He Does Not Deserve My Devotion-Chapter 50: Kidnapping

SPLASH—

A bucket of ice-cold water was splashed over her from head to toe. The bone-chilling shock jolted Nina Walsh from unconsciousness.

"Awake now?"

Clara Jacobs stood before her, looking down with a triumphant smirk.

Nina’s eyes flew open. She struggled, only to find her hands and feet bound by ropes and her mouth sealed with duct tape.

The light was dim, but the wind howled in her ears, carrying the faint sound of waves crashing against a cliff.

"Nina Walsh, you really are a cockroach that just won’t die. I’ve tried to get rid of you so many times, but you always survive. This time, let’s see who’s going to come and save you!"

Terror filled Nina’s eyes. She let out muffled whimpers, her words lost behind the tape.

Seeing her so pathetic, Clara Jacobs burst out laughing. "Do you know what’s down there? Jagged rocks and the deep sea. A jump from here is a guaranteed death sentence. It’s Crestfall’s most famous suicide spot. Plagiarism, murder, being the other woman, begging on your knees... you’ve committed so many crimes. It would only be natural for you to commit suicide out of guilt, wouldn’t it?"

The more Clara spoke, the more she marveled at her own flawless plan.

’Soon, no one in this world will be left to fight me for Aiden Sinclair.’

"Throw her into the sea!"

Nina’s eyes widened in horror. She thrashed violently, muffled screams escaping her lips, but it was all useless. Two burly men lifted her and started walking toward the edge of the cliff.

Nina’s mind went blank. She had wanted to die and end it all more than once, but to be killed like this by Clara Jacobs... ’I won’t accept this! I can’t!’

’I don’t want to die! I want revenge! I will get my revenge on Aiden Sinclair and Clara Jacobs!’

"I’ll count to three, then we let go together."

The two burly men reached the edge of the cliff. The roar of the waves was like a death knell, threatening to shatter her eardrums. Helpless, Nina could only pray to whatever gods were listening, begging them to open their eyes and give her one more chance.

"One."

"Two."

"Stop!" Suddenly, the sound of approaching footsteps cut through the air.

The two men froze, leaving Nina dangling over the abyss.

"Bring her back! Or I’ll kill this one!"

A group of men had appeared out of nowhere, surrounding Clara and her two hired thugs. One man in a floral shirt, with the swagger of a street tough, pointed a knife at Clara.

"Hmph. Do you have any idea whose turf this is? You’ve got some nerve, trying to kill someone and dump the body here!"

Clara trembled with fear. "Quick, bring her back!"

Nina was hauled back and tossed onto the ground. The two thugs, apparently recognizing the newcomers, immediately fell to their knees and begged, "Panther, it was our mistake. We didn’t mean to trespass on your turf, boss."

Panther looked at them with contempt. "You two, get the hell out of here!"

As if they’d been granted a royal pardon, the two thugs scrambled to their feet and fled without a second thought.

"Come back, you two... Useless cowards!" Left behind, Clara was so furious she could barely breathe.

Panther glanced at the two women. "Take them with us."

Nina and Clara were taken to a nearby abandoned warehouse. The floor was littered with empty bottles and cigarette butts; it was clearly the gang’s hideout.

Clara, her hands and feet now bound, was thrown to the floor. The warehouse was lit, and someone recognized her as a celebrity. The leering thugs began to eye her with greedy expressions.

A chill ran down Clara’s spine. She threw her pride to the wind, kneeling and begging for her life. "Please, don’t kill me! I can give you money. My fiancé is the president of the Aethel Group. I can give you however much you want! Is fifty million enough?"

Hearing the words "fifty million," the thugs’ eyes lit up.

One of them pulled out a phone to check the news and showed it to Panther. "Boss, she’s telling the truth. Her fiancé really is the president of the Aethel Group."

Panther was clearly tempted. He wasn’t about to let a cash cow this big off the hook easily.

"Tell your fiancé to bring the ransom. My price is non-negotiable: eighty million!"

"Okay, okay! Fine!" Clara nodded her head furiously.

Panther had one of his men give her the phone.

Clara grabbed the phone and called Aiden Sinclair. It rang more than a dozen times with no answer. Noticing the thugs’ suspicious glances, she decisively hung up and dialed Sophia Sawyer instead.

Meanwhile, Panther walked over to Nina and ripped the tape from her mouth.

"Hey. Eighty million for your ransom. Pay up, and I’ll let you go."

Nina leaned against the wall, her hair obscuring most of her face, revealing a pair of beautiful but lifeless eyes. She looked like a doll discarded in the trash—pathetic and miserable.

Her lips trembled. "I don’t have any money."

Panther let out a roguish grin. "You’re just as pretty as she is. How come you don’t have a rich fiancé? If you don’t have eighty million, you must have eight million, right?"

Nina shook her head. "I don’t have any money."

"Tsk. Cheap trash. Fine, forget eight million. How about eight hundred thousand! If you won’t pay, I’ll get it from her." 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Panther gestured toward Clara. "She wants you dead. I’ll make her pay an extra eight hundred thousand for your life. Think she’ll do it?"

A flicker of movement finally appeared in Nina’s vacant, lifeless eyes. She didn’t want to die.

"Fine. Eight hundred thousand."

Nina got her phone back. Her finger hovered over Declan Grant’s name in her contacts for a second before she finally scrolled past it.

...

「Meanwhile, on the other side of Crestfall」

Aiden Sinclair, having failed to find Nina at the hospital, stormed into Sophia Sawyer’s residence just as she was preparing for bed.

"Did you have someone take Nina?" Aiden demanded.

Sophia Sawyer stared at the furious man before her in disbelief. The air crackled with tension. "What are you talking about? If I wanted that woman dead, I have plenty of ways to do it. Why would I need to resort to kidnapping?"

Aiden shot back, "So you admit it. You want her dead. Her imprisonment, today’s social media storm... that was all your doing."

Nina’s past was well-hidden; even Aiden hadn’t been able to dig it up. There was no way Clara could have found it. Only Sophia Sawyer had that kind of reach.

"I was the one behind it!" Sophia admitted without hesitation. "The murder, the assault, the begging on her knees—those are all facts. She did those things, so she should have known there would be a price to pay. She deserves the consequences!"

"That doesn’t give you the right to use your power and money to crush a woman!" Aiden retorted.

Sophia sneered. "What right do you have to criticize me? Weren’t you the first one to punish and hurt her? Didn’t you cause the death of your own child?"

Aiden was rendered speechless.

"Aiden, I don’t care what happened between you and that Nina woman in the past," Sophia threatened. "From now on, you will be completely devoted to Clara. Otherwise, I will take back everything you currently possess—including that woman’s life!"

Aiden raised his head, his gaze resolute and dark. "You just try it."

Sophia met his gaze, her lips pressed into a thin line. She said nothing. Aiden’s threats were always silent, but he never failed to accomplish what he set out to do.

Just as they were locked in a standoff, Sophia’s phone rang. Seeing it was Clara, she quickly put it on speaker. They had already arranged it; according to their plan, Clara should have left the coast by now and be back at Lividia Villa.

The moment the call connected, Clara’s panicked voice cried out for help.

"Mom... help me... I’ve been kidnapped... They want an eighty million ransom..."

Sophia froze, clutching the phone tightly. "Don’t panic. The money isn’t an issue. We’ll get the money right now..."

Aiden stood his ground, unmoved. A flicker of suspicion crossed his face; he doubted the call was real.

The call continued, and then, suddenly, behind Clara’s frantic pleas, Aiden heard another woman’s faint voice.

Aiden spun around and bolted out the door...