Dorothy was at a loss and she kept shedding tears. The sweat and tears on her face intertwined, and the sadness in her eyes was like spring water. She murmured in a hoarse voice, “Benjamin, I think, something bad may have happened! If it’s not Germaine, then it has to be Belle.”
Benjamin was shocked. “Mrs. Scott, please don’t scare me! Mr. Scott left a few hours before us, and he is smart and nimble. He will be able to save Germaine and Miss Belle safely.”
“Let’s hope he can.”
Dorothy didn’t have the energy to say anything else after that. Fear and trepidation filled her heart, and she could only hope that Credence would be able to find them fast.
If something really happened to Belle or Germaine, she would not be able to live.
The road from Talco City to Mandalay Town was a long journey. Benjamin and another man in black took turns to drive. They only arrived at their destination when it was eight at night.
The road of the town was bad, and the car jumped so badly that Dorothy got fatigue. As soon as she got out of the car, she immediately clutched her stomach and retched under a coconut tree.
She was worried about Germaine and Belle’s safety, thus she did not eat much, and because she did not eat much, she had nothing to puke out either. She only spat some stomach acid, and the unspeakably bitter taste that passed her throat made her tear up.
Benjamin stood beside her, and his vigilant eyes looked around his surroundings. He quickly dialed Credence’s number when he did not notice anything unusual. In the end, unsure if Credence’s phone was out of battery or other reasons, but the phone did not go through.
After he thought about it, he called Marvin. He answered the call almost immediately. When he heard Benjamin said that he had brought Dorothy over, he scolded him, “What the actual f*ck, are you out of your mind? This place is about to turn into chaos. Why bring a weak woman like her over here?”
Benjamin was flustered by the shouting. He frowned and sighed helplessly, “Mr. Jules, she is already here. Am I supposed to send her back to Talco City again? I just called Mr. Scott, but I can’t get through to him. Can you get in touch with him?”
“Why should we call him? Credence has already entered the ventral zone of Jenciga. If he is not careful, he will die.” Marvin stared at the red dot that represented Credence’s movements on the screen. He cursed lowly once more and said with a cold face, “It’s more troublesome to send her back now. Whatever. I will send you the location right away. Bring everyone here.”
After he sent the address, Marvin was still worried. This was a drug-lord-filled place. Every day, fierce fights and gun shootings happened here, and a large number of casualties were innocent residents.
He thought for a split second, stood up, and called someone he trusted to keep an eye on Credence. After that, he ran out of the base and jumped into a green army jeep to meet Benjamin and the others.
They had only arrived at the town in less than fifteen minutes and Dorothy and Benjamin were already taken to a small white house in his base where they used it as a guesthouse.
The facilities in this place were simple. There was a kitchen, a bathroom, and a bedroom. There was no sofa at all, only the most basic tables, chairs, and a small and narrow bed.
Marvin had specially prepared this place for Dorothy, as she was the only woman around.
As for Benjamin and the other male bodyguards, they could only squeeze into a camp with the other group of soldiers.
“Thank you.”
Dorothy smiled gratefully at Marvin. Her dark, cold pupils were as calm as still water. “If there is anything I can help with, just tell me. Even though I am a woman, I am a mother too. As a mother, as long as I can save Belle and Germaine, I won’t be afraid of anything, not even death!”
Marvin stared at her and saw the determination and stubbornness in her face. He knew that this woman was as scary as Credence when she was stubborn.
In fact, these two were quite a good match for each other.
Marvin suddenly wanted to restore Credence’s image. He reached out and pointed to the vast mountain forest not far from the base. His serious wheat-colored face showed a righteous and worried look. “Dorothy, do you see that? That is an infamous place in Jenciga.”
“Credence takes the matter of your daughter being kidnapped by Rosalie, seriously. He rushed all the way here, brought my men into that place without resting for a second. He has been gone for almost three hours, but now, there is still no news at all… However, for people like us, no news is good news.”
“Before Credence left, he told me he won’t leave Jenciga until he has saved your daughter.”
“He won’t leave Jenciga until he has saved Belle?”
Dorothy was flustered. She could not help but repeat Marvin’s last sentence.
As she spoke, her eyes turned red, and her face was completely covered in tears.
What kind of mood did that man have when he left with those words?
He did not know that Belle was his own daughter. He only thought of Belle as her daughter, and that she would be sad if Belle was hurt or met with unfortunate accidents. Was that why he would risk his life to save her?
Credence, what on earth do you want?
Why couldn’t I understand you six years ago? Now, six years later, I still don’t understand you. Why?
“Please stay alive. All of you, please, all of you have to come back alive.”
Dorothy’s lips were trembling so badly that she did not make a sound when she spoke.
…
In the vehicle, Belle was heavily pushed out by Germaine, and her entire body was hanging on the opened windows of the vehicle. Her eyes got dizzy as the bus continued to shake.
She thought of what Germaine had told her, and she held back her fear. She stretched out her little hands and slowly climbed out. She moved her body out of the car with difficulty.
When her entire body was hanging in mid-air, she was so scared that she closed her beautiful blue eyes and slowly released her small hands that were hanging onto the window.
Plop!
A loud sound could be heard, and dust rose up.
Her tender little butt was the first to land on the pavement of potholes.
No matter how well-behaved she was, she was still just a little girl who was almost six years old.
The moment she fell to the ground, Belle could not help but cry out like a kitten, “Mommy, boohoo, my butt hurts so much!”
Belle wept for a while, after that, she slowly got up from the ground and rubbed her buttocks. It did not feel so painful anymore. She thought of what Germaine told her, and recalled that she was told to find a place to hide first.
However, the road was empty, and there was nowhere for her to hide. She could not even see anything in front of her.
Belle raised her little hands to wipe away her tears. She tilted her head and thought for a while. After that, she pursed her small lips and walked towards the opposite direction.
She walked for a long time. On the road ahead of her, she noticed dust flying everywhere, and there were several luxury cars in black and white driving towards her.
Those cars drove faster than lightning and they looked like they were about to run over Belle.
Belle got so scared the moment she saw a car, that she forgot to dodge or escape. She only stood in the middle of the road and gasped. She was so scared that tears flew out of her eyes.
“Mommy, I’m so scared!”