Chapter 9: Ten Minutes
1235 Words
The countdown continued on the screen timer:
**09:44… 09:43… 09:42…**
My heart was pounding so fast, I thought it was about to explode out of my chest. The hospital corridor seemed too bright, too noisy, and too crowded to be anywhere near something as frightening as this.
“They told me to come alone,” I stammered softly.
Adrian didn’t even flinch. He held onto Daniel’s collar with all the force of holding onto a piece of cloth.
“That message wasn’t an invitation,” Adrian said calmly. “It was bait.”
Daniel coughed, and his face flushed.
“Adrian—please—”
Adrian clamped down harder on the collar.
“Surviving,” Adrian corrected.
I took a step closer to him, reaching out with trembling fingers to grab his arm.
“Adrian—stop. We can’t just sit here,” I begged.
Adrian’s eyes flickered to mine. For half a second, I saw a glimmer of softness in them—enough to make my chest hurt.
Then it hardened again.
“Tell me where to go,” Adrian commanded.
Daniel gulped and stared at the ground.
“I—I don’t have a fixed address. They sent me the information at the last minute. They—”
Adrian slammed Daniel back into the wall.
The noise startled me.
Several nurses turned to look, puzzled. A guard moved toward us, but one of Adrian’s men blocked his view with quiet efficiency.
Daniel choked.
“Okay—okay! I’ll call! Just—don’t—”
“Do it,” Adrian commanded in a low tone.
Daniel dialled the number with shaking hands. I watched him dial with all my being because it mattered—to me; to my mother.
The phone rang once.
Twice.
Then someone picked it up.
Daniel’s face paled.
“H-Hello,” Daniel said quickly. “I’m with them. I’m with—”
Daniel’s eyes met mine.
Then the call ended.
Daniel stared at his screen, panting.
“They hung up,” Daniel said.
Adrian’s jaw stiffened.
“Try again.”
Daniel called again—and again.
No answer.
The timer continued ticking.
**08:58… 08:57…**
My legs weakened.
“They’re not answering,” I whispered. “They’re doing this on purpose.”
Adrian’s eyes were frosty.
“They’re watching.”
Suddenly, I felt as though every camera, every corner, and every stranger’s gaze was on me.
I turned in a slow circle.
Nothing appeared unusual.
Which only made things worse.
Adrian released Daniel’s collar, but only long enough to twist Daniel’s wrist painfully.
Daniel yelped.
“Ah! Adrian—”
“Give me something useful,” Adrian said. “A name. A number. A pattern. Something.”
Daniel shook his head rapidly.
“I swear I don’t know their names. They use burner phones. They meet in different cars. I—”
Adrian leaned forward.
“How did you get that picture of her?”
Daniel hesitated, then his mouth opened and closed again. Daniel’s eyes darted away.
My stomach plummeted.
“You lied,” I whispered.
Daniel’s shoulders slumped.
“Nora—listen—”
“Stop,” I snapped, tears pouring.
“Nora—I’m telling you the truth! I didn’t think they’d kidnap your mother,” Daniel protested.
Adrian turned to Daniel.
“That message wasn’t a suggestion,” Adrian said calmly. “It was bait.”
Daniel flinched.
I wiped my cheek harshly.
“Adrian, we need to leave,” I begged.
Adrian’s eyes remained locked on Daniel.
“He’s taking us,” Adrian declared.
“They said I had to go by myself,” I repeated, panic growing inside me.
Adrian’s gaze turned to mine.
“You’re not going by yourself,” Adrian said firmly.
I shook my head.
“They’ll kill her.”
Adrian’s eyes narrowed, then he turned cold again.
“They’ll kill her if you go,” Adrian said calmly. “If you go, they’ll have both of you.”
My breath rattled.
“Then what should we do?”
Adrian’s thumb brushed along my side, slowly and steadily, even as chaos swirled around us.
“We’ll do what they don’t expect,” Adrian whispered.
My heart skipped a beat.
“What does that mean?”
Adrian’s eyes drifted down to my lips.
“Lie,” he murmured.
Heat shot through my chest—terrible timing, terrible place—but my body betrayed me anyway when Adrian’s mouth moved closer to mine.
“Adrian—”
He kissed me.
Hard.
Possessively.
Not gently.
A kiss that felt like claiming and promising.
I wrapped my hands around his suit automatically. I hated that I needed him in that moment. I hated that fear made me cling to him.
Then he pulled back, his forehead touching mine.
“Listen to me,” he whispered. “You’ll do exactly what I tell you.”
I swallowed, my body shaking.
“Okay.”
Adrian spun around.
“Get the car to the back entrance,” Adrian ordered.
One of his men nodded and left.
I stared at Adrian.
“Adrian, what’s the plan?”
Adrian’s eyes remained locked on mine.
“We make them believe you’re travelling by yourself,” Adrian said.
My stomach twisted.
“How?”
Adrian’s voice dropped to a whisper. “You go to their meeting spot. Outside, you appear to be alone. Inside, you’re not.”
Fear and relief clashed within me at once.
“And if they frisk me?” I asked softly.
Adrian’s jaw stiffened.
“They won’t touch you.”
My voice cracked.
“You can’t guarantee that.”
Adrian’s eyes turned cold.
“I can,” Adrian said. “Because if anyone touches you...”
He didn’t finish the statement.
He didn’t need to.
I could see what he meant in his eyes.
Daniel cleared his throat.
“Whoa—is this intense.”
Adrian turned to Daniel, his eyes cold as knives.
“Be quiet,” Adrian commanded.
Daniel fell silent.
We moved quickly.
Adrian’s men surrounded us, leading us through a rear hallway. The hospital air felt cooler now—as if it sensed us.
As we reached the back entrance, Adrian steered me into the shadows.
He pressed his forehead to mine for a moment.
Then he kissed me again—a slower, deeper kiss, as if he was drawing strength from me.
My body shook.
“Adrian...” I whispered.
Adrian’s lips brushed against my ear.
“When we rescue your mother,” Adrian whispered, “you’re going to stop pretending you don’t feel this.”
My breath caught.
Then a loud crash sounded outside.
A sharp crack—metal on metal.
A scream.
Adrian’s head jerked upward.
One of Adrian’s guards stumbled in, clutching his side, blood spreading across his shirt.
My heart dropped.
“They’ve arrived,” the guard gasped. “They...they tracked us—”
Behind him, a new figure entered the doorway.
A nurse.
But not a nurse.
I saw the gun in her hand.
And when she smiled at me, my blood chilled.
Because I recognised her face from the rooftop bar.
**Vanessa.**
Daniel’s “girlfriend.”
She raised the gun slightly, a sly grin on her face.
“Hi, Nora,” Vanessa said sweetly. “Your mom sends her best wishes.”
Then she pointed directly at my chest.
And Adrian stepped in front of me without hesitation.
- Writer
