âWhat idea?â A look of delight spread across Zyonâs face. âAs expected of my grandma! Youâre so awesome!âJacinta shot an exasperated glance at him. âCut the flattery. Sit here and discuss with me.âWhile the police were urgently coming up with a plan, Winnie, Xavier, and Josiah sat at the side and listened.Pointing at a map of the docks with a pen, Zayn instructed his subordinates, âThe boat they requested will enter from here later. The rest stop has two doorsâone in front and one at the back. Although itâs less likely that theyâll barge out from the front, we still need a few men to keep a lookout there. The containers are all located behind the rest stop. After walking around the containers, theyâll be able to enter the sea or board the boat. Most likely, this will be the route they choose. Since the containers are blocking our vision, weâll need our snipers to position themselves at a high spot to secure a good field of vision.âAfter a slight pause, he continued, âSince weâre very close to the sea, itâll be difficult for the snipers to aim accurately if the kidnappers are moving quickly with the hostages.
Hence, thereâs not a lot that we can do ashore. Our focus should be on the boat that weâve prepared for them. Itâs a yacht that is big enough to hide two people inside and two people in the basement. In total, there are four hiding positions. Before subduing the kidnappers, you must remain hidden and not expose yourselves. The GPS on the yacht is connected to our GPS system, so we can track it regardless of where it goes. Remember that the most important task after boarding the boat is to ensure the hostagesâ safety. You can shoot at the kidnappers when the need arises.
Understand?ââUnderstood!ââNow, calibrate your watches. Itâs five minutes before the agreed timing with the kidnappers. Go to your positions!ââYes, sir!â shouted the SWAT officers uniformly before dispersing.The place immediately became quiet.After thinking for a while, Josiah offered, âLieutenant Zielinski, ask away if you need my help with anything. I brought a medical kit with me.ââOkay!â replied Zayn with a nod. Immediately afterward, the phone on the carâs hood rang.It was Rachelâs fatherâs phone. The callerâs name displayed on the screen was saved in the contacts as âDaughter.âGlancing at it, Zayn frowned instantly. âItâs a call from the kidnappers.âWith that, he signaled at his colleagues behind him and answered the call.When Zayn heard the new conditions that Zyon demanded over the phone, he frowned. Yet, to ensure the hostagesâ safety, he had no choice but to agree.In that case, however, his initial deployments would have gone to waste.Trying to stall for time, he requested, âSince you changed your mind at the last minute, you must give us some time to prepare.ââCut the crap! If you come up with any more excuses, Iâll start killing the hostages!âEven though Winnie and the rest did not manage to overhear the conversation on the phone, they clearly heard Zyonâs loud yell.Knowing that Zyon wanted to stall for time as much as possible, Winne whispered to Zayn, âLet me try. Iâll ask to speak to my grandma and get more time for us to make preparations.âZayn nodded and passed the phone to Winne quietly.After accepting the phone, Winnie said directly, âZyon, Iâm Winnie. I know that Granny is in your hands. I want to ensure that sheâs still alive, so let me speak to her for a while.âAt the same time, Zayn changed his plan at the last minute and relayed the instructions to the relevant officers.âThere are so many people at the docks, but you picked my granny out of everyone! Is it because you hate me? If thatâs the case, Iâm willing to swap positions with her.âWinnieâs words successfully attracted Zyonâs attention.âHaha! So itâs you, Winnie! You arrived quickly, huh? How do you feel now? Are you scared? Thatâs why you shouldnât have done what you did in the past. If you hadnât opposed me, how would things have become like this?ââI know that you hate me, so Iâll be your hostage. Release Granny and Rachel.ââWhat do you think youâre doing, Winnie? Are you negotiating with me right now? Are you offering yourself in exchange for two hostages? Donât you know very well whoâs the kidnapper here?ââFine! We donât need to swap if you find it troublesome. Let my granny answer the phone. I want to hear her voice.â Although Zyon gave no response, Winnie could hear the sound of him kicking someone.Immediately, Jacintaâs voice rang out. âWinnie! Is it you, Winnie? Itâs dangerous here! Leave now! Stop meddling in this!ââGranny!âWhen Winnie heard Jacintaâs voice, her heart skipped a beat. Even at this critical moment, her granny was still worried about her safety as an outsider.If anything happens to Granny, I donât know what to do anymore!However, she knew that the more dangerous the situation was, the more she must not lose her cool.Maintaining a calm composure, she asked, âAre you okay, Granny? Did you get hurt?ââNo, Iâm good. Iâm not hurt. You must go now!
Stop staying there!ââItâs great that youâre not hurt. What about Rach? How is she? Did she get shot? Is it serious?ââYeah!â Jacintaâs voice immediately became anxious. âRach was shot in the leg and has lost a lot of blood. Winnie, tell the police outside to quickly agree to Zyonâs requests. He said that heâd release us after he reaches the high seas. Since heâs planning to flee, he canât possibly bring us with him for the rest of the journey. And itâs so hot now! If Rachâs wound gets infected, her life will be in danger. She might even die!ââHaha! Did you hear that?â Not giving Jacinta a chance to speak further, Zyon snatched the phone away. âLet the previous policeman answer the call and follow my instructions.
In the end, the hostage might die not from my beatings but from how much time the f*cking police have wasted!ââGot it!â Zayn took the phone. âWeâll follow your instructions. The crane and the boat are all ready. The cash that youâve requested is already on the boat too.ââVery good! Donât hang up and continue listening to my orders.âTo avoid being shot in the head, Zyon did not even leave the rest stop.The back door of the rest stop opened up to the containers right next to it.The moment they opened the back door, they could just open one of the containers and hide inside. In that case, they would not expose any parts of their body and could minimize the chances of getting shot.After they regained their footing and closed the door of the container, they would instruct the police to transport them to the nearest cargo ship using the crane.The next step was the key to their escape plan.Prior to that day, Zyon had already been making preparations for his sea voyage and had contacted a ship to pick him up.Since it was not the agreed-upon time yet, the ship had not shown up.That was why he took hostages and requested the police to provide him with a boatâto distract the police and stall for time.His ship would be arriving soon. In addition to the cargo ship and the containers blocking the policeâs field of vision, it would make it extremely convenient for him to escape.Till now, his plan was progressing very smoothly.By the time the police realized that Zyon did not board the ship they had specifically prepared for him, it was too late.He had already fled with the hostages!âD*mn it! We fell for his trick!â cursed Zayn through gritted teeth when he realized that something was going on. âInform the coast guards to pursue them on speedboats! We must not let them enter the high seas!
Quickly!âUnable to care about anything else, Winnie sprinted toward the cargo ship.Although she would definitely be slower than the coast guardâs speedboats, she could not be bothered anymore. She was running uncontrollably like her legs had a mind of their own.The yacht that the police had prepared for Zyon was behind the cargo ship. Since it was blocked by the ship, the people ashore could not see it.In the next second, a loud boom sounded. Flames enveloped the yacht as it exploded.At the same time, Zayn received an update. âDonât get near it! Everyone, leave! Zyonâs men planted a bomb on the yacht.
Itâs possible that there are bombs in the containers and the cargo ship too, so all of you need to leave now!âThe people ashore were quite close to the massive cargo ship, including Winnie, who was closer than anyone else.Suddenly, a deafening boom split the air as the cargo ship exploded. Smoke billowed into the sky, heating the air around it.The huge ship exploded into smithereens as waves of seawater surged ashore, bringing chunks of metal along with it. Without any mercy, the water submerged everyone in its vicinity.Winnie had nowhere to go either.