“Brother, I didn’t call anyone, and I swear I didn’t bring Heidi here on purpose.”
“This time, do you believe me?”
Scott frowned and pushed me away, his voice cold. “Enough. Talking won’t change anything. Just admit you were wrong. As long as Heidi forgives you, Mom and I will let it go.”
I gave a faint, bitter smile, feeling the last bit of hope in my heart fade completely. Turning around, I walked into the emergency room.
The door had barely closed when a sharp pain hit the back of my neck. My vision blurred, and my body collapsed onto the cold floor.
When I opened my eyes again, I was tied up in a damp, moldy warehouse. The air was thick and stale, and the dim light above flickered weakly.
Next to me lay Heidi. She opened her eyes and immediately started cursing.
“Stephen, you old fool, are you crazy? I told you to drug her, not knock me out too!”
She tried to sit up but soon realized she couldn’t move, her tone turning even harsher.
“I said, just act a little! Tie her up, that’s all! Why did you tie me too? I just had my nails done, three thousand per finger! If they’re ruined, can you even afford that, old man?”
Just as she was yelling and scolding, something was suddenly thrown inside.
Heidi looked closer and screamed like she had lost her mind. It was a mutilated body, my adoptive father, her real father, Stephen.
A hunched figure stepped out from the corner, smiling darkly.
The system’s cold voice spoke in my head: This man is the Butcher.
As Heidi cried and begged for mercy, a group of armed police officers burst through the door, shouting loudly, “Release the hostages, or we’ll open fire!”
My brother, eyes red, rushed to the front and roared, “Let my sister go! I’ll make sure you die with a whole body!”
Hearing Heidi’s cries, Atlas shouted into the room, “I’ll give you three billion, just let Heidi go!”
The Butcher laughed, his voice cold and full of hate.
“I didn’t plan to kill anyone at first. But someone killed and blamed me for it, and I wasn’t convinced. Since that’s how it is, I’ll kill one more. This time, you’d better watch closely, this one’s mine.”
He spoke slowly. “I caught two people this time. You can choose. Whichever one you pick, that one lives. One is the girl whose name you just called, and the other is….”
Before he could finish, my brother and Atlas shouted at the same time, “We choose Heidi!”
“I choose Heidi!”
I gave a small, bitter smile and closed my eyes.
The Butcher laughed loudly and threw Heidi toward them. She stumbled into their arms, crying and begging them to take her away.
Before my brother and Atlas could even catch their breath, the Butcher pulled a round object from his pocket, grinning wildly as he got ready to throw it toward the police and the crowd.
“Anyway, I can’t escape this time. Might as well take a few more down with me before I die!”
My brother’s pupils went small, and he shouted right away, “Evacuate! He’s got a bomb!”
Screams, cries, and sobs mixed with the Butcher’s loud laughter.
“Die, all of you.”
The next second, everyone watched in terror as a frail figure staggered out from the corner.
I ran forward, threw myself onto the bomb, and pressed it hard against the Butcher’s chest.
The bomb buzzed between us, the sound cutting through my heart. Then there was a deafening explosion.
Darkness, heat, pain.
Glass shattered, wood splintered, and my ears felt as if they were being torn. Through the burning pain, a pair of gentle hands held me close.
It was Tessa. Her voice was soft like the wind, yet it sounded clear in my ear.
“Sienna, don’t be afraid, we’re going home.”
I choked up and tried to hold her hand. “Tessa…”
“I’ve missed you so much.”
The warehouse after the explosion was covered in flames.
The officers who had joined the raid tried to rush forward but were pushed back by the thick smoke.
Someone shouted, “Captain! Sienna is still inside!”
“It was Sienna who saved us!”
