?Chapter 1520:
“What?” Rosanna shot a nce at the chaotic street outside, muttered a sharp curse, and let out a frustrated sigh. It seemed she wouldn’t be leaving today.
“Fine,” she said after a pause. “Find the best hotel near the airport. I’ll stay there. Inform me the moment things reopen.”
“Understood, Mrs. Nelson.”
The car started and slowly merged into traffic. Rosanna failed to notice that an unremarkable ck sedan fell in quietly behind them, maintaining a careful distance.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the desert of a foreignnd, the moment the live broadcast came to an abrupt end, the door to the room where Kolton was being held clicked open.
Kolton stiffened. He assumed someone hade to deliver food—the deal had just been reached, after all. But something was off. The door stood open, yet no one entered.
“Hey!” he shouted. “Where’s my food? We had an agreement! What the hell is going on?”
He cursed a few more times, but no one responded. Silence swallowed the space around him.
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Gathering his nerve, Kolton stepped forward and pulled the door wider. It creaked open to reveal a long, dim corridor illuminated only by the faint green glow of emergency lights. He leaned out and scanned the hallwaypletely empty. An uneasy feeling settled in his chest.
He didn’t rush out. Instead, he turned back to nce at the camera mounted in the corner. To his shock, the red indicator light—proof that his every move had been monitored—was gone. The camera had been shut off.
Kolton’s heart lurched. Had the kidnappers fled?
Starving and weak, his stomach clenched painfully. He found it hard to believe they would simply abandon him. But there was only one exnation that made sense: those fools must have finally confirmed his identity after reporting back to their superiors, then panicked and run, too frightened to face the consequences.
“Bastards! You’ll never get another cent from me. Never!” he cursed through clenched teeth, even as a wave of relief crept in. As long as they were gone, he was safe.
Moving carefully, Kolton stepped out of the room and headed toward the faint light at the far end of the corridor, every step cautious, his senses alert for traps. But the farther he went, the more certain he became that his guess was right. The basement was empty, the only sound the wind moaning through exposed pipes. The ce had beenpletely abandoned.
“Goddamned idiots!” he cursed again.
Just as he was about to search for an exit, a familiar, tearful voice suddenly echoed from somewhere ahead.
“Kolton, is that you? Kolton?”
The voice carried from down the corridor. It was Jimmie.
“It’s me!” Kolton answered immediately, relief and excitement spilling into his voice.
Momentster, the two men—both unkempt and exhausted—found each other at the end of the hallway. Leaning on one another for support, they made their way outside together.
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