“Fire!” Cobra shouted.
The Dark Family members, who had been ready, immediately launched a barrage from different positions. The bombs exploded in the woods, causing massive damage, though not enough to wipe out all the mutated creatures. But the explosions sparked a chain reaction, lighting up the entire forest, which had already been drenched in oil. Within seconds, the flames shot high into the sky.
Echo had been running too fast. She sprinted straight toward Ryan, unable to stop herself in time. Ryan reached out, grabbed her arm, and yanked her toward him.
Echo was panting heavily, but she glanced back at the raging fire and said, “That’s insane. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“There’s a lot you haven’t seen,” Ryan replied coldly.
Echo didn’t respond, focused on catching her breath. As she turned around, she saw the entire forest was now an inferno.
The towering trees, with the sea breeze fueling the flames, had quickly turned into a raging wildfire. Luckily, they were a little ways away from the woods, and with the sea nearby, they didn’t have to worry about the fire spreading faster due to the wind. The heat was intense, though, enough to almost roast someone alive.
Through the blazing flames, Echo saw numerous figures jumping through the fire. Some of the faster mutants actually made it out of the flames, running toward them with their bodies covered in fire. Their eyes, glowing in the inferno, were cold and merciless.
Bang!
Bang!
The sharp sounds of gunshots rang out.
The fiery creatures stopped in their tracks just a few feet away, their white, razor-sharp teeth glowing in the red light.
“These things are vicious,” Echo muttered under her breath, frowning.
Before she could finish her sentence, one of the mutated creatures, shot but still charging forward, crashed at Ryan’s feet. Without looking, Ryan lifted his foot and stomped down hard. Echo heard the sickening crack of bones breaking.
Amid the raging fire, thick smoke billowed into the sky, and the entire forest became a massive furnace, burying these creatures that never should have existed.
It was a slaughter-one-sided and absolute. No matter how fierce, how dominant, how invincible these creatures were, when faced with Ryan and his team, their end was inevitable.
The Dark Family, who’d been shaken by the danger over the past couple of days, were now filled with frustration. All their pent-up anger was unleashed on these vicious animals. They left none alive, eradicating them completely.
The thick smoke rose higher and higher, drifting over the Pacific. The fire, which had surrounded almost half the island, reached the sky. Anyone within dozens or even hundreds of miles could see the place engulfed in flames, with the dark smoke carried away by the sea breeze, becoming a distinctive mark on the island.
As the fire raged on, the sound of planes buzzing filled the air, coming from all directions.
Echo and the others looked up to see military aircraft-Dark Family’s military planes.
Hawaii-a beautiful Pacific island, now greeted by more military planes than it had ever seen before under the bright sun.
“I finally got a good night’s sleep,” Echo said, after Tiger found her.
As soon as they arrived on the Hawaiian islands, she collapsed into bed and slept soundly. When she woke up, it was already the next morning.
“I’m so hungry. Where did Boss go?” she groaned, feeling the pangs of hunger.
Not seeing Ryan, she rubbed her stomach and stepped out of the room.
The bright sunshine, the vibrant world, the fragrant flowers, and the humid air-it was all so beautiful, so comfortable. Echo inhaled deeply, appreciating what felt like real life.
“Miss Echo, please let me know if you need anything,” a golden-haired man greeted her respectfully outside the door.
Echo asked, “Where are Boss and the others?”
“Boss and Mr. Adolph are in the backyard, Miss Echo.”
When Echo heard that Adolph was also here, she realized it had indeed stirred up quite a bit of attention. She nodded and motioned for him to lead the way.
A backyard-it sounded like a nice place. She had never heard of Ryan spending time anywhere other than the main house, so the garden was worth checking out.
As they got closer to the garden, Echo heard Adolph’s exaggerated voice, saying, “Ryan, you’re so brave! My idol, truly my idol!” His voice was playful, but also sincere.
Turning the corner of the hallway, Echo was momentarily stunned by the sight in front of her. Sunlight filtered through the treetops, casting golden beams of light onto the ground and everything around them. It created an almost ethereal atmosphere.
Ryan, Adolph, Hawk, and the others were seated on stone benches in the garden, surrounded by a sea of colorful, vibrant flowers. The fragrance was intoxicating, and the dewdrops on the petals sparkled in the sunlight, casting a pure, crystalline glow. The beauty of the scene softened the heaviness of the bloodshed they’d all been through, filling the air with calm and tranquility.
“What are you daydreaming about?” a cold voice snapped, breaking Echo’s reverie.
She blinked in surprise, snapping back to reality to see Ryan frowning and glaring at her. That brief moment of beauty instantly vanished, and Echo raised an eyebrow. Maybe she was imagining things-finding beauty and tranquility in people like Ryan and Adolph was about as likely as finding daintiness in an elephant.
“I’m just wondering how you got the idea to be out here,” she said, lifting an eyebrow and walking over to Ryan.
Ryan shot a dark look at Adolph, who just grinned back. “It’s such a lovely morning-you can’t waste it indoors. You’ve got to learn to enjoy life, lazybones,” Adolph teased, his voice laced with a mix of amusement and good spirits.
Echo sat down right beside Ryan, grabbed the breakfast in front of him, and started eating, throwing Adolph a casual look. “You seem pretty happy?” she remarked, her tone neutral without any hidden meaning.
But Adolph, being who he was, picked up on it right away. He chuckled, looking at Echo with a smirk. “Don’t think you can stir up trouble between us. I’m just glad everything’s alright with Ryan.”
Echo knew right then that Adolph was a real smooth operator-there wasn’t much he couldn’t figure out. But she didn’t mind, barely raising an eyebrow, and continued eating.
Adolph glanced over at Ryan, noticing he seemed unfazed by Echo helping herself to his food. Adolph raised an eyebrow, smiling slyly at Ryan. “Looks like I might’ve missed some good drama here.”
“You did,” Bill said with a chuckle, strolling over to join them.
“Oh?” Adolph’s voice went up an octave as he leaned an elbow on the stone table, chin propped in his hand, looking at Echo with exaggerated, teasing admiration.
Echo, however, was unbothered. She calmly finished off the food on her plate and, as if she’d only just thought of it, looked over at Ryan and asked, “Boss, have you eaten?” She’d completely ignored Adolph’s antics.
“What do you think?” Ryan muttered, glancing down at the untouched food Echo had swooped in on.
Echo gave an awkward grin, then, without missing a beat, picked up an untouched piece and held it out to him.
Ryan frowned and said in a low voice, “Just eat it yourself.”
She shrugged, remembering Ryan’s typical bossy ways, and popped it into her mouth without hesitation.
Adolph, feeling completely ignored, chuckled with a shake of his head. “Ryan, you’re spoiling her! Better watch out, or she’ll be impossible to handle.”
Echo shot him a glare. “Seriously? Do you even know what ‘spoiling’ means? Which eye of yours saw any ‘spoiling’ here?”
The idea of calling Ryan “spoiling” gave her the chills. Even if she was the one on the receiving end, she found it hard to believe.
Ryan, spoil her? That wasn’t just doubtful-it was downright unbelievable.
Ryan also gave Adolph an irritated look. He did whatever he wanted, all based on his own mood. If Echo wanted to eat his food and he didn’t mind, then she could have it. Why not? It was his choice, even if, in the past, no one would dare touch his food.
Seeing Echo look at Adolph like he was a fool, Hawk shook his head and said, “Mr. Adolph, you should be careful.” Though the comment seemed vague, Adolph understood it perfectly.
Adolph just nodded with a smile and replied, “I may not be able to deal with it, but I can certainly avoid it.”
“Too bad for you that you can’t avoid what you always insist on messing with,” Bill chimed in as he sat down, unable to hide his grin, clearly in a good mood.
Adolph laughed. “You guys know me too well,” he said, still chuckling.
Echo glanced at the three of them and asked, “You guys are really happy today, huh?”
Hawk nodded. “Yeah, it’s worth celebrating.”
Echo raised an eyebrow at Adolph, her unspoken question obvious.
Adolph laughed. “Wouldn’t you be happy to meet someone you thought had a 99% chance of not existing? Surviving that mess is definitely something to be glad about.”
Echo finished her breakfast and glanced at Adolph. “The Street family, right?”