Chapter 482 He Jumped into the Sea
If Griffin hadn't caused so much trouble, Victoria wouldn't have been hurt. At the end of the day, it was all Griffin's fault.
Thomas and his men were waiting at the safety perimeter several miles away.
"Mr. Taylor, look, there's a small boat heading our way," Eugene said, standing on the deck and scanning the dark waters with his flashlight. "Could it be Victoria and the others?"
Thomas looked in the direction Eugene was pointing and immediately ordered, "Bring our vessel closer."
Meanwhile, on Alexander's yacht, the remaining occupants had been detained by Gideon's Shadow Reapers Team One.
"Mr. Gideon Howard, we've secured everyone. Mr. Alexander Howard is still on the lower deck," reported Lonnie Caldwell, the Shadow Reapers Team One captain.
Gideon furrowed his brow. "Alexander hasn't left?"
Lonnie shook his head.
"Have them take Ronnie and Miguel to the helicopter," Gideon instructed. "I'll go find Alexander."
With that, he headed down from the third deck. After making arrangements, Lonnie followed.
"Alexander, I won't give you the remote because it's not even on me," Griffin said, barely able to stand after Alexander had beaten him. He was half-lying on the floor. "And you can't kill me either. If I die, the detonation sequence will automatically activate."
Gideon arrived just in time to hear these words. Alexander was staring at Griffin with dark, intense eyes.
"Alexander, let's leave him and get out of here," Gideon said, casting a cold glance at the bloodied Griffin.
Since the remote wasn't in Griffin's possession, he wouldn't be foolish enough to kill himself and detonate the bombs on the yacht.
Griffin suddenly checked his watch and smiled eerily. "You won't make it. In one minute, someone else will press the remote I prepared for them."
Alexander and Gideon tensed and immediately turned to leave. They spotted Lonnie coming down.
"Lonnie, run! This place is going to blow in a minute!" Gideon shouted.
At the harbor, Waverly watched the time tick by without any message from Griffin. When the designated moment arrived, she pressed the red button on the small remote in her hand.
Instantly, a tremendous explosion rocked the sea. The dark waters lit up as if a volcano had erupted, forming a mushroom cloud of fire. The surrounding waters churned violently.
Victoria had just boarded the boat when the blast made her flinch. She turned sharply toward the golden flames in the distance.
She stared in disbelief at the towering inferno, suddenly feeling a sharp pain in her chest and numbness in her limbs.
Clutching her heart, which was pounding as if it might burst, she swayed slightly.
Thomas was the first to react, steadying her. "Vicky, don't worry. Alexander might have made it onto the helicopter."
Just then, Marcus received a phone call. Victoria clearly saw his expression change.
"Mrs. Howard, Mr. Gideon Howard says Mr. Alexander Howard... he didn't board the helicopter," Marcus stammered. "Mr. Alexander Howard jumped into the sea."
Victoria felt her head buzzing, her vision momentarily blurring.
Fighting back tears, her lips trembling and fists clenched at her sides, she closed her eyes briefly before opening them again.
"Find him," she said. "I don't care how, but I need to see him."
Just fifteen minutes earlier, he had been standing before her, telling her to follow his instructions. The one time she had obeyed him and left first...
Soon, a rescue operation was underway on the water.
The explosion had been massive, reducing the three-deck yacht to fragments. The sea surface was littered with debris, smoke still rising.
"Victoria, I'm sorry. Alexander was supposed to board the helicopter first, but I..." Gideon said.
He looked at Victoria's pale face. He felt terrible and deeply guilty.
He knew her heart must be in turmoil, though she remained composed.
She turned to him, her bloodless lips barely moving, "He's your brother; of course he would protect you. You don't need to apologize or feel guilty. I believe he'll be alright." She gazed at the chaotic sea. "He promised he wouldn't leave me."
Gideon had never seen Victoria so fragile. Even when she was injured at the cliff that day, she hadn't seemed so close to collapse.
It was Alexander who gave her strength to stand there.
He couldn't bear to imagine if the news turned out to be...
He couldn't finish the thought.
When Griffin had said they had one minute, they had fled the lower deck for the third level. Alexander had said he would cover their retreat, insisting they go first, but...
Gideon had watched as Alexander, unable to reach the rope ladder in time, had dived into the sea at the moment of the explosion.
But with the force of that blast, even jumping into the water wouldn't have protected him from the deadly debris.
He dreaded to think what might have happened.
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