Chapter 0086
Fourteen hours later, at the capital airport of N country.
The crew bid farewell to two distinguished guests as they disembarked from the plane.
Michael, patting his chest and holding his back, trudged along, “I must have been out of my mind to agree to come with you. My back is about to break!”
Upon looking up, Michael couldn’t help himself, “Your back hurts too?”
Ethan, leaning against the glass door at the entryway, smiled wryly as he responded, “No, my back doesn’t hurt, it’s just a bit sore.”
“…Bro, is there even a difference?”
“A world of difference,” Ethan said as he stretched. “Mine will get better with rest, but yours is sickness. You need treatment.”
“Get lost!”
“Sister-in-law.”
Just after her meeting at the airport, Madison was about to check on the plane when Amelia caught up with her.
Madison had already learned to tune out her ‘sister-in-law’ title,”
Hmm?”
“Don’t rush off. Let’s grab something to eat. They’ve got a famous snack stand here,” Amelia suggested.
Reflecting on her time in N country, Madison
nothing but stay in the hotel.
calized she had done
+25 BONUS
“Sounds good. Where’s Jessica?”
Amelia, ever so considerate, said, “I’ll message her.”
The three women quickly met up and headed to an airport shop to buy snacks. M…
Madison was the first to make a purchase, with the others behind her placing their orders.
She examined the treat that resembled a candied hawthorn stick yet wasn’t, pondering over it.
She was never much for sweets.
“Why aren’t you eating?” Amelia, having placed her order, walked over.
Her order wasn’t ready yet; it would take a while.
Madison twirled the stick in her fingers, “I don’t like sweets much.”
“I heard President Grant has a sweet tooth. If he weren’t too far away,
you could bring this back for him to try,” Amelia said.
Just as she finished speaking, her order number was called, and s
hurried to collect it.
Madison looked at the snack in her hand, murmuring to herself, “For Ethan? Would he even like something this sweet?”
No sooner had she muttered this than her vision darkened, and a hand covered her mouth, yanking her backward.
Madison’s heart skipped a beat as terror and panic flooded her mind.
Her captor gave her no chance to cry out, swiftly whisking her away.
“Shh,” a particularly raspy voice whispered.
Madison felt something pressed against her back and dared not
+25 BONUS
resist.
But this was an airport!
Could security really be this lax?
In broad daylight, at the airport, such audacity?!
Holding her breath, Madison nodded silently, indicating her willingness to cooperate, just as she had with Ethan.
Whoever was bold enough to do this must be confident, and she
wasn’t about to act rashly.
When she was pushed against a wall, Madison’s nerves suddenly eased.
Because…
She recognized a scent.
A familiar fragrance.
Before she could ponder any further, her captor spoke fluently i local tongue, “This is a hold-up.”
Madison didn’t understand the language well but got the gist and
raised her hands, signaling the robber to search her.
Expecting a pat-down, she was surprised when the hand covering her mouth withdrew, replaced by a whisper at her ear-
“May I have what you’re holding?”
That voice…
Madison’s heartbeat surged.
Then, the blinding hand vanished, and alongside the returning light…
There was Ethan’s face, grinning as he took a bite of the treat she
+25 BONUS
held.
Ethan frowned, “It is a bit too sweet.
Madison’s breathing was erratic.
After a long pause, she couldn’t hold back and slapped his shoulder.
“Ethan, you scared me to death!”
Ethan chuckled nonstop, “I’ve warned you about safety. Why didn’t you carry something for self-defense?”
Madison glared at him, her face still pale.
After a moment, Ethan’s smile faded, and he stepped forward,
wrapping her in his arms. He soothed her gently with his hand. caressing her head.
“I was wrong to scare you,” he said. “Don’t worry.”
“Didn’t you consider Evel was nearby? If someone approached you, wouldn’t she intervene?”
Madison finally relaxed her voice, “I didn’t have time to think that
much.”
Having never encountered a kidnapping, she naturally panicked at the
first encounter.
Realizing something, Madison asked, “How are you even here?”
Ethan leaned back against the wall with her, “I came to see you.”
“Travel nearly ten thousand miles just to see me?” Madison asked,
bewildered.
Ethan finished off the sweet treat in a few bites, despite its cloying sweetness making him want to cry. He raised an eyebrow in question, “Is that a problem?”
+25 BONUS
Madison didn’t believe that was the reason, assuming he had.
business to attend to.
Unexpectedly, Ethan leaned in closer, seeking a whisper, “Are you not happy?”
“Huh?”
He was forthright, “I want to know if you’re happy to see me.”
“Don’t brush me off.”
Under Ethan’s unyielding gaze, Madison lowered her eyes and murmured softly, “Yes.”
As a group of new hotel guests arrived, Ethan frowned, “What? I didn’t
hear…”
“I’m happy.”
Madison looked up at him, eyes clear, “Ethan, I am happy you came to see me. But don’t do this again. It’s too far, the journey is dangerous, you…”
She hesitated, her face burning, “Just wait for me at home.”
+25 BONUS