However, they were too high up when they jumped, so they landed separately.
Since Stan landed on the border between Dunesia and Franconia, he immediately went looking for populated areas, contacting James as soon as he reached a phone.
However, he never got through to Diarmuid’s phone.
Even if Abigail was not sure about Diarmuid’s work, she could tell that it was a business deal gone sour, leading to deliberate sabotage.
But even if the plane crash was no accident, Abigail believed that Diarmuid was fine, since Stan was unscathed.
Looking straight at Stan, she said, “Let’s go look for him. He should be near where you landed.”
However, Stan became hesitant, as if wondering if he should speak just then!
Abigail was absolutely fuming—how could Stan still be hesitant even now?
“Spit it already,” she snapped. “Don’t leave me hanging, or I might die from a heart attack!”
She was not actually joking—her heart could leap out of throat as she kept watching Stan being hesitant to speak.
He began, “I just saw the news about the plane crash…”
“So?” Zachary pressed, feeling anxious too. “Get to the point!”
“I am getting to the point,” Stan said sternly. “Don’t interrupt, please?”
And with that, the other three turned silent and stared fixedly at him, leaving him a little speechless.
“Remember the captain? I saw him jump out of the plane with us with my own eyes,” Stan replied. “But the news is saying that he and his co-pilot died the same way. It’s no surprise that the co-pilot was killed after I knocked him out, but the captain should have survived after landing safely like me instead of dying like his co-pilot.”
James promptly understood what Stan was getting at, and his expression turned somber. “You mean the captain was silenced?”
“That’s exactly it.” Stan nodded.
“And we can’t reach Mr. Althoff,” James murmured. “Doesn’t that mean…”
The hunch James had was exactly what Stan feared—that the saboteurs found the captain and killed him to stop him from ratting out the mastermind.
Did they find Diarmuid as well, after he was separated from Stan?
Stan was certainly worried that Diarmuid had been taken by Hector Vaughn, or they would have been able to reach him by now!
Abigail more or less understood what they were getting at, but she glanced between the three men before her and said, “We can’t just stay here and wait, can we? Whether Diarmuid’s been hurt or captured, we must do something!”
“Yeah,” James said and turned to the other two. “Let’s split up. You two will go look for Mr. Althoff where he was last seen, while I investigate Hector.”
Stan and Zachary nodded. “Yeah. Let’s do that.”
Abigail said, “I’ll help with the search.”
Zachary glanced at her foot instead. “No, you stay home. Your leg is hurt, and we’d have to take care of you if you come with us.”
“I don’t need you to take care of me—” Abigail protested, but Zachary did not let her finish.
He simply took a couple steps back, distancing himself from her. “Walk. Let’s see if you can do it normally.”
Abigail did not move, compromising because she did not want them to be delayed because of her. “Fine, I won’t join you. Just go already!”
“We’ll send word as soon as we have something.”
And with that, they were gone.
Abigail watched as they left, feeling considerably upset that she got herself hurt so easily.
She failed to help and even delayed them because they had to take care of her.
She wobbled up to the fountain nearby and sat by it, staring blankly into thin air.
Over at New Kent, Ricky Bernstein acted as an informant, leading the police to Bob, the ringleader.
Once they had Bob’s location, they moved in to make arrests… but things went out of hand.
Bob was sharp and adept at counter-intelligence, and he suspected early on that Ricky was now the police’s mole.
That was why he promptly held Ricky hostage and demanded an escape route for Ricky’s life.
The police had to agree to his demand for Ricky’s safety, but the standoff soon turned into a chase and shots were fired!
Bob hated Ricky for his betrayal, and he fired a shot straight at Ricky before the police officers could subdue him!
However, Martin York stepped in the bullet’s way, and the shot hit him on the back.
He was rushed to the hospital right away for emergency surgery, but the bullet was lodged too close to Martin’s heart. They needed the best heart surgeons to extract it, or the risk would be too serious.
While the hospital arranged for the surgery, Lulu Adams was still at home.
She knew about the operation today, and although she never received word, she was afraid to call Martin since she might disturb him while he was on the job.
When she had enough of waiting, she headed straight to the precinct, where the higher-ups were interrogating Bob.
Lulu’s worries eased, since it seemed that the operation was a success, and Ricky was the most vulnerable asset—he would definitely be killed if the crime ring realized he was the mole.
Finding Johnny, one of Martin’s squadmates, she asked, “How did the operation go?”
Remembering that Martin was still in the hospital—his fate unknown—Johnny did not dare to say too much. Averting his eyes from hers, he simply told Lulu, “It’s a success.”
Lulu then asked, “Was the informant safe?”
“Yeah, we brought him back already,” Johnny said, keeping his eyes lowered as he cleaned his table.
Lulu heaved a sigh of relief—that was good, and she would not have trouble explaining herself to Abigail.
Turning, she said, “Tell your captain to come home soon too.”
“Yeah,” Johnny replied very softly.
Lulu seemed to remember something then, and she turned to look at Johnny. “Wait, the operation is a success, right? Martin can head home earlier, right?”
This time, Johnny simply hung his head in silence.
Martin was definitely not making it home tonight, but he did not dare to tell Lulu when she was so close to labor.
However, Lulu quickly noticed that he was acting strange, and her expression darkened.
“Johnny.”
Johnny forced himself to look up. “I heard you, and I’ll tell cap. But we have another case to follow, so he might not be back soon.”
“Didn’t you say the operation was a success? What other case is there? Martin never mentioned anything like that!” Lulu exclaimed, staring straight at Johnny just then. “Be honest. What happened to Martin?”
“Look, you’re pregnant,” Johnny said. “You don’t have to ask—we’ll do our best…”
Lulu stumbled backward in shock—Johnny was implying that something had happened to Martin!
Quickly catching a corner of the desk, she forced herself to stay calm, and she glared at Johnny. “Tell me everything.”
“Lulu…” Johnny was pleading.
“Now!” Lulu yelled, but she suddenly felt enfeebled.
She tried to muster her strength, but she felt endlessly drained.
“Lulu,” Johnny quickly went up to hold her up, hesitating for a moment before sighing. “Cap took a bullet to save the informant. The doctor told us that the bullet is very close to the heart, and they’re now putting together a surgical procedure. But there’s no need to panic—the captain has always led an upstanding life, and he’ll be fine—”
“Urgh…” Lulu groaned, suddenly ignoring him.
Her belly was abruptly aching, and she clutched on it, her breathing turned rushed.
“Is the baby coming?!” Johnny exclaimed, and he promptly whipped out his phone to call an ambulance.
On the other hand, Lulu’s hands were clenching as she withstood the waves of agony to take out her phone and call Abigail.
Abigail soon answered. “Lulu?”
“Abigail! Get over here! Right! Now!”
Since Abigail was a prodigious heart surgeon, Lulu knew that she would definitely have a way to save Martin.
Meanwhile, her water had broken, and fluid was flowing down her inner thighs.
Johnny was scared out of his mind. “Lulu, what—”
“Calm down!” Lulu shot him a look and snapped before turning back to her phone, informing Abigail with perfect clarity, “Coming by car would take too much time. Ask Diarmuid—he’ll definitely get you here in the shortest time possible. I’m asking you for a favor here, and it’s really urgent…”
Abigail was not even in Zidonia, but she could hear the urgency in Lulu’s voice.
Abigail asked, “Is it Ricky?”
“No, it’s M-Martin…” Lulu said and pleaded, “Abigail, I don’t have much time. Please hurry…”
“Is the baby coming too?!” Abigail gasped.
“Yes, but listen—Martin was shot… they say the bullet was near his heart… S-Save him…”
Abigail was afraid of telling Lulu that she was abroad right then. “Got it. I’ll be right over.”
Abigail hung up, and she was planning to call James when she realized that it would take her over ten hours to return to Zidonia.
It was far too long, and way past the optimal time to treat Martin.
She quickly called Finn Crowe instead—thankfully, the youth was reliable as ever, and he quickly answered her call. “Director Bernstein?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
Leave a Reply