Chapter 188: Secretly Arrange a Boat
“I don’t care about your grand principles, and I don’t accept them either,” Paige glared at him, her lips tinged a deep red like cinnabar, proud and defiant. Her voice was hoarse, as if her throat had been torn apart.
“How dare you!” One of the subordinates, unable to tolerate her words any longer, picked up another pill and walked toward Paige.
“Wait.” Rafael snapped back to reality and stopped his subordinate, his voice deep. “That’s enough for today.”
“She can still talk.”
The subordinate frowned. Usually, a single pill would cause someone to be in unbearable pain, nearly fainting. Yet this woman had taken two and was still able to speak and even defy the president.
“Too much is too much.”
Rafael looked at Paige, who stood before him. “Paige, I’ll let you off for now, but tomorrow I’ll give you four pills. Think it over carefully.”
With that, Rafael gave her a deep look before turning to leave.
A uniformed subordinate handed Paige a glass of water, standing before her as he said, “No one in Gangnam Hall has ever taken four pills before. We don’t even know what the effects might be. I advise you to confess; at least you won’t have to die so painfully.”
“…”
Paige took a couple of sips, the water mixing with her blood in her throat, creating a bitter taste that was indescribable.
As she savored the taste in her mouth, sweat fell from her eyelashes like tears.
The man roughly grabbed her chin to force her to drink, his strength harsh. Suddenly, Paige recalled the scene of Enrico coaxing her to drink ginger tea. It was just a bowl of ginger tea, yet he would list a hundred benefits, and when giving her medicine, he would peel the sugar and feed it to her to avoid any bitterness.
In the end, she licked her lips, finding this taste even more unbearable.
Paige couldn’t help but let out a bitter smile.
It turns out, going from luxury to simplicity is this difficult.
…
There was nearly a ten-hour time difference between A Country and T Country.
As night fell in A Country, T Country was in the darkest hours before dawn.
The sky above the hotel was pitch black, not a single star in sight.
The music from the fountain had stopped, leaving only the sound of the water jets rising and falling, splashing like fish before silently returning to the water.
Enrico sat on a swing nearby, his long legs spread apart, his entire figure shrouded in the silent night.
He fiddled with a matchbox in his hand. Since the incident, he had gone from initial rage to a calm that was almost unnerving. Even the messages he sent to Jaden were composed.
His phone lay beside him, the screen lit, displaying the latest message he had sent to Jaden-
**[Enrico: How is she now?]**
A simple, calm inquiry.
On the other end, Jaden seemed to struggle for a long time before finally calling.
Enrico glanced at the name on the screen, yet he didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he patiently waited for the match to burn down to his fingertips, the heat searing his nerves before he tossed it aside.
He lifted the phone to his ear, and Jaden’s guilty voice came through, “Boss.”
“How is she now?” Enrico asked the same question as in his message, his voice low and steady.
Jaden was silent for a long moment, perhaps unable to believe how calm Enrico was. Finally, he replied with difficulty, “She… she’s at Gangnam Hall.”
“Gangnam Hall.”
Enrico repeated the name calmly, his tone flat, almost indifferent. “What kind of punishment has she endured?”
Jaden couldn’t bring himself to answer directly and instead said urgently, “Mr. Gustin, this is the path Miss chose herself. She didn’t want to drag you into this. From Wind Island to Rose Estate, you’ve always controlled her, never giving her true freedom. Perhaps it’s time to let go.”
Jaden wasn’t trying to shirk responsibility, but in this situation, only by bringing up Paige could he help Enrico come to terms with it.
“Did she tell you she hates me for never giving her freedom?” Enrico’s voice grew even deeper.
The night grew darker.
On the other end, Jaden didn’t know what to say, but Enrico didn’t press the issue. He continued, his tone indifferent, “What kind of punishment has she endured?”
“Boss…”
“Speak.” Enrico’s tone was calm, allowing no room for evasion.
Jaden was silent again for a long time before finally answering, with immense difficulty, “When I left, Miss was barely holding on, but from what I could tell, the president might be planning to use that drug.”
“Oh.”
TP1314, the drug Gangnam Hall uses to deal with tough cases. He had once considered testing it on Jeremy.
Enrico responded without surprise, “How many days does Rafael intend to torture her?”
“I don’t know,” Jaden answered honestly.
It probably wouldn’t exceed three days.
Three days. If he didn’t return by then, she’d be dead.
Enrico held the phone, his eyes staring into the boundless night, his voice cold and composed. “Apply pressure on Rafael. Tell him if I don’t return, he can forget about carrying on.”
This command was futile.
If Jaden were willing to listen, they wouldn’t be at this point.
Jaden, tormented by guilt and sorrow, finally said, “Mr. Gustin, once this is over, I’ll personally welcome you back. I’ll accept whatever punishment you see fit.”
This meant he was unwilling.
Enrico’s expression remained unchanged, as if he expected nothing different. His slender fingers tightened slightly around the phone.
After a moment, he let out a cold laugh. “Jaden, you hold a position second only to me in the Gustin Group. Every time I go abroad, the domestic network is entirely at your disposal, just in case.”
“Boss…” Jaden’s voice trembled.
“No powerful family would fail to guard against even their most trusted subordinates,” Enrico remarked.
Hearing this, Jaden’s face paled. Could it be that the boss also had something to use against him, something that could destroy him?
He was still thinking about it when he heard Enrico say, “But with you, I didn’t.”
That’s why Jaden and Rafael had this opportunity to leave him stranded abroad.
“…” Upon hearing this, Jaden’s heart twisted in pain, the guilt overwhelming. “Boss, you’ve worked hard for years to build everything you have today. I don’t want you to lose it all in an instant.”
“Is that so?” Enrico asked, his tone light.This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.
“Mr. Gustin, do you have any message for Miss? I can take it to her,” Jaden’s voice was choked with emotion. He truly felt he had let Mr. Gustin down, but he had no choice.
“I want to speak to her on the phone, and I’ll decide the time,” Enrico ordered calmly, sitting on the swing with a slight hunch, “Take a jar of candy with you, and bring in that mutt she likes.”
“Alright, I understand.” Jaden could no longer hold back his emotions.
He even thought it might be better to just let Mr. Gustin return, but the price of that decision was too terrifying to consider.
“That’s it, then.”
Enrico abruptly ended the call.
The night was thick and impenetrable.
The fountain rose and fell silently.
A subordinate approached, looking around before spotting Enrico in the dark. He steeled himself and reported, “Mr. Gustin, we’ve tried everything, but it’s like hitting a brick wall. There’s no way in.”
They even considered having Mr. Gustin assume a different identity and sneak back into the country, but they were stopped before even reaching the airport.
The number of people around the hotel had noticeably increased, likely under orders from the president and Jaden to keep an eye on him.
Even though they had cleared the area immediately, once this strategy was discovered, all flights from T Country to A Country were halted, including those with connecting flights in other countries.
The president must have paid a considerable price to keep Mr. Gustin abroad this time.
“…” Enrico had waited in this hotel for fifteen hours, and all he got was his subordinates’ inability to break through.
He could wait no longer.
Fifteen hours was his limit.
Enrico glanced down at his hand, opening and closing his fingers, before giving a cold command. “Secretly arrange a boat.”
“A boat?” The subordinate was momentarily stunned. “What kind of boat?”
A boat? Even a ferry wouldn’t get them out; everything was under strict control.
Enrico sat there, his long lashes lifting slightly, dark shadows swirling in his eyes. His lips parted-
“A smuggler’s boat.”