14.04
Chapter 323
Daniel’s hand shot out and slapped her hard across the face..
Marina’s head snapped to the side from the blow. Tears streaming down her cheeks, she turned back to the camera before Daniel could slap the tape over her mouth again, screaming at Jonathan on the screen:
“Whether I make it out alive or not, remember that I love you, Jonathan, –”
Daniel didn’t give her the chance to finish.
I I
“You’ve got two hours, Jonathan. As soon as I get the money, she’s free.
Otherwise… you can start planning her funeral.”
He hung up, sent Jonathan the anonymous account number Joker had given him, and then destroyed the phone.
“Wow, you really put on a convincing act,” Daniel drawled, turning to Marina as he tore the tape from her lips.
Her cheek was red and swollen, and the pain in her shoulder was all too real.
If she hadn’t actually taken the hits, Jonathan would have seen right through the
charade.
“All this just to make Jonathan feel sorry for you? Was it worth it?”
Marina rolled her eyes at his sneer.
“You don’t know anything,” she snapped.
This wasn’t just about making Jonathan worry. She and Joker had planned this desperate act for weeks. She’d contacted Daniel herself to play the villain.
If everything went smoothly, Jonathan wouldn’t have any reason to keep chasing after Niamh. He’d be devoted to her–his first love, the one who’d risked everything for him, the one who’d suffered so much just to see him again.
Niamh, on the other hand? In Jonathan’s eyes, she was just the woman who’d run
off with another man and made a fool of him.
“Go on, get back to your post,” Marina said, urging Daniel as she pressed fresh tape over her mouth. “The boat’s waiting. Just make sure you keep an eye on her, and don’t forget what we agreed.”
“Relax. She’s not going anywhere. Once we’re on that boat, she’ll never come back,” Daniel replied with a smirk before leaving the shabby apartment.
1/2
14:26
Marina’s wrists ached from the ropes digging into her skin.
But she wasn’t worried. In fact, she felt a rush of satisfaction.
It was only a matter of time before Jonathan found her.
Sure, in Blackspire, he didn’t have the same reach he’d enjoyed back in Aldonia. But she’d left him clues–deliberately filmed the peeling wallpaper, made sure the apartment’s dated decor was visible. Add in the time between the hotel fire alarm and her disappearance, and it wouldn’t take Jonathan long to deduce she was being held somewhere close by, in an old building without security carneras.
With Jonathan’s skills, these breadcrumbs would be more than enough. She was certain he’d pinpoint her location before long.
Even if Jonathan realized Niamh had vanished, too, by the time he figured it out, Niamh would already be gone–spirited away by Daniel onto the ship.
Marina would make sure Niamh disappeared forever.
She meant every word.
Night fell, heavy and silent, over the abandoned docks.
When Niamh came to, she found herself lying on the cold concrete, hands tied behind her back.
The last thing she remembered was walking down the hotel hallway–Daniel had ambushed her, drugging her before she could scream.
He’d come prepared. Disguised as a hotel janitor, he’d used a cleaning cart–just big enough to conceal a person.
Niamh never would have believed she could end up in the sort of kidnapping plot that only happened in movies.
Daniel was a desperate man–a fugitive, a smuggler, and now the mastermind behind a flawless abduction. It was obvious he hadn’t done this alone.
But right now, figuring out his accomplices was the least of her worries.
Niamh’s heart pounded in/her chest. She had no idea what Daniel planned to do
with her.
She forced herself to stay calm.
The warehouse was pitch–black, the air thick with dust. She managed to lift her head and spotted a small, grimy window high above her..
