Chapter 169
The Demand.
[I have Serena p>
Next to the message was a picture of Serena tied up in a chair. Her cheek was red, her hair fell into her face, and there was a hint of blood on the corner of her lip.
[If you want her alive, you must arrange for Vanessa Holt’s freedom. She must be granted a complete pardon p>
[You have two days to make it happen, or else I will start hurting her p>
Victor had sent the message to Nathaniel Thorne.
He used an unknown and untraceable number, so Nathaniel would never know it was him.
Victor had never meant to give Serena back.
A plan was already set in motion.
He would set up a meeting point and give Nathaniel a random woman dressed in Serena’s clothes. Then he would blow the place up so Nathaniel would die along with his own men. This way, there would be no witnesses left behind.
Of course, his men knew nothing of this plan.
Some people were meant to play the role of pawns.
Nathaniel quickly called back, but Victor rejected the call.
A text came through.
Nathaniel: [How dare you hurt her! If you so much as touch a strand of her hair again, I swear I will make you live through hell p>
Victor laughed. ‘What could he do p>
“What are you planning to do? You let me go right now!” Serena cried behind him.
He ignored her and walked to the nearest window. He studied the stretch of land surrounding the building. Cargo trailers were parked in long rows near the port, deserted, nothing but steel and shadows stretching into the distance.
They were far from Rexam, and during the transport of Serena, they had switched to several vehicles.
Victor was confident Nathaniel would never find him.
He texted Nathaniel back: [If you want her to live, then act quickly p>
Nathaniel: [I am not doing anything unless you give me proof she is alive p>
Victor knew he would say that. So he dialed Nathaniel’s number. He walked over to Serena, and just as Nathaniel picked up, he pulled her by the hair.
“Ahhh! You are a monster! You will pay for this!” Serena screamed, but very quickly, one of Victor’s men covered her mouth with tape. “Mmmm! Mmmm p>
He ended the call and sent Nathaniel another message: [Heard that? She is alive… for now. Now work on my demand. Remember? Forty-eight hours p>
Victor checked the time as he found a seat nearby.
It was five in the afternoon, more than two hours since they had successfully taken Serena from the Arcliff-Rexam Expressway.
He laughed at the thought of Nathaniel panicking, wondering where Serena could be. He was probably turning Arcliff upside down.
“Serves you right,” he muttered.
Victor had planned to stay away and just live quietly. After all, he had escaped prison.
Someone had helped him — or rather, helped himself while helping Victor at the same time.
At first, the news of Vanessa’s true identity being found out frightened him. When he learned that Matthew Holt’s lawyers were trying to evade punishment if not reduce the sat back and waited
Unfortunately, Nathaniel and Serena had managed to charge a more serious crime against Vanessa.
That was their mistake.
Vanessa was… his precious daughter.
Victor protected Vanessa by giving her to the Holts. Had she lived as a Kline, she would have had many enemies, and there was no telling what her future would have been.
Serena was supposed to bear the consequences of his crimes, but that girl—
He paused, finding Serena restlessly looking around.
Why did Serena have to find out the truth about her paternity? he thought.
That was how everything changed.
His death was supposed to be the answer, but with his daughter in prison, Victor could not just sit back and watch.
He had to do what he had to do.
Meanwhile, while Victor was confident in the success of his plans, a group of soldiers had slowly infiltrated the abandoned building by Port Arcliff’s Container Yard.
The building once belonged to a small shipping company that had collapsed years ago. Since then, it had sat untouched, its ownership tangled in legal disputes.
The soldiers moved with disciplined precision.
Dressed in dark tactical gear, they spread out in pairs, covering blind spots and securing entry points
Their communication was mini et
— short hand signals, subtle nods, quiet confirmations througho earpieces.
No raised voices.
No unnecessary movement.
Boots stepped lightly against the cracked concrete floor, careful to avoid loose
debris. Even the metal doors were eased open with controlled pressure to prevent a single echo from giving them away.
Perimeter secured.
Two teams advanced toward the main structure.
Nathaniel Thorne walked behind
them, wearing a bulletproof vest
beneath his coat. He was still
angered by the texts he had
received, but he tried to control his
emotions so he could focus on
Serena’s retrieval.
Beside him was Silas, equally armed and prepared, his vest fitted tightly over his
shirt. He had refused to let Nathaniel search for Serena alone.
A drone had already surveyed the roof. Thermal imaging had confirmed heat signatures inside.
“There are a total of thirteen armed men. We have the place surrounded,” the lead soldier reported to Nathaniel. “Don’t worry, Mr. Thorne. We will retrieve your wife in no time p>
Later, Nathaniel would discover the man behind Serena’s kidnapping. And when he did, he swore on his life that man would face the maximum punishment his power could deliver.