Chapter 42 Why Is It So Sour?
"We can't have immediate news, so you might want to leave a phone number and go back home. I'll have someone notify you as soon as we have any updates."
Matthew buried his head in his documents because he could not stand the sight of the couple before his eyes. The thought that they were happily married with twin children made him realize, for the first time, that he could be so narrow-minded.
Nicholas thought their continued presence was a disturbance.
"Madison, let's go back and wait for the news. We're just anxious here, and we're also interrupting Matthew's work."
Madison didn't want to leave. She wanted to wait there and be the first to know any news, but since Matthew seemed to be pushing them to go, and he appeared very busy, she felt it would be inappropriate to insist on staying. She guessed he might also be concerned that Brianna would be upset to see her there.
In Matthew’s mind, ‘This guy called her so affectionately as if everyone doesn't know you're married.’
The jealous one pounded the keyboard with force, making it look like he was intensely busy with work.
Nicholas supported Madison as they left the office, took the elevator downstairs, and then drove back to her apartment. Inside, a worried Rachel was anxiously awaiting news. Upon seeing them return, she hurried over.
"How did it go? Is Quentin and Hannah's dad willing to help?"
"Yes, he's arranged for people to start searching. I believe we'll have news soon," Nicholas replied.
*
Quentin woke up to find himself in a dilapidated room, with his sister still asleep beside him. He had been preparing to buy a balloon with her just earlier at the mall when she heard a noise nearby. Seeing a Peppa Pig balloon on the ground, she ran over to it, and he followed, only to be blindfolded from behind by two people with a towel and then lost consciousness. Now awake, he guessed that they must've encountered human traffickers who specialized in child abduction. Their smartwatches were gone, probably taken by the abductors.
He knew he had to find a way to escape his mother would certainly be panicking by now. Quentin gently shook his sister's shoulder, intending to wake her first and then plan their escape. "Hannah, Hannah, wake up, Hannah, come on, wake up."
Slowly opening her eyes, Hannah saw her brother and asked, "Quentin, what happened? Where are we?"
"We were drugged and taken from the mall by human traffickers," he explained.
"No, what do we do now? Mom and Rachel will be so worried," she replied.
"Don't worry, I'll find a way for us to escape together," Quentin reassured his sister while silently encouraging himself. He was the older brother. It was his duty to take care of his sister and lead her back to their mother.
Just then, footsteps approached from outside the door. "Let's pretend we're asleep quickly," Quentin told Hannah, and they both lay down in their previous positions.
As the door opened, the voices of two men could be heard conversing.
"Michael, what should we do with these kids? We've only just taken them, and the police have already started searching."
Quentin slowly opened his eyes to find two thug-like men standing before him. The “Boss” had both arms covered in tattoos, and his short, weaselly-looking sidekick stood just behind him.
"Who knows? I call that wretched woman damn, she dares to set us up like that."
While speaking, the tattooed man pulled out his phone to make a call.
"Miss Smith, the kids are currently with us, but... the balance due isn't a million anymore. The entire police force of Horizon City is on our tails because of you. You've really put us in a tight spot, so now it's ten million. Transfer it immediately, and we'll take the kids away. We'll handle the matter as promised, but not a penny less."
"Where am I supposed to get that kind of money?" Brianna furrowed her brows, a sharp, knife-like light flashing in her eyes as she shouted into the phone.
"That's your problem," said the tattooed man, ending the call abruptly.
Staring at the disconnected call, Brianna was infuriated and frantic, pacing back and forth in the room with her phone in hand. Ten million! Where on Earth was she supposed to find that kind of money immediately?
"Michael, how did it go?" the sidekick asked.
"Just waiting to get the money. After, we grab it and leave. Let's check if those two kids have woken up yet."
The men walked over to where Quentin and Hannah lay. "Why haven't they woken up yet?" the tattooed man asked.
"Must've been a heavy dose of the drug," replied his accomplice, otherwise clueless as to why they were still unconscious.
"Let's use this time while they're out. Have James start the car, and we'll go pick up some supplies for the road. Once we've got the money, we make our exit."
"Sure." After their exchange, they left the room.
Once sure the men were gone, Quentin woke up fully. He crept to the window and peeked out to see the car driving away. Rushing back, he whispered urgently to Hannah, "Hannah, they're gone and probably won't be back soon. We need to escape now."
Taking Hannah by the hand, Quentin found the door locked. Locating a stool, he helped her climb to the window first, then followed her. But once she was up, looking down seemed too high, and she hesitated to jump.
"Hannah, don't be afraid. Just jump, and I'll follow right away. We'll be able to find Mom as soon as we escape," Quentin reassured her. With her eyes closed and gathering all her courage, Hannah finally jumped but ended up twisting her ankle slightly due to the height.
"Ouch, that really hurts," Quentin heard his younger sister's voice and quickly climbed up to the window to jump down. He discovered that Hannah had twisted her ankle.
"Are you okay? Try to stand up slowly and see if you can still walk. We need to get out of here first," he said.
Holding back her pain, Hannah stood up, "Quentin, I can do it. It's not that painful. I can walk."
"Good. Let's start walking and see if we can find someone to help us," Quentin said, supporting Hannah as they walked toward the main road.
They had been held captive in a remote farmhouse surrounded by an endless expanse of open land, utterly devoid of people. Hand in hand, Quentin was worried they needed to leave quickly, and he was also concerned about Hannah's foot injury since she was moving slower and slower.
"We can't keep going like this. They'll catch up to us quickly once they return, and we'll have no chance to run away," he said.
"What should we do, Quentin? Maybe you should go ahead and find someone to help," Hannah said, not wanting to be a burden.
"No way. I'm not leaving you alone. We'll find a place to hide. It's getting dark. They won't find us as easily as the police have started searching for us. Mom must have called them. We'll be rescued," he reassured her.
Hannah nodded emphatically, knowing she had nothing to fear as long as her brother was with her.
Quentin noticed an old, abandoned well ahead. He had an idea. He pulled his sister over to it. The well was not deep. He jumped down first and then asked Hannah to sit on the edge and slide down slowly. He caught her below and made sure she was settled. Then he climbed out, collected a lot of dry grass and twigs, and went back into the well. They camouflaged the entrance with the debris, and from a casual glance, no one would notice two people hiding there. Soon after hiding, they heard the sound of a car and knew it was the human traffickers returning.
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