Chapter 47: Chapter 47

As soon as the gaseous effect disappeared, Raymond gave the cue to go inside, running while avoiding the gunfire of Simon's men who were manning the passageways they were currently in, along with Edward and Lucas. Meanwhile, the rest have scattered, following his directions. Each of the people he appointed as leader had already brought the tools Hazel had given them as a preventive measure and instructed them to search for the children in the basement while he, Lucas, and Edward moved toward the second floor.

'Raymond?' Edward whispered nearby, looking anxious, as soon as they reached the second floor, hiding behind a wall refilling their depleted ammunition.

'What?' Raymond peeked outside, to find Simon's men moving their way. He came out of his hiding place, shot the men to death, then turned to face Edward, who was still wearing the same expression.

'B2? I understand. We're down the third hallway from here, 'Edward took his eyes off Raymond for a moment, spoke to Hazel through the communication device worn on his left ear, then looked back at him worriedly. It seemed that the man noticed his trembling hand was holding the gun. 'Are you all right?'

Raymond ignored Edward's question, moving from his place into the third hallway. How could he be okay? This was not something he had learned from when he was a cop. Breaking into the house without a search and attacking the mafia headquarters to avenge the death of a friend was not the thing that had crossed his mind so far. He shook off Edward's hand who was about to check his condition, throwing a sharp gaze at the man.

'What a joke! I am fine!'

Lucas tapped Edward on the shoulder, shaking his head lightly. 'Leave it alone. He's always been. '

'But—’

'Lucas, stop saying unnecessary things,' Raymond turned to look at Lucas who shrugged. Now she was standing where Hazel had pointed through Edward earlier. 'Here?'

'Yes, here. We check one by one. '

Raymond sniffed the scent that spread around this hallway, recognizing Amanda's scent. 'No need. One hundred meters from here. '

He hurried down the hallway, leaving Lucas and Edward behind, starting to feel anxious. From the source where Amanda was, he smelled the scent of four strange men along with the girl. He cursed his legs that were moving less fast, coupled with the pain in his shoulder which throbbed back, made him grimace a little. Once right in front of the room where Amanda was, her nose grew stronger to smell the foreign scent.

'Damn girl! Do your job well! How much money do you think I spent paying you? '

Raymond heard the voice of a man yelling at someone, followed by a loud slap. Amanda's scent was getting stronger from the direction of the sound source.

'Well, like that. Shut up and be a good girl. Let me touch you. '

The longer the conversation, the more restless him. He arrived at the door of the room, tried to open the door but failed. Of course, it was locked. What was he thinking? He should have known this ...

His movement had succeeded in arousing the alertness of the people in the room. Raymond cursed his stupidity earlier. He had no other choices but to lure those people to open the door by using him as a bait to make them open the door.

‘Amanda? Are you there?' Raymond deliberately tightened his voice so that the attention of the people was diverted from Amanda, as well as making sure that Amanda was really there.

'Brother Raymond!?'

He grinned, satisfied. Great, Amanda was inside the room.

'Who allowed you to speak?!'

He again heard a snapping sound accompanied by a slap that landed on someone's cheek, then a woman's sobs could be heard. It must be Amanda. He growled, clenching his fists as hard as he could until his knuckles turned white. His patience vanished, he could not bear to hear Amanda's crying voice. It must be that the child is scared at this time. After all, if this was Thyme and the girl’s plan, why did the girl take it for granted?

As soon as the door opened, he beat three men who appeared before him, entering the room. In front of his eyes, he saw Amanda who was on the bed with her hands up, locked with handcuffs. Only underwear that covered Amanda's body. The girl's body shivered. Her eyes were swollen from crying, and her cheeks were red, from a slap. The girl looked relieved when she saw him, but the relief only lasted for a moment because then the man who sat on her—not wearing his top clothes so that it showed his big muscles and looked trained— choked Amanda's neck. Not paying attention to his presence.

'You are just a toy. A doll! So be quiet! '

'Urrgh ...'

He ran towards the man. Kick his head with all his strength. Unfortunately, his kick only made the man shift slightly from his place, not letting go of his chuckle from Amanda, who was now barely breathing. The man glanced up at her, seeming to have just noticed her presence, smiling terrifyingly. Success gave him goosebumps.

'Over there, wait for your turn,' the old man grinned as he licked his lower lip, further strengthening his chuckle. At a glance, her body froze as her eyes met that of the man. He shook his head quickly. Seeing Amanda was more than enough to make him realize that now was not the right time to be afraid.

Shit!

He tried to fish his memory, dig up information about the man. The man looked familiar to him. His strong and steady stature reminded him of Doctor Severus. This means that the man had worked in the military. Her eyes were sharp and cold as if they could kill anyone who made eye contact with her. Approximately approaching 60 years old, but the movement still looks strong. Like a monster. Was he currently dealing with humans, or was he a monster?

A name crossed his mind, along with his hand punching the old man's cheek, successfully removing both hands from Amanda's neck. The girl coughed, catching her breath again, which had caught a gasp because of the man's choking. Now the man's attention turned completely to Raymond. His eyes met the eyes of the man.

Yes. He was very familiar with that facial figure. Levin Cumberbatch. Retired UK soldier who won an award for his contribution to the Afghanistan war. Successfully destroyed the terrorist group there and provided security to the Afghan people, promising a new, free life. No longer constrained by patriarchal rules. The man who was now living his life takes care of his import-export business as well as an investor. Impeccably. There was never a bad rumour that hit the man, but he did read reports from several independent newspaper journalists who reported meeting Simon Clive several times before the independent journalists' existence disappeared.

The man got up from his bed, touched his right cheek that was flushed and the corner of his bleeding lip, laughed softly as he looked at him, looking interested.

'Raymond Cooper?'

His body was no longer frozen. He met the man's gaze with a sharp gaze. 'Lovers of sex with children? Wow. I thought a businessman with an impeccably good reputation couldn't possibly do it. '

Levin walked over to him, did not respond to his words. Once they were less than ten centimetres apart, the old man lifted his chin. His expression was hard to read, yet terrifying. He glanced at Amanda who was back to normal. Right, he had to stay calm. Amanda was in danger.

'Let go of that girl, now.'

The man glanced at Amanda, then laughed again while stroking Raymond's cheek, bringing his lips closer to Raymond's ear while licking it. 'You are much more attractive than that girl, so I considered your request. If you want to be a replacement, Morozov's dog. How about that?’

'Wow, totally indiscriminate, huh?'

'I just like challenges. Don't get me wrong, 'Levin told his three men who had just regained their strength after receiving Raymond's attack to release the handcuffs that tied Amanda's two hands. Better to keep up with the man's game for a while. As soon as Amanda finished putting her clothes back on, she was about to carry Amanda when her hand held her.

'You're here. Remember the agreement. '

***