Chapter 94

Josie’s head whipped to the side; her mind was buzzing, and her ears were ringing so loudly she couldn’t hear a thing for a moment. All she knew was that they dragged her back to the front of the warehouse and shoved her onto a filthy old mattress. Then the guys started shouting at each other.

Josie screamed, making them freeze for a split second. Seizing the moment, Josie darted away, whipped out an acupuncture needle, and pressed it to her own neck. She said, “Stay back! Take one more step, and I’ll end my life right here.

“I know you’re just in this for the cash. You don’t actually want to kill me. But if I die, there’s no way you’ll get away with it. How much did they pay you? Tell me the number, and I’ll give you double!”

Someone said something, but Josie couldn’t catch a word of it. She just stared at them, her heart pounding, watching their every move.

A man said, “Boss, this girl’s too feisty. Maybe we should just quit it. I don’t want to end up with a dead body on our hands.”

Another man asked, “Is she really gonna pay double? Should we give it a shot?”

The guys started arguing again; this time, it got really intense. They even started shoving each other. Josie still couldn’t make out what they were yelling about. Her head was pounding, and she was about to lose it.

The man with the mustache lunged at her, snatched the needle from her hand, and started tearing at her clothes. “I'm not letting you off tonight. How dare you stab me with that needle!” he snarled. She hit the back of her head against the wall and passed out again.

At the same time, the wail of police sirens echoed from somewhere nearby.

When Josie woke up again, she was lying in a hospital bed. The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was Delilah and Sean’s faces.

“Professor Wilcourt, Sean,” She tried to sit up, but Delilah gently pushed her back down.

Delilah said, “Stay still. The doctor said you have a mild concussion. You can’t get out of bed for now.”

Josie nodded. It seemed like she could finally hear again, but there was still a dull ache in her face and head.

“Did they catch those guys?” Josie asked. The moment the words left her mouth, Delilah and Sean’s faces both darkened.

Sean clenched his jaw. “Yeah, they caught them. Not a single one got away.”

“This isn’t a random event. They were paid to do this,” Josie said. She’d already figured out they were sent by Natalie the moment she saw the man with the mustache. The reason she threatened them with her life and pointed out that they didn’t want things to go as far as murder wasn’t just a bluff. She knew for a fact they didn’t actually dare to kill her. As long as she stayed alive, the one pulling the strings could still cover for them, but if she died, there was no way they’d ever get away with it. After all, in her previous life, if Zoey hadn’t jumped off that building, those guys wouldn’t have been caught so quickly. They went on the headlines and had their faces all over the news. In the end, all five of them were sentenced to death. In this life, she’d pissed off Natalie first, so Natalie used these five guys to get back at her. Josie felt that Zoey probably wouldn’t have to go through something so horrible this time.

Oddly enough, Josie found herself feeling a little happy about that.

“Oh my, is this girl out of her mind? After going through something so terrifying, how can she still be smiling?” Delilah said, gently stroking her head with a worried look.

Josie shook her head. “I’m fine, Professor Wilcourt. I’m smiling because they didn’t manage to hurt me. Today, I used the acupuncture techniques you taught me. It worked like a charm! That guy went down in no time!”

“You really are something else, kid,” Delilah said, her usual calm slipping as her eyes grew misty. She asked, “After everything that’s happened, you’re still worrying about this? Can’t you just let your mind rest for a bit?”

Delilah gently tucked the blanket around her. She said with concern, “Listen to me and get some sleep. Leave everything else to Sean. He’s already dug up their backgrounds and knows exactly what to tell the police. Be good and get some rest, okay?”

Josie wondered, ‘Why would Sean even bother checking into those guys? How did they know to come to the hospital? Who told them I was here?’

But with Delilah watching her so worriedly, she could only do as she was told and close her eyes, letting her questions go for the moment.