The Billionaire Twins Need A New Mommy!-Chapter 801: A Decision One Need To Make
"Everyone! You need to go!" someone in the underground cellar with Yuri and Haji shouted. "Orders from above!"
"We’re almost there," Yuri whispered, watching Haji and another man cut some wires according to the new orders from Allen. "Just... just... one more."
Haji and the other man with him kept their focus on the wire. Even the others with them — who should’ve been running to safety — didn’t move an inch. All of them kept their eyes on the main bomb.
"I’m cutting it," Haji breathed out, and everyone else held their breath with wide eyes.
Their gulps echoed as beads of sweat trickled down their bodies. They kept their attention on the wires and the cutter Haji was holding.
If this was wrong...
Just as everyone tried to shut the thought away, Yuri comforted them with a brutal truth.
"If this goes wrong, we won’t even know we’re dead," she muttered. "It’ll be a swift release for all of us here and in this entire place."
Everyone paused for a second as they turned to her in utter silence. But then, they chose to ignore it for now.
"That’s..." Haji breathed out as he glanced at the timer. "...comforting — damn it. Just a little over one minute left."
He sucked in a deep breath. "I’m cutting it."
No one even reacted as he made the cut before he finished the sentence. They only realized it a second later, their breaths and hearts stopping for a moment. Haji did for the "swift release."
Then, all their eyes shifted to the timer.
"It stopped," one of them remarked, eyes wide. "Did we stop it?"
"No." The moment Yuri answered, the number began counting down again — this time, slower. "It just slowed down."
She counted the next second and turned to them. "Every second now counts as three — we need to leave!"
With that, everyone scrambled out of the cellar without hesitation. The rest had already left earlier, so the space wasn’t as cramped anymore.
As they did, Yuri pressed her hand to the earpiece connected to Scarlet. "We did it. Make the others cut the last line as well. It’ll buy us a few minutes."
*****
Scarlet, who was in a different place, nodded and pressed her other earpiece to relay the message.
"Once you do, don’t waste another second and leave the place!" she shouted. "Meet us all at the rendezvous point!"
With that, Scarlet did a round check of those still in the field — not just those with the bombs. She made sure everyone was moving, assisting the injured from the fight, and guiding them back.
Many had already retreated, thanks to Penny and the Pika, who were assisting with locations. After all, this joint virtual group had managed to retrieve aerial shots from satellites and hack available feeds inside the church.
This made it easier for the Orders and the other founding families’ forces to track enemy locations, determine routes, and find shortcuts.
"Allen," she breathed out, and Allen quickly took charge while Scarlet moved to the other groups on the opposite side. "Izu, are you there?!"
"I’m here! I’m listening!" Izu’s pants were heard. "I’m close to where the Master was — I think I just saw Baby from one of the windows."
Right now, Izu was running as fast as he could. His heart pounded as he kept up with the updates in his earpiece.
"Scar..." he breathed out, his complexion pale — not from exertion alone. "...I don’t think we’ll make it."
Scarlet gulped. Even with the time everyone was buying them, it wouldn’t be enough.
"Where’s Lola?" she asked.
"I left her. Melissa Young got in the way."
Scarlet ground her teeth, thinking Melissa should just die. Not that she was worried that Lola wouldn’t be able to fight Melissa. But Melissa would surely be a nuisance.
"That bitch..." she hissed. "Until the end, she’s a nuisance. Izu, stay in touch — I’ll be back."
With that, Scarlet switched channels and gathered updates from the other groups. After a second, she returned to Izu.
"Go back."
Izu almost didn’t hear it and didn’t respond.
"Izu, go back!" she shouted. "Go back to Lola and take her away from there! They’re too close to the danger zone. If that goes off, she’s going to die!"
Izu’s steps skidded. "What?!"
"You’re not going to make it!" she shouted. "Penny said you need to go back! They saw her from the live aerial shot!"
Izu ground his teeth and, without further hesitation, turned back toward where he left Lola.
"What about the Master?!" he asked. "He’s going to be fine, right, Scarlet?!"
"...." Scarlet gulped, checking her wristwatch before forcing out a hum. "Mhm. They’re going to be fine. From what I heard, Sir Hugo and Sir Zoren are in there now."
Izu didn’t answer anymore as he focused on getting back to Lola.
Meanwhile, Scarlet lowered her hand from her earpiece. Her expression was pale, her hands trembling as she clasped them.
She had just lied to Izu.
Penny didn’t tell Scarlet to send Izu back for Lola. What Penny said was that Lola was too close to the danger zone, and anyone nearby should take her away. One of the Phantom Circle assigned to long-distance support had already responded.
Scarlet sent Izu back not because no one would help Lola, but because someone needed to drag her away.
After all, the panicked voices and Penny’s shouts from the other channels spoke of something else...
They weren’t going to make it in time.
The timer had slowed for only a few seconds before resuming its pace. And they had already lost communication with the men sent to where Atlas and the other leaders were.
"I’m..." she trailed off, her shoulders sagging.
Her decision wasn’t like the others’. While they searched for solutions, and Penny was already spewing curses on the line because her husband was inside with her brother and father, Scarlet had chosen based on the worst-case scenario.
If Atlas was going to die...
She needed to make sure Lola would live.
The matriarch of the Order would not fall.
It was a sound decision that she would make again and again. Yet somehow, it left a bitter weight in her heart.
"...sorry."
As the word slipped past her lips, a deafening blast echoed from one of the buildings.
BOOM!
