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Found

Her body froze, and her eyelashes trembled. Involuntarily, she took a step backwards.

"N-Now, it's not polite to point a gun at someone. If there's any issue you have with me, we can discuss. Shooting indiscriminately will only be wasting money, especially in this economy—"

Before she was able to carry on further, the bullet was shot. It missed her cheek by less than a centimeter, and she turned her head to see the metal being embedded into the wall.

Her heart fell into her stomach.

The cold metal gun was pressed against her forehead next, and she held her breath. Her eyes closed reflexively.

She could feel the man almost firing the gun. The trigger was being pulled back in an agonizingly slow speed as though the man found satisfaction in torturing her.

Adrianne didn't know whether or not to take this delay as a positive thing. She sincerely prayed in her heart to get rescued from this terrifying situation.

But before she could face death, her wish came true. Feeling the gun being shifted away, she immediately opened her eyes.

Her eyes widened when she saw that the man's hand was held and twisted. She cringed and squinted her eyes when she heard the sound of bone cracking.

She looked at the familiar face next.

"Michael, you are indeed a life saver!"

Relief spread across her face. The corner of her lips curled up to form a big smile. Michael's eyes indifferently swept over her.

Michael easily subdued the attacker. In a matter of few minutes, Michael and his team was able to get the situation under control. They tied up the attackers for further questioning.

The paramedics have arrived along with police. The police inquired about the situation, and Michael chatted with them.

Adrianne had zero clue on how the conversation went, but in the end, the police agreed to let the culprits be under Michael's care. Then again, it would be weird for Adrianne to be surprised now.

Now that everyone was out of danger, it was important for her to escape. If caught by Michael, she would be forced to return home. When she escaped from that prison, she vowed to never enter the dreadful place.

She pressed her body against the wall. Michael's men were keeping guard while Michael himself conversed with the police officer.

Because the men guarded the front door, that couldn't be an option. She slowly slipped into the kitchen. After that, the back door fell into her line of sight.

She hurriedly opened the door. Her feet stumped against a table's leg, bringing about a sharp pain. She cursed in her head at her clumsiness and sprinted from there.

There was no destination in her head, but she knew that she couldn't go back to her dingy apartment. There was high chances of them knowing it.

She randomly ran until she couldn't. She found herself standing in front of a river. The rays of bright sunlight fell on the water surface.

The river wasn't as the pretty as the one back home. It sparkled when the sunlight shone upon it, bearing a ethereal magnificence.

The sounds of the cars and machines running made the surroundings here noisy and unpleasant. But back there, greenery surrounded the river, and the smell of nature was present in the air.

A sense of nostalgia overwhelmed Adrianne.

It would be nice to get to see it again.

"That's should be enough of your endeavors, Miss Adrianne."

She was startled by Michael's voice. Her legs were faster than her thoughts. But before she could rush away, a hand was placed on her shoulder, locking her in her position.

"Don't make the matters difficult, Miss Adrianne. You should know when to give up."

His voice was devoid of emotions as always. It was as though he never had any personal feelings of himself.

And years of enduring him had solidified that point.

When he was first assigned to protect her, Adrianne showed enthusiasm towards being his friend. But later, she learned a lesson— the mark was still left on her— and knew that he could never be someone to pour out one's heart to.

The years just passed by with her tolerating his presence, and when she managed to get away from that gloomy place, she thought she would never have to face him again.

It made her feel a tinge of heartache. But that was negligible compared to the excitement felt by her.

Adrianne let out a groan. She slapped away his hand from her shoulder. She pressed her hand against her forehead. Her temper was only few seconds away from bursting.

"What's this fucking about? Didn't he promise to let me go then? Is he going back on his words now? This is, seriously!"

Adrianne stomped her feet on the ground.

"It's for your sake, Miss Adrianne. The times are restless. You have to return," he nonchalantly said.

"After I build a career here, you tell me to return? And you expect me to listen to you? At least give me a reason, a convincing one.

Not that for my sake bullshit. That man already declared I have no use to him. Now, he so frivolously changed his mind? What about me? Does my life matter to anyone?"

Adrianne slapped her chest aggressively. Her eyes turned red due to intense emotions, but the trained men showed no fluctuations.

She turned back and started to walk away when her shoulder was grabbed by one of Michael's men. This made her hold his hand and twist it with all of her strength.

She kicked on his leg and got him to kneel down. Her hazel eyes darkened due to anger. She glared down at him.

"Does it look like that I can be touched by lowly dogs as they wish to?" she spat out.

Adrianne hated acting condescending, but her rage made her the worst person in the room easily. And now, she was even considering the possibility of murder seriously. The rationality prevented her from acting up too much. Also, it was the fact that being brutal reminded her how she was related to that family.

She despised that.

She desperately wanted to hold on to her moral values, showing how she was nothing like that family.

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