Andrew clenched his jaw so hard it looked like it might shatter. He grabbed Beatty's wrist. "Let go!"

Beatty clung to him with terrifying desperation, her eyes wide with panic. "No, Mr. Lane! You can't let your emotions dictate this. If you go after her, they'll capture all of us."

She had already noticed the terrifying amount of blood soaking his back, and her voice trembled with urgency. "Mr. Lane, we need to leave. You're bleeding out. What can you even do in this condition?"

Andrew's voice was lethal. "Let go!"

A short distance away, Emily was clutching her stomach, leaning heavily against the tree trunks as she scrambled through the brush. Benjamin's thugs were rapidly closing the distance.

Benjamin noticed the struggle between Andrew and his secretary. Smirking, he started walking casually toward them with his last remaining thug.

Beatty gritted her teeth and yelled, "Mr. Lane, if you stay, everything she just did to save you will be for nothing! If you actually want to help her, you need to leave right now!"

Benjamin chuckled, his footsteps crunching on the dry leaves as he approached.

Beatty's forehead was slick with sweat, her heart hammering against her ribs. Andrew stood perfectly still for a second, his chest heaving with ragged breaths. Then, with a sudden, violent jerk, he pried her fingers off him.

Just as Beatty thought he was going to throw his life away to chase Emily, Andrew spun around and sprinted in the opposite direction, grabbing her wrist and dragging her with him.

In that singular moment, a massive wave of relief washed over Beatty.

The wind roared in her ears as she stared down at his hand wrapped tightly around her wrist. Her eyes lit up.

She couldn't resist glancing back toward Emily's direction.

The forest was pitch-black. They had already covered enough ground that Emily's silhouette was entirely swallowed by the shadows. All she could see was that Benjamin had abandoned his pursuit of them and redirected his focus solely on capturing Emily.

A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched the corners of her mouth. She looked forward again, keeping her voice low. "Mr. Lane, let's hurry. Ms. Blair is counting on us to get help."

The moment the words left her mouth, Andrew dropped her hand.

Beatty's smile instantly vanished.

Andrew didn't say a word. He

abruptly veered off the path,

stopping inside a dense cluster of

his hand. Give me

trees He held out his hand.

your phone."

FindNovel.net

Beatty checked their surroundings. They were just yards away from the edge of the woods.

She pulled out her phone, looking confused. "Aren't we going to keep running?"

He snatched the phone, completely ignoring her question. "How far out are Tristan and the police?"

Beatty swallowed hard. "When I

checked earlier, Mr. Davis was only a

few minutes away, and the police

were about ten minutes out Given

the time, they should already be here."

FindNovel.net

Andrew didn't reply. His eyes were locked on the screen as he scrolled through her

contacts, found Tristan's number, and hit dial.

It rang out. The call disconnected automatically.

He dialed again.

Watching him, Beatty couldn't stop

herself from intervening. "He's probably already in the woods and ban't answer. Mr. Lane, we feally need to get out of here. I need to get you to a hospital. If that wound isn't treated soon, you could get a severe infection."

Andrew dialed a third time. Still no answer.

He hit redial again.

Beatty clenched her fists, her anxiety spiking. "Mr. Lane, please, let's just go..."

"I am worried about her," he cut in, his voice dark and absolute.

Beatty froze.

It was painfully obvious who "her" was.

She bit the inside of her cheek in bitter frustration, forcing herself to shut up.

Finally, on the fourth attempt, the call connected.

Tristan's voice filtered through the speaker, breathless and accompanied by the rushing sound of wind. "Did you find Emily?"