“Tie Kendall up, we’re going in to negotiate now!”
The restraints clamped tightly around my hands and feet. I struggled with all my strength, panic surging once more in my chest.
In my previous life, I hadn’t known why Aidan failed the negotiation.
But I knew in the end, he had saved only Cassidy’s daughter.
“Aidan, let me go!”
“I don’t trust you!”
“You’ll doom our daughter! You’ll fail the negotiation and get all the children killed!”
I shouted harshly, my hands and feet rubbed raw, bleeding from the struggle.
Aidan’s expression was dark, yet his voice brimmed with confidence.
“Kendall, I will definitely save our daughter. Just wait here.”
With those words, he turned and left, a bulletproof vest strapped to his chest.
Cassidy followed close behind, throwing me a proud, mocking smile before the door slammed shut.
My eyelids twitched violently as I writhed on the ground. No matter how I fought, the restraints cut deep, leaving me helpless.
Minutes dragged by. Sweat drenched my body, and my heart pounded like a drum in my chest.
Then suddenly, my phone rang.
“Mom?”
“Mom, I saw Dad!”
“Is Dad here to save me?”
Her soft, fragile voice flowed through the line.
“Mom, the bad man took away all our phone watches, but I hid mine secretly. He doesn’t know.”
“Mom, am I really smart?”
Hearing my daughter’s tender, childish voice, tears streamed down my face.
“Melanie, don’t let the bad man find out. Go hide in the corner, stay away from those explosives!”
I tried to comfort her, but fear consumed my mind.
Suddenly, silence fell on the other end. Then came the sound of children crying.
“Melanie?!”