"Where is Gu Hai," asked Jiang Yifei. She stood in the lobby fanning herself. Even though the lobby was air conditioned, the sun won the battle and heated up the area where she stood.
"He isn't feeling well this morning. I think it was something he ate," Bai LuoYin said. He put on his best disappointed face and half smiled. That should teach that fucker a lesson, he thought to himself. Then, his anus throbbed and his mind quickly shifted gears to remind him of the power of Gu Hai. "Let's go," he nervously said to his group of friends.
They all piled into the big van that they had rented and was off to do some more shopping.
Yang Meng sat next to Bai LuoYin. He tried his best to inspect his friend's body. He wanted to see if Gu Hai had left any bruises on his neck or arms.
"What are you doing?" Bai LuoYin asked and pulled his hand away from his friend's grip.
"I'm just checking to make sure that you're alright," he said.
Bai LuoYin frowned. "Why wouldn't I be okay?"
Yang Meng leaned in closer so that their conversation was more private. "I heard you screaming last night. I just wanted to make sure that Gu Hai didn't hurt you. You know, sometimes husbands can be abusive."
Bai LuoYin rolled his eyes. "I'm fine," he said. He would have been embarrassed, but it was Yang Meng, the only person in the world he wouldn't feel that way around. Besides, Yang Meng and him talked about sexual stuff before, he was comfortable talking like that with him.
"I don't know," Yang Meng whispered, "you sounded like something was hurting." He remembered in school that Gu Hai was well endowed, maybe Gu Hai was making his friend scream because he was ramming it into him! Poor Bai LuoYin, he thought, maybe he put ice on his hole this morning so the swelling would go down. He was lucky that You Qi wasn't rough with him. He knew he couldn't be able to handle that.
After driving for a while, they pulled up in front of Siam Paragon. It was a megamall with over two hundred shops. Its glass and steel structure gave off a rich and modern look. The trees that lined the front of the building was reminiscent of those in Miami, Florida. There were lots of people already entering the mall, eager to spend their hard earned money.
Bai LuoYin said to the women, "If you two see some nice maternity dresses, feel free to pick them up."
Jiang Yifei nodded and Ying Yue thought about the offer. They had quite a few nice dresses already, she didn't want to spend unnecessary money.
Entering the mall, it was stunningly beautiful. To the left, a tall, glass plate, sat with running water falling down its front and back. The Louis Vuitton store hugged a wall, with a huge banner plastered across the front, a famous actor modeling some of its clothing. It was pretty to look at, so Ying Yue snapped a few pictures.
The mall's design was unlike anything Yang Meng had ever seen. He couldn't stop himself from settling on just one thing to look at. Everything was too vibrant and colorful. His eyes was on an adventure.
The front of the Dior shop was brilliantly lit. Wang Wei grabbed Jiang Yifei for a quick picture. When he finished snapping the picture, an elderly woman passed them and said something they couldn't understand. Her daughter, who stood beside her, said, "She said that you two make a cute couple."
Jiang Yifei was the first to blush. Wang Wei smiled and tried to hide it by turning his face.
"I think she's right," Ying Yue complemented, and she made them blush even harder.
Xiaoping had to move quickly. The two goons that he had hired followed him closely. They maneuvered through the crowd at a safe distance. Xiaoping knew that this had to be his chance. Gu Hai hadn't shown up with the rest of the group this time. He eyed the three bodyguards and his mind went into overdrive. If he moved his chest pieces just right, he would obtain Ying Yue.
The main floor of the mall had more of the luxury shops, while the first floor had fashionable clothing. They shopped for a few hours on the first floor, then moved to the second. When they reached the car showrooms, they hovered for a while, admiring all the luxury vehicles.
"This one is my favorite," Ying Yue said to Jiang Yifei. She ran her hand along the front of a white and silver Rolls-Royce.
"I like this one," You Qi said, eyeing an Aston Martin in all black.
Bai LuoYin didn't care too much about the cars. He was busy thinking about Gu Hai. He had forgotten completely to give him water! Last night, even though Gu Hai was being his wicked self, he had given him water and made sure that he hadn't passed out from overexertion. He started to worry. He thought about heading back to the hotel.
After a while, everyone got hungry and headed to a restaurant.
"I'm going to head back to the hotel," Bai LuoYin said to the group, "I want to check up on Gu Hai. He must be hungry."
"Can't he just order room service?" Yang Meng asked.
Bai LuoYin's eyes twitched. This guy thinks of everything!
"Go," Jiang Yifei said, "we will be fine. We will catch up with you guys later."
Bai LuoYin left the bodyguards in charge and headed for the taxi station nearby. He felt guilty now. Poor Gu Hai didn't deserve this harsh of a punishment.
Xiaoping couldn't believe his eyes! Bai LuoYin left as well! He felt it in his bones. Today, he was going to get Ying Yue! He kept on pretending to read a magazine nearby, his shades and hat covering his face well enough that Ying Yue wouldn't recognize him. He watched as Ying Yue ate her food. She drank something, laughed, and stuffed more food into her mouth, chewed, swallowed, and kept eating. He had observed her the entire time she had been in the mall. She used the restroom quite often. He eyed the restrooms near their table and an idea formed in his head. He moved quickly towards the two goons that he had hired, spoke to them, and they left to do his bidding. He had ordered them to move quickly, because at any moment, Ying Yue would use the restroom.
Ying Yue finished eating and glanced at Jiang Yifei, who was still eating and carrying on a conversation with Wang Wei. She needed to use the restroom. Having to pee all the time, she couldn't hold it in until her friend was finished. She glanced at You Qi and Yang Meng. They definitely couldn't go into a woman's restroom. "I'll be right back," she said and got up from the table.
The two other bodyguards got up and walked with her to the restrooms. When they got to the entrance, they stopped, and posted up in front of the doors. They watched as a few women left the restroom and a few more entered. A woman pushing someone in a wheelchair entered the restroom as well, the women who was pushing the wheelchair was saying, in a low voice, "Hush now, it's okay." She hurried past the guards, apparently in need of attending to her loved one.
Ying Yue had to wait for an empty stall. After a short while, one was clear and she headed for the stall closest to the wall. She closed the door and pulled out a flushable toilet seat cover. As she sat, doing her business, she heard when some of the ladies exited the room. Then, she heard sounds as if someone was moving around quickly. Then, hushed whisper. She got up off of the toilet, wiped, flushed, and headed out. As she opened the stall door, she looked back to make sure that she hadn't overstuffed the toilet, and that it was going down. Suddenly, someone pushed her back into the stall, covered her mouth with something, and after a few short minutes, everything went black. She had tried to scream, but everything happened so fast. Her legs went limp and she was out cold.
The two bodyguards watched as the woman pushed her mother out of the restroom in the wheelchair. "It's okay, mother, you're finished now, rest," said the woman, leaning over to adjust the big hat on her mother's head. A blanket was wrapped tightly around her entire body, from head to toe, and her face was not visible in any way possible. After a few seconds, another woman exited the restroom. She moved oddly and seemed to be in a hurry.
A few more minutes passed and one of the bodyguards checked his watch. "She's been in there a while now. Maybe we should check on her," he said. The other bodyguard knocked on the door twice, opened it, and said, "Is everything okay, Miss Ying?"
A short woman in a blue dress stepped out of one of the stalls closest to the door, gave him an unfriendly look, and shooed him away. He closed the door, frowned, and went to get Jiang Yifei.
"Miss Yifei," said the bodyguard walking up to the table. He watched as conversation broke between her and Wang Wei, their eyes turning curious. "Can you please check on Miss Ying, I can't go into the restroom and she hasn't come out yet."
"Sure," Jiang Yifei said, getting up. She headed into the restroom and called her friend's name, no answer. She noticed that the music that was playing on the loudspeakers above was a bit too loud. She frowned. She walked up to a stall and knocked lightly.
"Yes," asked someone unfamiliar, "who is it?"
Jiang Yifei made a face. "Sorry," she apologized. She made her way towards the other stalls, knocking lightly and calling out Ying Yue's name. Still, no answer. She exited the restroom and shook her head at the bodyguards. "She's not in there. Are you sure she went in?"
Both bodyguards frowned and looked at each other. They turned back to Jiang Yifei and nodded.
Jiang Yifei rushed back into the restroom. She had a horrible thought! What if Ying Yue had passed out?! She knocked furiously on each door, opened them, and found that besides the one that was occupied, they were all empty! She rushed back outside. "I just checked each stall. She's not in there!"
The two bodyguards went into full professional mode. One pulled out his cell phone and dialed Gu Hai, no answer! The other guy dialed Bai LuoYin, he answered, and was still in the taxi, heading to the hotel. "We can't find Ying Yue, sir," he informed his boss.
"What do you mean," Bai LuoYin asked. He plugged one ear to drown out the sounds of other cars around him as he shifted his weight in the backseat of the car.
The bodyguard filled him in on everything that happened so far.
"Go to the information center and ask them to do an announcement," Bai LuoYin informed him. "This way, if she is walking around somewhere she can hear it and meet up with you guys again."
"Sir, I'm certain she didn't walk past us. There was no way that she got by without us seeing her," he said. "We were posted up at the door. The restroom has no other exits other than the one main door. It doesn't even have a window."
Bai LuoYin's heartbeat sped up. "Ask mall security for their help in locating her and give them all the information they need to assist us. Also, get the local police officers involved," he hung up and turned to the driver, saying, "Can you please drive faster? I have an emergency."
The driver nodded, turned down a street that was less polluted with traffic, and sped up.
Jiang Yifei started to panic. She moved through the tables and chairs, her eyes searching frantically for her friend. "Ying Yue," she called out, her voice cracking a little.
You Qi and Yang Meng stood up from their table. They both could sense that something was wrong. The chopsticks fell from Yang Meng's fingers and he headed towards Jiang Yifei. You Qi sprinted towards the guards, gathered information, tried calling Gu Hai, hung up after not reaching him, then went to join the others in the search for their friend.
Wang Wei ran up beside Jiang Yifei and mimicked her movements, calling out to Ying Yue in a heavier tone. He was beginning to worry as well, a deep guilty feeling chewed away inside of his chest. He should have been more aware. If he hadn't gotten caught up with Jiang Yifei, he would have protected their friend better!
A few people stared at them and looked around as if they were searching for Ying Yue as well.
The bodyguards met up with mall security, did as they were told, and soon, everyone was moving about the mall searching for Ying Yue. You Qi informed head security that Ying Yue was almost five months pregnant, her age, and height. Jiang Yifei sent her friend's picture to the mall supervisor and he send the picture to every security member in the building.
A group of security officers started from the ground level. Since Jiang Yifei was on the upper floor, she and the rest of the group worked their way down. They dipped into every store, hallway, restroom, and corner they could find.
Jiang Yifei walked up to a banister and leaned on it. She brought a hand up to her mouth and covered it. Her feet was starting to hurt and she felt like crying. Where was Ying Yue? Where could she have gone? They'd searched almost everywhere.
Wang Wei made it to the parking lot of the building. He searched all levels and found nothing out of the ordinary. He was as puzzled as everyone else. Where was Ying Yue?!
When Bai LuoYin made it back to the hotel, he burst through the front door and went straight for the bedroom.
Gu Hai was still tied up, grinning at him. He were about to say something witty and naughty, but saw his lover's facial expression. "What's wrong," he frowned, his face turning serious.
As Bai LuoYin untied him, he filled him in on what had happened so far. He watched as Gu Hai got dressed in record time and they headed to the mall.
"So far, we haven't seen her," said the head of security.
Once more, Jiang Yifei covered her mouth with her hand. She held back tears and hugged herself with her free hand, her long ponytail a mess as she moved up closer to Wang Wei.
When Bai LuoYin and Gu Hai finally arrived, they spoke to the commissioner of police. He informed them that he had dispatched officers to check the surrounding area.
"I'm so sorry," Jiang Yifei said, walking up to Bai LuoYin. Her tears started to fall endlessly and he embraced her.
"It's okay," he soothed, rubbing her back "we will find her."
"I'm so sorry," she sobbed into his chest.
Wang Wei walked up to Gu Hai and said, "I'm so sorry, sir, we were all sitting a few feet away. I don't understand how she could have just disappeared."
Gu Hai touched the man's shoulder, and with great calm, he said, "Don't worry. We will do everything in our power to find her."
Jiang Yifei pulled out Ying Yue's cell phone from her bag and handed it to Bai LuoYin. "She left her phone on the table. She doesn't even have it," she whimpered.
Bai LuoYin took the phone, looked at it sorrowfully, and shoved it into his pants pocket. He hugged her and hoped that they found Ying Yue quickly.
Xiaoping sat in the backseat of his car, Ying Yue wrapped around his arms. She was still out cold. He grinned. His plan was great! No one would have suspected that him and his goons would have dressed up as women, go into the restroom, and snatch Ying Yue up so quickly. The bodyguards would have never went into the restroom and that was why it had been the perfect plan.
As his hired help sped through the streets, towards the house that he had rented, he mentally patted himself on the back for a job well executed.
Ying Yue stirred. She moaned and her eyes fluttered open. It took a while for her eyes to adjust, but slowly, she began to focus on her surroundings. Her head jerked to the left and her eyes opened wide. Xiaoping smiled at her. She sat up straighter, and moved as far away from him as the backseat of the car would allow, both of her hands immediately covering her belly.
"Hello, dear," he spat. His eyes turning dark at her first reaction of seeing him. It didn't matter though, he expected that much from her. But, it left a stain on his heart, an ugly dark color that he knew he would never be able to scrub away.
"Xiaoping," she gasped, her eyes still wide. Then, the images of her time in the restroom surfaced. She recalled someone covering her mouth with some sort of cloth! She looked around through the windows and realized that she was going somewhere. She wasn't in the mall anymore! "Where are you taking me," she asked.
Xiaoping chuckled. Even with his small frame, his chest lifted and fell in waves. "I'm taking you home, my love," he said, turning to look out of his window at the changing scenery.
Ying Yue turned to see two men sitting in the front seat and her heart raced, scared. Her first thought was, were they going to kill me? The one driving eyed her through the rear view mirror and quickly turned his eyes back towards the road. Her mind went wild with thoughts, Gu Hai, Bai LuoYin, Jiang Yifei, even her parents faces filled her head. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs. She wanted to cry. She wanted to be brave, to demand the men who kidnapped her to take her back to the mall, back to her family. Instead, when Xiaoping looked over at her again, she saw the darkness in his features and stayed quiet. Her first priority was to protect her unborn child, Bai LuoYin and Gu Hai's unborn child.