In Abyanabad, an unremarkable antique store was situated in an old alley. The streetscape was run-down, a stark contrast to the surrounding high-rise buildings, making the alley seem like the city’s ugly, forgotten band-aid. The continuous rainfall had left a musty smell in the alley. Two people stopped in front of the antique store. Walter Klein said, "Sixth Master, the person is inside." Adrian Desmond, dressed in a suit and exuding an aristocratic air, looked out of place as he stepped in. The store was small to begin with, and crammed with too many items, it felt even more constricted. Adrian, being tall, had to stoop to avoid hitting his head. "He’s upstairs," he was told. "Stay at the door and don’t let unrelated people in," Adrian instructed his bodyguards. "Yes, sir!" they responded. Two bodyguards remained at the entrance of the Antique Store as Adrian and Walter Klein ascended the wooden stairs. The stairs creaked and shuddered under their weight, trembling with each step. Adrian worried that one misstep could send him crashing through. Upon reaching the second floor and turning right, they entered a room. Inside, besides Adrian’s men, were a couple, their elder daughter—who was rather pretty—and their five or six-year-old son. The wife was heavily pregnant. "Sixth Master!" As Adrian entered, a bodyguard brought over a chair, wiped it with his sleeve, and gestured for Adrian to sit. Adrian sat down composedly, crossed his legs, and aimed his polished leather shoes at a man lying on the ground. His gaze fell upon the man, Jamie Harris, whose face was bloodied and bruised from a beating. Jamie was Sienna Johnson’s accomplice. "Speak. Where is she?" Adrian asked. "I don’t know. I don’t know anything," the man replied, his words slurred and indistinct because of his missing teeth. Adrian made a gesture, and all of Sienna’s jewelry—each piece priceless—was thrown down in front of Jamie. This collection of valuables spoke volumes of Adrian’s affection for Sienna; he had never even gifted his own sister so many jewels. "I found out that all these pieces of jewelry were sent from your shop to various locations worldwide. Jamie Harris, since I was able to trace them back to you, I obviously know what you’ve done. If you just tell me where Mai is, I’ll let you and your..." Adrian glanced at Jamie’s family. The wife clutched her children, shivering in fear like a chick startled by a hawk. Adrian’s tone shifted as his gaze landed on Jamie’s elder daughter. "Your daughter is quite pretty..." This remark terrified Jamie. He scrambled to his daughter’s side, shielding her with his body. "What are you going to do? Just come at me! She’s just a child! Don’t hurt her!" "You’re quite the good father!" Adrian laughed. "Just kill me!" Jamie cried, feigning fearlessness. Adrian didn’t take the bait. Instead, his sharp gaze fell on Jamie’s wife’s heavily pregnant belly. "I want to be a good father too... Jamie, my son is eight months along; he’ll be born in two more months. You must tell me where my woman and my son have gone." "I don’t know. I really don’t know anything." Adrian’s smile vanished, replaced by an icy stare; he regarded Jamie like a fish on a chopping block. Jamie knew of Adrian’s ruthless reputation. He wasn’t afraid to die, but he was terrified his family would suffer because of him. "...That day, two beautiful women came to me and gave me a package. They asked me to send the items to the addresses and on the schedule they provided. They gave me a lot of money. My mother was critically ill, and I desperately needed that money. I thought, since it wasn’t murder or arson, it wouldn’t be a serious crime, so I did it... Sixth Master, I honestly didn’t know she was your woman. If I had known, I would never have helped her..." Jamie wasn’t lying. His mother was indeed critically ill. Adrian knew that Jamie’s mother initially had no money for treatment but then suddenly came into a significant sum. At this thought, Adrian seethed. If only he hadn’t given Sienna so much money. Without it, she wouldn’t have been able to stir up so much trouble. Fresh chapters posted on noveⅼfire.net "Then how did she find you?" Adrian suddenly asked. "I... I don’t know..." Adrian was no fool. On the contrary, he was exceptionally sharp and intelligent; otherwise, he wouldn’t have clawed his way to his current position. However, Sienna’s abrupt disappearance had rattled him, throwing his thoughts into disarray. Only now, having calmed down somewhat, could he meticulously analyze the situation and pick up on many details he had previously overlooked. "Someone helped her escape, didn’t they?" Adrian approached, crouching in front of Jamie. He stared intently, his narrowed eyes glinting sharply, making it hard for the man to meet his gaze. Jamie kept his head bowed, whispering meekly, "I don’t know. I really don’t know anything... I’ll give you the rest of the jewelry, Sixth Master. Please, just let me go." "Still not telling the truth, are we?" Adrian signaled Tatu, who grabbed Jamie’s daughter and began to drag her out. Jamie’s daughter, seeming to realize what was happening, kicked and struggled against Tatu. Tatu wore an expression of utter helplessness. This whole drama of abducting a young girl—couldn’t someone else play this role? He was no villain, nor did he have any acting talent. Worried he would mess up Adrian’s plans, Tatu reluctantly picked up the girl. She clung desperately to the doorframe, crying, "Daddy, save me! Help me..." "Starry..." Jamie tried to stand, but his leg was broken; he couldn’t even crawl. "Sixth Master, please, spare my daughter! I really don’t know anything!" "Tatu, this girl is quite pretty. Aren’t you into young girls? Keep her company. Oh, right, her name is Starry. Go play with her..." You’re the one who’s into young girls, Tatu fumed internally, not me! You and your whole damned family! From the adjacent room, Starry’s heart-wrenching cries echoed, then abruptly ceased. Jamie’s psychological defenses shattered. But Adrian wasn’t finished yet. "My son is missing, yet you have your wife and children right here. How is that fair?" Adrian continued. "If I can’t find my son, I’ll make sure you never see yours again." "Sixth Master, please spare them! I’m begging you..." "Cut the child out of that woman’s belly. I want to see if it’s a boy or a girl..." "AHH..." The woman clutched her stomach, shrieked, and fainted. "Mama..." Cries filled the air, transforming the room into a scene from hell. Jamie looked at his wife, shouting, "Wife!" Walter Klein advanced towards the unconscious woman, knife in hand. The memory of his daughter’s cries, followed by that awful silence, echoed in Jamie’s ears. He didn’t know what they had done to Starry. Now, seeing the sharp, gleaming blade poised to plunge into his wife’s pregnant belly, Jamie finally broke. "I’ll talk!" he sobbed. "I’ll tell you everything! Please..."