Chapter 578: Speaking from the Heart
Cecily was pacing around her place, biting her nails, waiting for Darian. Dude never showed. After dropping Griffin and Rowan with Aurelie, she gunned it to Fitzgerald Manor.
From a distance, she could see the drama unfolding.
Sandra was in Mark's grip, and Darian wasn't about to let Josep off the hook. The whole scene was a powder keg.
Cecily thought for a sec, then whipped the wheel and sped off.
Darian's voice was ice-cold, "One minute."
"Dad, help me!" Victor was losing it.
Josep's face twisted in pain as he yelled, "Darian, if you shoot, your mom's blood is on your hands."
"Then I'll make sure you all go down with her," Darian shot back. If Sandra died, none of them would survive.
Darian sneered at Mark and his crew, "I don't know what Josep's paying you, but is it worth dying for? If anything happens to my mom, tonight's your last."
Mark's crew started to waver.
They knew if Sandra got hurt, Darian would hunt them down. No escape tonight.
Seeing their hesitation, Larkin stepped up and shouted, "Let Sandra go, and you walk. Hurt her, and you're dead. Any smart person knows what to do."
Mark's team was in chaos, everyone looking at each other. If one person dropped their weapon, the rest would follow.
But Josep yelled, "Don't listen to him! Darian's ruthless. As long as you have his mom, you have leverage. Let her go, and we're done. Don't be naive. He's playing you. Release her, and none of you could leave here alive."
Josep's words made the wavering crew even more panicked. Unsure, they tightened their grip on their weapons.
Darian's eyes narrowed dangerously at Josep, "You really wanna drag everyone down with you?"
Josep gritted his teeth, "Don't mess with me. I know what you're thinking. If I release Sandra, will you let me go? I doubt it."
Josep was stubborn as a mule.
"No, Darian won't do that," Aurelia rushed forward, shouting, "Dad, if you release Sandra, Darian won't mess with us. Just let her go."
Aurelia, usually a bit clueless, saw things clearly now. Darian only wanted to punish Josep for Patrick's death.
They were just pawns for Darian to get Sandra back. If he wanted them dead, he could've done it already. No need to save them.
As long as Sandra was released, everyone except Josep would be safe.
Aurelia didn't want to die, so she kept pleading with Josep, "Dad, please, stop fighting Darian. Release Sandra, and we'll be fine."
Josep looked at Aurelia, "You all will be fine, but what about me? If I hand over Sandra, he might spare you, but not me!"
In a fit of anger, Josep blurted out his true thoughts.
Aurelia's face changed, and her sobs caught in her throat, "Dad, so you know if you hand over Sandra, Darian will only go after you, and we'll be fine. Yet you still refuse to release her, letting him torment and bury us alive. Are you using our lives to save your own?"
Josep gritted his teeth, "Is that so wrong? If I hand over Sandra, would you watch me die?"
"And can you watch him torment us? This whole mess is your doing. What did we do wrong?" Aurelia saw the darkness and selfishness in Josep's heart and felt immense pain. "If you hand over Sandra, the three of us won't be implicated. But you stubbornly refuse. What if he really buries us alive?"
Aurelia roared at Josep, looking at Victor, who was writhing in pain on the ground with a bullet wound in his thigh. She felt an overwhelming sense of despair.
This whole mess was Josep's doing, but now he wanted them to bear the consequences.
'Is this how a dad should act?'
"Before Sandra's safe, he won't kill us," Josep dodged Aurelia's heartbroken stare.
"You're just selfish. You're gambling with our lives, betting on Darian's limits, betting on his humanity, but you don't care about us at all. Josep, do you even deserve to be a father or a husband?" Aurelia screamed at him, losing it.
Everyone heard her desperate cries, and Mark's crew started thinking twice about risking their necks for a guy like Josep.
"Shut up," Josep barked at Aurelia.
But she wasn't having it.
She yelled at Mark and his crew, "Are you all idiots? You're risking your lives for him. If Sandra gets hurt, Darian won't spare you. If I were you, I'd drop my weapon, release her, and get the hell out of here."
"Aurelia! Shut up!" Josep roared, his face turning red with rage.
The crew exchanged uneasy glances, their resolve crumbling.
Mark, still holding Sandra with a gun to her head, shouted, "What are you doing? Are you really gonna be swayed by their words?"
"Swayed? Mark, if you wanna risk your life for Josep, don't drag others into it," Cecily said loudly as she stepped out of the car.
Darian's eyes flickered; he hadn't expected Cecily to show up now.
Not only had Cecily come, but she also brought Owen.
Cecily helped Owen out of the car, her cold, sharp eyes locked on Josep.
"Josep, Owen's here. You can release Sandra now. With Owen here, Darian won't kill you. Even if he wanted to, Owen wouldn't let him," Cecily said directly to Josep, whose face had turned pale.
Cecily knew Darian was doing all this to save Sandra. He wouldn't kill Josep himself.
Seeing Owen, Josep was momentarily stunned, "Dad."
"Release Sandra. Don't make things worse," Owen said sternly. "I'm here. You can be sure Darian won't kill you. Just let her go."
With Owen's assurance, if Josep only wanted this much, he would've had Mark release her.
But clearly, Josep wanted more; he wanted Darian to let him go freely.
Josep laughed to himself, "Release Sandra, and then what?"
Owen frowned, "You did wrong, and you need to face the consequences."
"Go to prison?" Josep laughed maniacally, "But I don't want to go to prison. I want freedom. Let me go, and I'll release Sandra. It's a fair deal."
Cecily felt a surge of anger.
After all the terrible things Josep had done, he still didn't want to face any consequences.
Was he dreaming?!
Cecily's brows furrowed tightly, "Don't you think you deserve to be punished?"
"What did I do wrong? I was just trying to get what I wanted," Josep said, looking deranged, with a sinister smile on his face.
He shouted, "I'll say it again, let me go, and my men will release Sandra. Otherwise, forget it."
Josep glanced at Mark, who was still steadfastly supporting him, and gave him a look.
Mark nodded, pulling Sandra closer and shouting, "Release Josep now."
At that moment, there was movement behind him.
"Don't move. Let her go," a man behind Mark shouted.
Mark felt a chill down his spine as he realized that the people who had been standing behind him were now pointing their guns at him.
Seeing his own men turn against him, Mark was in disbelief, "Do you know what you're doing? Are you crazy?"
"We're not crazy. But you are. If you wanna risk your life for him, go ahead, but don't drag us down with you."
Smart people knew which side to stand on at this moment.
Josep was destined to lose tonight; he couldn't escape.
Their lives were also valuable. Why should they risk their lives to save his?
Mark gritted his teeth, "You took so much money."
"How much money? I'll pay it back. Release her," they said.
Cecily watched as the others turned against Mark, wondering what benefits Josep had given Mark to make him so willing to risk his life.
Owen sighed, his face full of sorrow, "Josep, how long will you remain stubborn? You've ended up in this situation, abandoned by everyone. Do you still feel no remorse?"
Owen couldn't understand how he had raised such a son.
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