Reading the old matriarch''s message, Natalie managed a small smile. She never underestimated her enemies. Marshall''s arrogance had been his downfall, and she hoped his grandmother wouldn''t make the same mistake.


    Finally, the traffic began to move. Natalie changednes and merged onto the beltway, her heart pounding with worry for Luna.


    Beside her, Sebastian felt a slight difort from the high speed, but he noted that Natalie''s driving was steady, free of any sudden, jarring brakes. He nced over at her. Her cool gaze and fair skin were captivating under the moonlight. This version of Natalie felt like a stranger. For the two years she was by his side, she had been so... ordinary. Her days were filled with cooking, and he''d alwayse home to find her busy in the kitchen. But he had to admit, he wasn''tfortable with this new Natalie. He missed the old one, the woman whose eyes had been filled with nothing but him. She used to wait up every night with dinner or ate snack, knowing he rarely ate at business functions because a home-cooked meal was waiting for him. In the six months since she''d left, his appetite had worsened, and his stomach frequently ached. It was strange, he thought. When she was ordinary, he found her in and uninteresting. Now that she was formidable, he found himself wishing she would go back to being that simple woman who adored him. The warm glow from the kitchen light on so many nights had been afort to his lonely heart.


    "Natalie,e home with me tonight," he said impulsively.


    She was still trying to figure out how to rescue Luna, and his sudden words ignited her anger. "No. Now be quiet and don''t distract me."


    As the GPS showed her closing in on Luna''s location, her anxiety mounted. Finally, she saw a cluster of police cars up ahead. She quickly pulled over, jumped out of the car, and ran toward the scene, where Keith was waiting.


    "Keith, where''s Luna?" she asked breathlessly.


    Keith pointed to a nearby abandoned building. "They hung her from the top of that unfinished building. The rescue team is already getting her down. Don''t worry."


    Natalie looked up and saw a slender figure swaying in the cold wind. Her face flushed with rage. Thankfully, the rescue team was carefully lowering Luna to safety.


    Natalie and Keith raced into the derelict building. They found Luna on the fourth floor.


    "Luna!" Natalie rushed to her side. The suburban night was already frigid, and Luna''s hands and feet were like ice Natale grasped hers hand, looking at her pale face. "Luna..."


    Shivering from the cold, Luna shook her head, her voice trembling. "I''m


    fine. Don''t worry. I uploaded the 1.2


    video to the cloud. Did you get "


    Natalie nodded. “I did. Thanks to you, Marshall will be okay."


    Luna smiled. That was all that mattered.


    Natalie''s heart ached. “You silly girl, how can you smile? Doesn''t it hurt?"


    "It doesn''t hurt. My hands still work. It''s just a pulled muscle in my arm. I''ll be fine after a few days of rest."


    Just as Natalie was about to ask how she was discovered, a police officer approached them.


    "Ms. Sanders, do you remember the faces of the people who abducted you?"


    Luna shook her head. “They put a bag over my head as soon as I left the building. I have no idea who brought me here.”


    "Alright," the officer said. "We''ll


    check the surveince footage from the surrounding area. You should go


    to a hospital to get checked out.


    We''ll call you when we have an


    update on the investigation."


    Natalie helped Luna leave, telling Keith to go ahead so Sebastian wouldn''t discover


    his identity.