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Meanwhile, there were twelve women inside the vehicle including Winnie and Greta.
For some reason, many of them had veils covering their faces which inadvertently helped Winnie and
Greta’s cause.
That way, their foreign faces wouldn’t stick out as much from within the group.
As Manchernius’ topography was largely made up of low mountains and rolling hills, a proper road
could barely be seen. All the roads available were largely formed from well-traveled tracks.
After a bumpy forty-minute journey, their vehicle finally arrived at an expansive plain.
There, Winnie and the others were ordered by the innkeeper to alight.
Upon exiting the vehicle, they were surrounded by nothing but trees. The innkeeper subsequently led
them around a bend before their destination came into view.
Instead of the luxurious mansion they were expecting, a massive base greeted their eyes.
Security was tight with armed men guarding the entrance. When Winnie and the others entered,
everyone’s bodies—including that of the innkeeper—were searched.
Winnie, who wasn’t naive, naturally didn’t carry a gun with her.
Nonetheless, the weapon she brought was in the form of the necklace she was wearing. On top of that,
she had an ornamental hairpin stuck in her hair.
The hairpin—brought from Chanaea—was custom-made. When pulled out, it would turn into a sharp
weapon capable of piercing through any threats that she faced.
Once the ladies were determined to be unarmed, they were ordered to form a line.
Subsequently, their veils were all removed to reveal their faces.
On Winnie’s left was Greta; on her right were two meek-looking girls who looked very young still.
Both of them—already crying while inside the vehicle earlier—were now trembling in fear.
After walking past to inspect all of them, the guard stopped abruptly in his tracks.
Scrutinizing Winnie and the others, he instructed the innkeeper, “Mr. Horton prefers fair-skinned
women. Thus, I’ll choose two to be sent to him. As for the rest, you can take them to the backyard as
usual.”
“All right, all right,” the innkeeper responded obsequiously. “I know what to do.”
While bending forward and nodding his head, the innkeeper snuck a glance at Winnie.
She’s the fairest and most beautiful among them all. If she’s sent to Mr. Horton, the plan would go up in
smoke.
Meanwhile, Winnie too, knitted her brows, especially when the guard stopped in front of her.
Fortunately, he didn’t choose her. After sweeping his gaze across her face, he turned his attention
away.
The reason was that Winnie had purposely used her makeup to make herself look uglier.
In the end, the guard chose the two girls beside her. “You and you. Follow me!”
After sighing in relief at the close call, the innkeeper added to the guard, “Good choice. Those two are
virgins who have just been sold over. With their porcelain white skin and beautiful features, I’m sure Mr.
Horton would be a very satisfied man.”
“Mmm-hmm,” the guard grunted in response before leading the two girls away at gunpoint.
Meanwhile, Winnie furrowed her brows tightly as she watched the girls being taken away.
At that moment, she resented the innkeeper along with everyone there. The only emotion she felt was
the urge to burn down the filthy place.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t in a position to act upon her desires. As her rational mind cast away the rage
and hatred in her eyes, she quickly caught up with the innkeeper with Greta following closely behind
her.
The innkeeper whispered, “I’ll be taking you to the backyard. That’s where all the men sleep at night. If
you go further back, you’ll find the women’s and children’s quarters. However, I have no idea in which
room the people you’re looking for are held. You’ll have to find them yourself. Now that it’s dark, you
should use the opportunity to fall behind and slip away.”
Winnie simply grunted in acknowledgment.
While they were passing through the yard that had a banana plantation, she suddenly rushed to the
side and began vomiting.
Greta, who was behind her, knowingly rushed up to her side to pat her on the back.
As for the rest of the women, no one dared to look their way. Only one or two with wandering eyes
threw them a glance before retracting their gazes.
As for the innkeeper, he pretended to bark at them. “Stop dilly-dallying and hurry up!”
As Winnie continued her charade, Greta gave him a cursory response. “Got it. We’ll be right there.”
Once the group was far ahead, the two of them quietly disappeared to the side.
As darkness had already fallen, the lamps on the ground only illuminated the small area they were
placed in, while the moon glowed with a silvery hue from the night sky.
Nevertheless, the light was just enough to help Winnie and Greta navigate their way around and not
too much to expose them to their enemies.
Pointing at a man-made hill diagonally opposite them, Greta suggested, “Do you see the wooden door?
That’s where the women and children live.”
Winnie nodded firmly before following Greta from behind as both of them began creeping around.
Soon, they managed to slip in and found a secluded corner to hide.
In a soft but stern voice, Greta reminded Winnie, “Ms. Garland, even though they’re only women and
children, you shouldn’t underestimate them, let alone show them any mercy. Otherwise, a single
mistake would cost you your life.”
“Don’t worry. I know what to do. However, with so many rooms here, how we are going to find them?”
Greta pointed at a spot that was brightly lit. “The place that’s crowded is probably filled with their own
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtmen. Hence, the people you’re looking for should be on the opposite. With only two rooms having their
lights on, it shouldn’t be difficult.”
Winnie nodded. “Let’s go.”
As they continued to move forward with their bodies hugging the wall, Greta reiterated, “Ms. Garland, if
anything untoward happens, you should ignore me and run for it.”
“Mmm-hmm.”
After making their way forward, they soon arrived at the first room that was lit.
Unexpectedly, the room door was suddenly opened from the inside. Following that, a woman walked
out slowly from it.
At the sight of her, Winnie and Greta instantaneously hugged the wall and froze.
After a splash was heard, the woman returned to the room.
When it dawned upon them that the woman just came out to dump some water, the two ladies breathed
a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t until they heard the noises from the room again that Greta whispered to Winnie, “Ms. Garland,
did you get a good look at the woman? Is she the person you’re looking for?”
“No.” Winnie was extremely certain. “Although there’s only one room left, we cannot let our guard
down, for the people I’m looking for might not even be inside.”
Maintaining the highest levels of vigilance, both of them arrived at the next room and hid underneath
the window.
Not wanting Winnie to show her head, Greta pried open the window and took a peek herself.
Soon, she ducked back to the ground and reported, “This is the place, Ms. Garland. The person you’re
looking for is here. However, I only saw the young lady whose leg was injured.”
Winnie broke out a frown. Why is Rachel alone? Did they lock Granny up someplace else?
However, under those circumstances, there was no time to dwell upon the question. “Let’s go in.”
Greta immediately pulled out a hairpin and began lockpicking the door.
Unfortunately, her technique left a lot to be desired, as the door remained unopened a minute later.
Winnie knitted her brows. “Do you not know how to do this?”
The anxious Greta was already covered in sweat. “This isn’t my forte compared to marksmanship.”
Letting out a gentle sigh, Winnie took the hairpin from Greta’s hands. “Let me do it.”
No sooner had she spoken than the knelt down beside Greta and pried the lock open in less than thirty
seconds.
When a click was heard, Greta scratched her head awkwardly and murmured, “That’s really
impressive, Ms. Garland.”
Winnie acknowledged her with a faint smile before gently pushing the door open.
Just as she stepped into the room, she saw a wooden club as thick as someone’s arm bearing down
upon her face.
Caught by surprise and with Greta blocking her retreat, Winnie had no place to dodge.
However, the pain she was bracing for never transpired, for Greta’s hand had suddenly reached out
from behind to shield her.
At the same time, Greta’s other hand grabbed the neck of the person wielding the club.
“Greta, stop! Granny, put down the club!”
It turned out that the person hiding behind the door in the ambush was none other than Jacinta.
When she saw that the intruder was Winnie, the shocked Jacinta took a moment to regain her senses
before putting down her club.
By then, Greta too, realized they had found Winnie’s grandmother.
“Winnie!” Overwhelmed by delight, Jacinta almost forgot to keep her voice down.
“Shh!” Winnie, with her lowered voice, reminded, “Granny, not so loud.”
Nodding in acknowledgment, Jacinta swiftly locked the door and closed the curtains. After that, she led
Winnie and Greta into the room.
However, instead of following them inside, Greta hid behind the curtain and kept watch.
Holding Winnie’s hand, the teary-eyed Jacinta sat her down at the table. “Winnie, why did you come
here?”
Winnie tightened her grip on Jacinta’s hand in an attempt to comfort her. “Granny, I’m here to take you
home. You must have suffered a lot.”
In a choking voice, Jacinta replied, “Actually, I’m largely all right but Rach’s condition isn’t good. After
being shot in her leg, she only had her bullet removed today. During the entire journey here, she fell
into a daze after being stricken by a fever. Despite taking some fever medication, it was of no help at
all. Also, the doctor here isn’t serious about treating her.”
When Winnie glanced at Rachel, who was lying in bed, she could see how the latter’s face had
reddened from the fever.
The frown on her face deepened. “I’ll take her to a proper doctor once we get out.”
“How are we going to escape?” Jacinta was brimming with concern. “Not only does the rule of law not
apply here, but they’re also armed. Can we really escape?”
“Of course!” Winnie reassured Jacinta with a smile. “Can’t you see how successful we were in
infiltrating this place? Hence, we naturally have a plan to escape. Also, there’re men waiting outside to
receive us.”
“However, given Rach’s condition, she won’t be able to walk, making it very inconvenient.”
“Don’t worry. There’s always a solution to every problem,” Winnie replied calmly. “Look, there’s two of
us here. Greta is really strong and will have no problems carrying Rach.”
Jacinta let out a sigh. “I guess there’s no other choice. I’m sorry to have given you all this trouble,
Winnie.”
However, Winnie disapproved of victims blaming themselves. “This has nothing to do with you, Granny.
Zyon was the one who started it all.”
Despite opening her mouth to speak, Jacinta held her tongue when she decided to continue keeping
the secret.
After throwing the groggy Rachel a glance, she looked out the window. “In that case, when are we
leaving?”
“A few more hours later.”
Winnie explained,
“When everyone’s sound asleep at dawn, we’ll use the opportunity to slip out. But for now, it’s too risky
to do so.”
“Sure.” Jacinta nodded. “We’ll do as you say.”
Time trickled by painfully as they waited.
By the time it was three in the morning when everyone was sound asleep, it was Winnie and her
companions’ chance to slip away.
Carrying Rachel on her back, the agile Greta led Winnie and Jacinta as they attempted to sneak out.
They had to first go back to the way they came from before scaling the wall where the banana
plantation was.
Just when they were about to enter the banana plantation, a gunshot rang out in the air, followed by a
second and a third.
Despite being momentarily stunned, Winnie and Greta increased their pace.
Winnie began to worry. “Can it be that Captain Manfield and the others have entered?”
“Impossible,” Greta replied resolutely. “There’s no way they would do something suicidal like this.
Something else must have happened between the Horton family’s men. The more chaos there is the
better, for it’ll make our escape much easier. Nevertheless, we should hurry up. If they were to come
here, we might be caught by a stray bullet.”
After humming in agreement, Winnie picked up her pace with Jacinta in tow.
Little did they expect someone to be shooting at them the moment they entered the banana plantation.
Fortunately, the dim light of the moon prevented the shooter from getting a good aim. Hence, no one
was hurt on their side.
Greta cursed under her breath, “There must be someone else trying to escape who has gotten to our
position ahead of us.”
Since Winnie and Greta were unarmed and they couldn’t tell how many enemies there were in the
banana plantation, they had no choice but to back off. It didn’t help that they had an elderly and an
injured person with them.
Unfortunately, during their retreat, they ran into the Horton family’s men.
Given that a shootout was ignited by the emergence of a traitor, the men in pursuit were going to shoot
first and ask questions later.
Therefore, Winnie and the rest had no choice but to dive to the side. Unfortunately, Greta’s leg was hit
by a bullet.
“Oh no!” Greta exclaimed. “Now that they have turned on all the lights including that of their cars, it
would be impossible to escape tonight. If we force the matter, it would only mean certain death. Thus,
we have no choice but to take both of them back.”
While Winnie fell into deep thought, Jacinta immediately suggested, “Winnie, both of you should hurry
up and escape. I’ll take Rach back to where we were, so just leave us. As long as you’re out, we’ll still
have hope.”
“That’s right, Ms. Garland.” With her leg wounded, Greta’s movement was now hindered. “Your
grandmother is right. Let’s get out first, as tonight’s mission is a failure. It will be bad if they were to
conduct a search later and don’t find your grandmother in her room.”
No sooner had Greta spoken than two men came running in their direction.
When Winnie turned around and saw them, she instructed Greta, “In that case, you should take them
back. I’ll distract our pursuers.”
“No, my priority is to keep you safe. There’s no way I’m letting you out of my sight.”
“With your leg injured, you’ll just be a burden if you come with me. Besides, in your line, aren’t you
supposed to just follow orders? Now, stop wasting time and get going!”
Seeing the logic in Winnie’s words, Greta nodded before running ahead.
As for Winnie, she ran in a different direction while creating a diversion. Before she knew it, she had
managed to capture the attention of their pursuers.
Nonetheless, due to her unfamiliarity with the area, she quickly ended up running back to where she
came from.
Although she had managed to lose the two guards previously on her tail, she didn’t expect to see them
right after she turned a corner.
Left without a choice, she lowered her head and fled in the opposite direction.
While she was running, a large hand suddenly reached out from the darkness and forcefully pulled her
in.
Worried that she would scream, the person who grabbed her covered her mouth tightly.
Before she knew it, a suppressed male voice rang out beside her ear. “If you want to live, do as I say.
They’ll be coming soon, so play along with me.”
For some strange reason, Winnie found the voice oddly familiar but just couldn’t remember where she
heard it before.
Before she could clarify what to do, her two pursuers arrived.
One of them cursed, “Where’s the person? I just saw the figure just now. How did he disappear just like
that?”
“D*mn it, all this chasing is killing me. Once I find him, I’ll definitely break his legs, as he does fly like
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmthe f*cking wind!”
Their voices caused Winnie’s brows to furrow tightly.
As the sound of their footsteps kept growing louder, she knew they would notice her if they came any
closer.
It was at that moment the man lowered his head abruptly and kissed her.
Truth be told, it wasn’t technically a kiss, for his hand was still covering her mouth. To be precise, he
was actually kissing the back of his hand.
As he began making smooching sounds, he ordered Winnie, “Work with me!”
Winnie immediately understood what was needed and reciprocated with a sensual moan.
The amorous sounds they made quickly caught the attention of her pursuers.
Rushing up to them, they pointed their guns at the man and Winnie. “Who are you? What are you
doing?”
Winnie—feigning panic—buried her head in his arms and moaned in embarrassment.
As for the man, he turned around and shielded her behind his broad shoulders.
Pretending to pull up his zipper, he then gave the two pursuers a kick each.
“Who am I? Why don’t you open your eyes and take a good look? Do you not know who owns this
place? And you’re asking who I am? Hmm?”
“C-Chris!” the two pursuers put their guns away at once. “We’re sorry. We didn’t know you were here
for business. There’s a traitor in the building, and we’re pursuing him. Hence, when we saw someone
running over here, we decided to give chase.”
“What happened? Who was the traitor?”
“It was Maddog. He siphoned off a batch of goods for himself.”
“In that case, what are you wasting time here for? Go find him now!”
“We’re on it. By the way, Chris,” one of them inquired, “did you see anyone pass by just now?”
His companion smacked him on his head at once. “You fool! Can’t you see Chris is busy? How could
he have heard anything? Let’s go!”
With that, both of them quickly disappeared.
Once their footsteps were out of earshot, Winnie gave the man a tug and requested that he turn
around.
Even though she now recognized the voice, she still wasn’t entirely sure.
Nevertheless, the moment he faced her, she instantly confirmed that her guess was correct.
It’s him! It’s really him!
Winnie’s eyes opened wide in surprise. “Christopher Bennett? Why are you here?”
Instead of answering her right away, he returned to his room with Winnie in tow.
Once they were inside, he locked the door without hesitation. “It really is you, Winnie!”
Winnie’s shock intensified. “You knew that I would be coming tonight?”
“No, I only recognized you a few seconds ago. What are you doing here? Do you know what this place
is?”
“I do. Long story short, my grandmother has been kidnapped, and I’m here to rescue her. What about
you? I tried to call you in Avenport but just couldn’t get through. Are you here on a mission?”
Christopher frowned in response. “I can’t tell you much about it. Given how dangerous it is here, I’m
sure you’re not here alone. Anyway, answer me this first, are you responsible for the chaos outside?”
Winnie shook her head. “I have nothing to do with it.”
“Good. As for your grandmother, I’ll figure out how to help you, but I have to check on what’s happening
outside. Considering the mayhem out there, you had better stay here. I’ll be back once everything is
dealt with.”
Winnie nodded. “In that case, please keep an eye out for them. Other than my grandmother, there’s
also a sick lady and a female associate of mine who has been shot in the leg. The three of them are
currently together.”
“All right. I’ll keep a lookout for them.” Christopher reminded her again, “By the way, you can call me
Chris. That’s what everyone calls me around here. Once I leave, lock the door behind me and do not
open it for anyone. Just pretend that you’re sleeping. Remember, this isn’t Chanaea. There’s no rule of
law, nor are people held back by any sense of morality.”
Winnie nodded before watching his leaving silhouette.
When daybreak was upon them, Christopher finally returned.
The moment she opened the door, Winnie saw that his shirt was drenched in blood.
“Are you wounded?” she asked.
“No,” the exhausted Christopher replied, “it’s someone else’s blood. Anyway, your grandmother and the
other young lady are fine. However, I didn’t see that associate of yours who was supposed to be shot.
That said, there’s no sign of her corpse too.”
“In that case, she’s probably fine, as she’s a mercenary and won’t die easily. By the way, when my
granny saw you, I hope she didn’t cause you any trouble since she knows you.”
“No, she knew what to do and pretended not to know me.”
“Mmm-hmm. That’s good. Anyway, Christopher, I understand you’re on a top-secret mission and can’t
tell me much, but I have to tell you that my granny was kidnapped and brought here because of Zyon.
Based on your position as a senior narcotics officer, you shouldn’t be working as an undercover cop
anymore, as you’re more or less known to many of the drug traffickers. Therefore, it’s dangerous for
you here. Although I don’t know your reasons for doing this, Zyon would likely recognize you. Based on
my information, he has currently been sent out by Harold on a mission, but once he returns, you would
be at risk of being exposed. As a result, make sure you’ve made the necessary preparations.”
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