âDid you hear me? Come back immediately!âAfter receiving no reply from the couple, Josiah pleaded, âTake it as I am begging you. Come back right now, please?âHowever, at the thought of the corpse which they saw at the dumpster and the two explosions which happened earlier that day, Winnie and Xavier answered in unison, âWe canât!âBoth of them exchanged glances, surprised by how in sync they were with each other.After that, Winnie continued to focus on the road while Xavier started explaining to Josiah, âJosiah, we are already at the point of no return.â They were responsible for the safety of other innocent people.They could choose not to go and head back, but that would be too selfish.However, Xavier did not tell that to his friend.He merely said to Josiah, âRather than trusting your gut feeling, why donât you put your faith in Winnie and me? Wait for us to come back, and treat us to a meal after that to help calm our nerves.ââXavier,â Josiah started to panic as he replied, âIâm not joking! I really have a bad feeling! Do you remember what happened when we were kids? That time âââI do!â Xavier cut his friend off at once and turned to look at Winnie, who was still looking ahead, before continuing, âThatâs why I will make sure I am extra careful this time.âHe would do anything to protect the woman he loved and not allow anyone to hurt her.âJosiah, stop wasting your breath. We are not going to change our minds no matter what you say. We promise that we will return safely.ââThatâs right, Dr. Houghton,â Winnie added. âWe have to see you get married and have kids. We are going to be your childrenâs godparents. Okay, we have to hang up now. We could be receiving urgent calls or messages anytime.âThere was nothing more Josiah could say. He knew that Xavier was a stubborn man. With Winnie, who was extremely persistent, around, it would be impossible to persuade them.âFine then. But you have to promise to return safe and sound. If you get hurt, Iâm not going to treat you.âWinnie replied with a chuckle, âDream on. We wonât be giving you a chance to do that.âAfter the call ended, Winnie asked Xavier, âDo you believe in the sixth sense?ââNo! I believe that our destiny lies in our own hands,â Xavier replied with a slight frown.âSame here!â Winnie took a quick glance at the man and smiled.The roads along Haroldâs designated route were getting rougher and harder to drive.
The sky was also getting darker.By then, Xavier had already taken over the wheel from Winnie.When night fell, the car reached an uneven dirt road.Winnie looked at the map on her phone and said, âThis path is not shown on the map. Weâre probably nearing the mountains.âIt was pitch-dark outside, making it extremely hard for the couple to see their surroundings. Before Xavier could reply, Jamesâ voice sounded through the earpiece. âThatâs right. You have already entered the mountains. The Special Task Force has already located the terrorists. They are currently making their way to Garland Groupâs abandoned chemical plant. Haroldâs designated route should lead you to the chemical plant as well.
However, our team has not located Harold and the others yet. The two scientists are currently very safe. Both of you should continue to follow Haroldâs orders. This is the best chance for us to capture Harold and the terrorists. We are just half an hour behind you. Donât panic when you reach your destination. Donât act impulsively as well. Reinforcements will arrive thirty minutes later.ââGot it!â After hearing the updates from James, Winnie and Xavier had a better idea of the situation.Still feeling worried, Xavier reminded Winnie, âDid you wear your bulletproof vest properly?ââYes.â Winnie looked at Xavier and could not help but chuckle when she saw the serious expression on his face. âIsnât there just one way to wear the bulletproof vest? What about you? Have you put it on properly?ââOf course,â
Xavier took a quick glance at his vest before asking, âAre you nervous?ââNo! Itâs not the first time Iâm facing something dangerous. Iâve weathered all kinds of storms before. Iâm just worried about Lisanne. I wish Harold had just come after me directly!ââNo.â Xavier intertwined his fingers with Winnieâs and said, âI want him to come after me instead. Winnie, no matter what happens in the future, let me protect you.
I want to be your armor.âHe wants to be my armor?A warm feeling filled the womanâs heart at once. But does he know that he is my Achillesâ heel?Winnie gazed at Xavier deeply.If he was not driving right then, and if James was not listening to their conversation, she would have pinned him on the car seat immediately!Meanwhile, Xavier had also noticed Winnieâs blazing gaze.It was the first time he saw her looking at him that way.He used to stare at her in the same manner, but she always had an indifferent look in her eyes. That was because her feelings for him were not as strong as his feelings for her.However, Xavier could feel that something had changed in the woman.Her gaze was her response to him!Even though the two of them did not have cheesy declarations of love for each other, both of them felt a surge of warmth in their hearts.They were hoping that the day would soon pass and that things with Harold would finally come to an end.After driving for another hour on bumpy roads, Xavier and Winnie finally arrived at their destination.Harold had also just texted them his next set of instructions: Get out of the car and walk toward the abandoned chemical plant in front. You only have ten minutes. If I donât see you in ten minutes, I will detonate the bomb.Winnie and Xavier did not waste time and shared that information with James at once.After getting permission to proceed, the couple started moving forward while paying careful attention to the ground beneath their feet.Five minutes later, they saw a ray of light coming from a distance away.It was from the abandoned chemical plant.As the Special Task Force had yet to locate Harold, Winnie and Xavier assumed that it was the terrorists who were in the chemical plant, and they were equally dangerous.As such, the couple halted in their tracks.However, the instant they stopped to report the situation to James, they heard from Harold again.This time, he requested for Winnie and Xavier to enter the chemical plantâ¦