It was past four in the deep of night, the hotel quiet and empty, with hardly any guests coming or going.

Across the street at the police station, it was packed with officers.

The alternating red and blue lights from the police cars shone into the hotel through the windows.

"Creak—"

On one side of the corridor, a door gently opened, and Vanessa Sterling tiptoed out of the room. She wore a jacket over her nightgown, holding her phone as she walked alone into the elevator.

She took the elevator down to the first floor, where the convenience store below was open 24 hours.

When she arrived, the store was still operating normally, but besides one employee, there were no other customers.

Despite the brightly lit lobby and the staff on duty at the hotel front desk, Vanessa still felt a bit uneasy after everything that had happened in the past few days.

After entering the store, she headed straight for the shelf with sanitary pads, picked up her usual brand, scanned and paid for them, then quickly returned to the elevator.

Standing in the cold, empty elevator, Vanessa looked up at the slowly rising numbers on the elevator door.

"Ding—"

The elevator doors opened with a sound. As Vanessa walked out, she caught sight of a shadow from the corner of her eye.

Before she could see the person clearly, a bag was suddenly pulled over her head. The bag carried a strange fragrance, and soon Vanessa passed out under its effects...

The elevator door closed automatically, and the shadow carried Vanessa away into the stairwell entrance...

At the city’s edge, beneath a few mountains, there was only one muddy road.

Usually desolate, on this deep night, it was anything but calm.

Five or six police cars were parked along the road, their flashlight beams occasionally visible on the mountain.

"Captain, we’ve found a hidden trail on the middle mountain, looks like it’s been frequently used."

"Focus the search on that mountain. Those escapees must still be hiding there. Tell everyone to be cautious; the other side might be armed."

"Got it."

"Ring—" The man referred to as the captain turned to see his phone light up in the car.

He opened the car door, reached for the phone, and saw an unfamiliar number. Hesitantly, he answered, "I have your people, tell your men to retreat immediately, or I’ll kill her now!"

The captain frowned in confusion, but before he could question anything, the call was abruptly cut off.

Immediately after, a video message popped up on his phone.

The dim light in the video showed a girl, her hands and feet bound, thrown into the weeds, with evident bloodstains on her dress. Her face appeared calm, and her breathing was visible, indicating she was unconscious.

But he didn’t recognize this girl.

Meanwhile, Franklin Sutton, still asleep with his wife and child in the hotel, received a call: "Officer Sutton, we just got a call that a hostage appears to have been kidnapped. I’ve sent you the photo. Check if it’s someone from your end and confirm if she’s missing."

Franklin’s long-standing professional habit allowed him to quickly gather his thoughts when awakened from sleep.

He opened the message on his phone, scrutinized the photo of the girl, and recognized her as the friend of Laura Yates and Audrey.

Why would that group kidnap her?

Franklin glanced at his still sleeping wife and child, and in a lowered voice responded to the call, "Alright, I’ll take a look. I’ll be in touch."

The cold and the pain in her abdomen brought Vanessa Sterling to consciousness.

She curled her limbs, realizing they were restrained by something, and her mouth was sealed with tape.

All she could see was dense and flourishing weeds in the night, feeling the rough branches and scratchy weeds against her cheek, and smelling the fresh scent of the soil.

Behind her, she vaguely heard two men talking: "How’s it going on Ms. Reid’s side, boss?"

A bald man with binoculars said, "Still no contact yet, but the police haven’t retreated either. Let’s wait and see; if they don’t retreat, we’ll send them another video clip."

"Boss, did we kidnap the wrong person? Is this woman really connected to the police?"

"No mistake. I saw them at the hotel yesterday with that Officer Sutton. That Officer Sutton seems to have a wife. If we could kidnap his wife, it would work even better, but this woman is their friend. They won’t stand by idly."

"True, even if she’s just an ordinary bystander, they won’t ignore it," said the slightly chubby man, suddenly hearing a rustling sound in the grass. He turned around warily, "Who’s there?!"

The bald man put down the binoculars and slapped the chubby man’s head, "Don’t panic, it’s this woman waking up."

The chubby man, still vigilant, said, "Boss, I think the sound came from over there. Did someone follow us?"

"With your cowardice, you can’t achieve anything! Who’d be out here in the middle of the night? Probably just a frog or a wild rabbit scaring you like this."

Still uneasy, the chubby man had already placed his hand on the gun tucked in his waistband, cautiously observing his surroundings.

"I’ll prop her up, and you shoot another video."

The chubby man took the phone, adjusting it to recording mode.

The bald man grabbed Vanessa Sterling’s hair, pulling her up from the ground. To make her look worse, he slapped her hard twice on the face.

Having just regained consciousness, Vanessa was hit into dizziness, feeling blood trickling from her nose, the taste of it reaching her lips.

The chubby man pressed the record button, capturing Vanessa’s image on the phone.

After recording a video less than ten seconds long, the chubby man suggested, "Boss, why don’t we make a few more videos now, then shoot this woman, negotiate with the police using the videos. I always feel unsafe staying here. Before Ms. Reid is saved, we might end up caught ourselves."

"Not a single nice word comes out of your mouth! But this woman is indeed a burden. Like you said, make several videos. By the time the police find her body, Ms. Reid and we will be long gone."

"Mmmph!" Vanessa made a noise, as if trying to speak.

The bald man slapped her again, "Shut the hell up! You’re just unlucky."

"Boss, okay, recorded enough videos and photos, should be sufficient." The chubby man said, reaching for his gun.

The bald man held his hand, "Firing a gun at night, trying to announce your presence?!"

After reprimanding the chubby man, the bald man took a sharp knife from his belt loop, pressing it against Vanessa Sterling’s neck...