Chapter 208 Returning Home to Save Jessica 2
Mike remarked, "Impossible."
Mike jumped up, staring at Jessica in shock.
Jessica kept her cool. She explained, "I'm serious. Gabriel and I are divorced. If the Walton family had the money, they would've paid off that $200,000 debt his father-in-law owes."
Jessica added, "So, kidnapping me won't help you."
Her heart pounded like a drum.
She knew she was cornered.
If she couldn't save herself, she'd be waiting for death.
She had to play mind games, break them down bit by bit.
If they saw her as more trouble than she was worth, maybe they'd let her go.
Slim chance, but worth a shot.
After her words, she saw a flicker of doubt in "Mr. Gonzalez's" eyes.
But just as hope sparked—
Mike spun around, his face twisted with rage. He said furiously, "You think you can outsmart me? You're way out of your league."
"Divorced or not, the Walton family pays, or you die." He mimed a knife slicing her neck. Mike remarked coldly, "Simple as that."
Jessica's heart sank.
Her only plan was shot down.
Was she really just waiting to die?
The night dragged on.
Jessica was tied to a pillar, hands and feet bound tight.
The ground was freezing.
She sat there, cold and stiff.
Her head throbbed where Carter had slammed her into the coffee table.
The bleeding had stopped, but the pain was relentless.
Every throb felt like her head might explode.
She leaned against the pillar, gasping for air to ease the pain.
Another wave hit.
She grabbed at the straw on the ground, nails digging into her flesh, but it was nothing compared to the pain in her head.
Cold sweat drenched her face and clothes.
At some point, a bright moon rose outside.
Jessica stared at it, lost in thought.
What a clear, bright moon.
Jessica wondered, 'Gabriel, look at the moon. Can you see it too?'
Her heart ached with longing and regret.
She regretted not asking about the woman on the phone.
She regretted not being braver, stronger.
If she had asked that night, would things be different?
Jessica reflected, 'Gabriel, it's been a week. Do you know how much I miss you?'
She wondered, 'Gabriel, do you miss me too?'
The more she thought, the sadder she felt.
It was like a weight on her chest, suffocating her.
She didn't know when she finally fell asleep.
But no sooner had she dozed off—
A bucket of cold water hit her, shocking her awake.
She shivered, teeth chattering. Jessica asked, annoyed, "What do you want from me?"
Mike smirked coldly. He remarked, "Time to see if you'll live or die today."
"No, I won't go!" Jessica resisted, but she was no match for them.
They dragged her to a mountaintop.
The peak was flat but surrounded by jagged rocks and steep drops.
Behind her was a bottomless abyss, so deep it made her shudder.
They must've taken a cable car to get up here.
"Bring her over," Mike ordered.
Jessica was pulled to the cliff's edge.
The wind howled.
Her clothes flapped, and she trembled, too scared to speak.
Her heart pounded like it would burst from her chest.
Death felt close, tugging at her.
She was terrified.
Even though her mother was gone, she still longed for the world's gentleness.
Jessica didn't dare look back. She closed her eyes and shouted, "Gabriel!"
She called out desperately, "Gabriel, help me!"
Jessica confessed, "I'm scared, where are you?"
She added, "Gabriel, I miss you so much."
Unbeknownst to her, Mike had already called Gabriel.
Gabriel comforted her, "Jessica, don't be afraid. I'm coming. I won't leave you."
Jessica thought, confused, 'Who? Whose voice?'
Jessica's eyes flew open in disbelief.
Mike had used her phone to call Gabriel. She was both relieved and terrified.
Relieved he was coming.
Terrified he'd risk himself for her.
Just as she was about to speak, someone clamped a hand over her mouth.
She struggled, trying to say something.
But they held her tight, silencing her.
Jessica panicked, eyes wide, frantically looking around.
She heard Mike say, "Ten more minutes, Mr. Walton. Listen to this."
The sound of a gun being loaded.
Gabriel's voice, furious and desperate, "I'm almost there. If you touch her, I swear I'll kill you."
Mike reminded coldly, "Mr. Walton, don't rush. Remember, she's standing at the edge of a bottomless abyss. No money, no wife."
"I warn you again, don't touch her!" Gabriel shouted.
"Ten more minutes, Mr. Walton. Good luck!" Mike hung up.
Gabriel climbed the mountain path frantically.
Sweat drenched him, exhaustion clawed at him, but he kept going.
Jessica was up there.
If he didn't make it, he'd never see her again.
Even if he died, he'd die trying to save her.
Gabriel called out to her mentally, 'Jessica, I'm coming.'
He prayed, 'Hold on, you must hold on.'
Gabriel said it to her in his heart, and to himself.
Finally, he reached the top.
He saw Jessica, held by two men at the cliff's edge, her clothes whipping in the wind.
Gabriel's heart shattered.
"Jessica!" he shouted, his voice raw with pain.
Jessica asked, "Gabriel, is that really you?"
Jessica's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
