Chapter 220
One of the cars had a license plate that matched the second assassination target for today—Elsie. She was just a small fry. The man didn’t even think she was worth wasting a bullet on. He aimed at Wyatt’s car and pulled the trigger. The massive impact made Jordan lose control of the steering wheel; the vehicle suddenly veered to the side.
Owen, driving straight toward them, couldn’t swerve in time. His car scraped against Wyatt’s, spun out again, and slammed right into Yunice’s car. In the pouring rain, Yunice had just rolled down her window to wave at Wyatt when she saw Owen’s car barreling toward her. The distance between them closed fast. Owen’s eyes widened—he saw her too!
A deafening crash. Yunice’s car was flipped on impact; Owen’s speed had been too high. After flipping her car, he crashed into several more before finally slamming into a guardrail. As soon as his car stopped, Owen whipped around to check on Yunice. He saw her car rolling violently after the hit, then hurling her out as it tumbled.
Yunice hit the ground hard, rolled twice, and finally landed on the asphalt, soaked by the pounding rain. “Yunny!” Owen kicked open the crumpled car door and jumped out. “Owen…” Just then, Elsie’s weak voice called out behind him. “Owen, don’t leave me here alone… I’m in so much pain…”
In the storm, Owen turned to look—Elsie was slumped in her seat, her injuries unclear, but she looked like she was barely hanging on. Tears slid down from the corners of her eyes as she whispered, “Owen, you should go… They’re after us. If you leave me here, they won’t chase you anymore…”
Owen had been driving so fast because someone had been ramming into him from behind the entire time. That explained why he hadn’t avoided Yunice. He looked frantically toward Yunice lying motionless in the distance, then back at Elsie, who couldn’t move at all. Whoever was after them had to still be nearby. If he went to save Yunice now, Elsie—left alone—
In that instant, the same choice from three years ago returned like a curse. The freezing rain did nothing to cool the fire tearing through Owen’s chest. He wanted to scream out in frustration. Why did life keep backing me into these heart-wrenching decisions? When he’d abandoned Yunice in the fire three years ago, he’d had nightmares for months—visions of Yunice crying and asking him why he didn’t want her anymore.
All these years, he’d asked himself over and over—did I make the wrong choice that night? But leaving Elsie behind now… that was something he couldn’t accept either. Owen looked at Yunice again. He couldn’t make the same choice twice. This time, he had to save Yunice. He believed Elsie would understand. One time each—it’s fair, isn’t it?
He said in a low voice, “Elsie, give me two minutes. Just two minutes! I’ll check on Yunny and come right back!” But just as he started to close the car door, Elsie’s head suddenly slumped sideways; her arm dropped limply. Owen froze in shock; panic smothered his rationality. He forgot all about Yunice still waiting for him—he climbed back into the car, reached out, and felt for Elsie’s breath.
Nothing. His mind went blank. In an instant, he started the engine and slammed the gas pedal down. Lying in the rain, Yunice watched through the blur as Owen left her—again—driving off with Elsie. Three years ago, it had been fire and suffocating heat. She’d watched Owen choose Elsie. Now, three years later, under freezing rain—it was still Elsie.
Yunice let out a breathless laugh, mocking this cheap excuse for sibling love. She couldn’t even tell whether the water on her face was rain or tears. She turned and pushed herself up, struggling to get off the ground. Jordan was still looking for an opening; gunfire was coming from two directions. They were too exposed.
“Now’s our chance!” Jordan shouted excitedly. The barricade up ahead had a gap—they could make it through! He twisted the wheel, and the car sped past Yunice. Yunice’s eyes followed Wyatt’s car; she didn’t call out or cry for help. She knew they were after Wyatt. They wouldn’t bother with her.
Chapter 220
And the Vertex did reach the checkpoint—but the problem came when Wyatt looked back. “Stop the car,” Wyatt barked. Jordan, fully focused on escaping, didn’t hear him at all. By the time he realized something was off, Wyatt had already opened the door and jumped out. “What the-” Jordan was stunned. He’s throwing himself out there like a human target?
Sure enough, Yunice saw it immediately—a red laser dot had landed on Wyatt’s body. A red dot sight—only useful at close range. That meant in addition to a long-range sniper, there was a second shooter nearby.