Bill whispered, “It’s just shock and exhaustion. She’ll be fine after some rest.”
With the amount of fear and stress over the past two days, Echo had reached her limit. She’d never experienced anything like this before, and for someone else, the shock alone could’ve been fatal. The fact that Echo had only passed out now was impressive.
Ryan gave a slight nod and tried to stand up with Echo in his arms, but his legs gave out, and he sat back down.
Bill and Tiger quickly reached out to steady him.
Bill, calm as ever, said, “We’ve already sent someone to get the antidote. Don’t worry, Boss, it won’t have any lasting effect on your body.”
Even though Ryan had covered his mouth and nose as soon as possible, he’d still inhaled a small amount of the gas from being inside for so long. His mind was clear, but his body was weak, which was already a testament to his strong physique.
Bill and Tiger helped Ryan, still holding Echo, into a seat.
Adolph, who had been waiting in front, immediately asked, “How are you feeling? Is everything okay?”
Ryan gave a small shake of his head, and Adolph exhaled in relief, nodding. “Good. And what about Echo?”
Adolph had always found it curious why Ryan treated her differently, but now, seeing her courage and capability, he couldn’t help but be impressed. Looking at Echo, pale and asleep in Ryan’s arms, he asked out of concern.
“She’s fine,” Ryan replied softly, glancing down at Echo, still clutching his hand tightly in her sleep. After a brief pause, he turned her face toward his chest, shielding her from the others’ view.
Adolph raised an eyebrow with a mischievous grin but said nothing.
Just then, the communication device in front of them beeped, and Cobra’s voice came through, “Boss, Mr. Adolph, where are you?”
Having landed successfully, Cobra had noticed that both Ryan and Adolph’s planes were missing and switched channels to check.
Tiger immediately responded, “We’re behind. We’ll be there shortly. What’s the situation?” He increased the plane’s speed as he spoke, heading forward.
Hearing no emergencies, Cobra replied, “We’ve secured nine of the twelve transport planes, and six fighter jets… Wait, we’re one short?”
Cobra finally realized something was off.
“That one’s been destroyed,” Tiger said seriously. Since Ryan was weakened by the toxin, it was best for him not to speak, so Tiger answered on his behalf.
Cobra acknowledged with an “Oh” and continued, “Of the five remaining fighter jets, we’ve taken control of four.”
Adolph nodded and said, “Pick up the pace. Let’s finish this.”
Cobra sounded a bit more concerned as he added, “Boss, we’re approaching the Australian border. Radar shows three planes heading our way, and they’re trying to establish contact.”
Ryan, Adolph, and the others quickly understood that the buyers were arriving. Since they were still behind, their planes hadn’t shown up on radar yet.
Adolph paused briefly and said, “Patch them through.”
A voice came over the radio, “Who are you?”
They could faintly see the large fleet of planes ahead as the signal was patched through.
Adolph responded calmly, “Who are you?”
“You’re messing with my shipment?” A cold, harsh voice came through the communicator, clearly indicating the other side hadn’t made contact with the plane that had been seized yet and was aware of the situation.
Adolph chuckled lazily and said, “Wrong. We’re just reclaiming what’s rightfully ours.”
“What do you mean?”
Leaning on the control panel, Adolph replied casually, “Exactly what I said. If you’re buying goods, you should know the rules. Until it’s in your hands, it’s not yours. Whatever business I have with your seller is between us. Whoever took your money, you go deal with them.”
As soon as he finished speaking, three planes appeared on the radar, and within moments, they were visible to the naked eye.
The other party, clearly agitated, demanded, “You can settle whatever issues you have with your seller anytime, but why are you interfering with this shipment? What’s your endgame? Who are you, anyway? Don’t make me get nasty.”
Adolph burst out laughing at the threat, amused by the idea of them getting “nasty.”
“My goods were taken by your seller. This shipment belongs to me,” Ryan’s cold voice suddenly cut in.
Seeing this, Adolph stayed quiet.
“Your goods? Who are you?” The other side sounded momentarily confused but kept a cold tone.
“Ryan Dark,” came the simple response, but those two words sent a wave of confusion and commotion across the airwaves. Even through the communicator, they could hear the other side’s rising panic.
“Mr. Ryan.” After a brief period of chaos, the cold, angry voice returned, this time more controlled. “Mr. Ryan, if it’s you, then we can trust what you’re saying. But we’re in desperate need of this shipment, and now that it’s here, could you consider selling it to us directly? We can still negotiate the price.”
Ryan responded indifferently, “You’re buying, so you must know that such a large shipment of arms is only produced when there’s an order. If I sell to you, how am I supposed to deliver to my own buyer?”
Silence fell on the other side, the realization sinking in. They knew the rules. Small arms were produced all the time, but a shipment this size was only made when someone had already placed an order. Anyone in the arms trade would understand this.
After a brief pause, Ryan continued coolly, “Since your seller took your order, they’ll have to produce the equipment for you. I’m taking this shipment with me. If you’re unhappy with your seller breaching the contract, you can come to me next time.”
Adolph couldn’t help but smirk and raise an eyebrow at Ryan. Ryan was sabotaging their deal.
A transaction this large? Only the Street family would dare take that order. And with arms deals, the buyers and sellers were usually locked in. If a powerful buyer flipped on the Street family over this, it would mean more than just money for the Dark family.
Laughing, Adolph chimed in, “I can handle the transport for you. I guarantee you’ll never run into this kind of issue with me. Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself-I’m Adolph.”
After a moment of silence, the leader on the other side, voice still hard and cold, said, “We’ll be in touch with you both when the time comes.” With that, the three planes turned and quickly flew away.
Just as Ryan and Adolph were about to speak, an authoritative voice suddenly cut into the open channel, shouting, “Stop! Identify yourselves, or you’ll be considered enemy intruders and shot down without mercy.”