𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 | 𝟏𝟖+

chapter ten

I was still waiting for her to ask a question, but she never did. Her eyes remained fixated on my face, unable to form coherent words. It seemed that her eyes were doing the talking instead of her lips, and I found it unsettling. I had been standing here for ten minutes, and there was less than half an hour until the mission began. Frustration built up inside me, causing my right hand to tap nervously against the kitchen island.

One tap.

Two taps.

Three taps.

Four taps.

Five taps.

Before the sixth tap, Nicholas opened the door and said, "The truck is ready, and they're already at the warehouse. The driver said we should start on the route because it's a long drive."

I clenched my right hand into a fist, trying to steady its trembling. I walked over to the door where Nicholas stood, and his gaze immediately dropped to my hand.

"Don't," I said. "Get her, and let's go."

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The drive was just as I had expected-a thirty-minute journey to a secluded location agreed upon by me and Dominic. Aria wore a black bag over her head throughout the ride to prevent her from recognizing the surroundings. The warehouse was situated in the middle of nowhere, surrounded only by overgrown trees on a small acre of land.

A black SUV was parked by the side of the warehouse, indicating that Dominic and his wife had already arrived and secured the premises. Aria was the first to step inside, and Adeline quickly stood up, tears streaming down her cheeks. Dominic placed his hand on her arm, urging her to sit back down, and she complied. After Aria, it was Nicholas, and then I entered.

One party on one side of the room, and the other on the opposite side. Nicholas removed the bag from Aria's face, and she rubbed her eyes, struggling to focus before directing her gaze at her parents. Judging by her expression, she wasn't feeling the same as they were.

"Let's get this over with and hand us back our daughter," Adeline exclaimed. I approached the silver table between us, where only a paper and pen were placed. "Did you both sign the paper?" I asked.

Adeline nodded, but Dominic hadn't.

"I won't put my signature unless you hand me Aria first," I could easily see through his ploy, and he knew it wouldn't work. He allowed Adeline to sign before him, knowing her signature held no weight. It was his signature that I needed, and he was well aware of that.

"Sign the paper, Dominic," I calmly instructed.

"Give me my daughter, and then you'll get the signature. That's the deal," he said, sounding timid.

"Sign the paper," I repeated.

He remained silent. If I had a gun right now, I would have put a damn bullet in everyone standing in this room, but I couldn't because Nicholas had hidden all the guns, and I couldn't find a single one. Nicholas was skilled at concealing things.

My eyes darted to the clock, which had just ticked. Six minutes had already passed, and we had less than nine minutes left for me to complete this task.