"It's been a busy day," Aileen complained quietly.Aileen let out a long sigh. She had a lot of work to do today. The watch on her left wrist showed almost midnight. Aileen usually got home late.The taxi that Aileen had booked to take her home had informed her that it was on its way to her apartment. It was only a few minutes before midnight. Aileen wanted to go home right away and clean her sticky body, which had been sticky from working overtime."Please, Miss."Aileen see in a confuse, because he is not the usual driver who pick her up."Oh, Mr. Tom has a family matter, so he can't drive the cab for a few days."Aileen nodded and quickly got into the cab. This time, the driver looked much younger than Mr. Tom, though he still looked like a man in his thirties.Usually, Aileen had many conversations with Mr. Tom during the ride. The old man had been Aileen's regular for a long time. Aileen could drive, but she was often tired after work, so she preferred to call a taxi. Driving whi
"Check the document. Otherwise, you'll regret not finding out sooner."Aileen was reminded of the warning words of the mysterious Mark. The arrogant man with the enigmatic appearance had joined the marketing department a month ago."What the hell does that mean?" Aileen grumbled to herself as her hands searched for the file she wanted.The man's performance immediately baffled Aileen, the head of marketing. And here she was, sneaking into the Director's office to follow Mark's absurd suggestion.Her eyes widened as she read a document with a title on it. "Ah, here it is!" she muttered.She quickly opened it and flipped through the pages to find the one she wanted. Pulling her cell phone from her pocket, she snapped pictures of the report's summary pages.Occasionally turning her head toward the door, Aileen ensured the secretary did not re-enter the room. She was now concentrating on taking pictures. Her heart was pounding. It felt like a bomb would go off at any moment when the door
"Then what Mark said is true," Aileen muttered as she tapped her pen on the desk.With her eyes still occasionally fixed on the file, she picked up her cell phone and dialed the man's number."Yes, Ms. Aileen?" a voice asked from the other end of the line."Could you come to my office, please? There's something I'd like to discuss with you," Aileen replied, ignoring her reluctance to ask the man to come to her office as if they were partners who always got along well."All right, I'll be there in ten minutes." The man on the other end of the line then ended their conversation.Aileen was surprised to find herself reaching for a small mirror from her bag to correct some makeup on her face. She tried to catch her breath so as not to look too nervous."Come on, Aileen. Why do you look so tense to meet him, huh? Damn!" She cursed herself for being so out of control.She was not used to being awkward around men, especially when the man was below her in the office. But Mark Miller was diffe
The booming voice of the man in his early forties did not shake Mark and Aileen's resolve. Both stood where they were, looking straight into Mr. William's face."Good afternoon, Sir. I'm sorry, we didn't mean to make a scene outside your office, but we need to talk to you as soon as possible, so...""Tell me here as soon as possible. Or if it takes longer, I'll let Laura listen and take notes. I'm in an important meeting with a client," Mr. William replied quickly."Um, actually, we'd like to have a word with your important client, if you'd let us, Sir?”"What do you mean? And who is this gentleman, Ms. Aileen? Isn't he a new employee in your department, transferred from another branch?" Immediately, Mr. William turned to Aileen, whom he had gotten to know well during his two years of service."Uh, this is Mr. Mark Miller, Sir. We have an important matter to discuss with you immediately." Aileen finally replied, summoning all her courage.She was not afraid of Mr. William. It was just
"Oh my God, Mr. William. Would you take your employees hostage? Isn't that wrong?" asked Mark calmly, despite two thugs grabbing his hands from behind."Don't patronize me about what is or isn't wrong for me to do! Now tell me who you are!" scolded Mr William as he looked at Mark from head to toe.Mark seemed to struggle with whether to confess now or later."Let me introduce myself, Mr. William. I am Mark Miller, a representative of the audit team from Headquarters," Mark said in an arrogant tone.Suddenly, every other pair of eyes in the room widened in surprise. One of the shocked thugs almost lost control of Mark's hand, and Mark almost managed to duck out of the way before the other attacked Mark's lungs from behind, knocking him off balance.William was now in complete shock. His mouth was suddenly stiff, and he was unable to speak. There was a few moments of silence before Mark's voice finally returned,"So please cooperate, Sir. First of all, tell these people to let us go," M
"Oh, God! Nowhere, huh?"Aileen gasped in shock. The hopes that had just soared were now dashed to the ground."Shit! Why did they take my phone?" screamed Mark, sounding very annoyed.Aileen rolled her eyes in disgust."Of course they did. It's an unwritten rule of siege procedure. Disarming the victim and their communication devices is the most important thing they have to do," Aileen said in an annoyed tone.Mark snorted quietly. He was very annoyed by this fact."Oh, I hope the cell phone wasn't turned off so the central team can find out where we are now. They'll still be able to find the last place the phone was before it went off."Aileen decided to give up hope for now. She was now focused on thinking of ways to break free of the restraints and escape the room."Can you crush this chair and make a pointy end to hang our ropes from?" Aileen offered her opinion.Suddenly, Mark thought about such a method. It seems possible, he thought. Then, he struggled to move from his positio
"Aileen!"Mark gasped in surprise.Who would have thought that the girl would be so desperate to protect herself? Oh God!Aileen crouched in front of Mark, gasping for air.Strangely, in the pain that seemed to crush the bones in her shoulders and back where the chair had hit, the only thing that stuck in her mind was Mark's scream calling her Aileen. Without the usual 'Ma'am'. Was it wrong that it sounded so nice to her ears?"Are you okay?" Mark, who was frantically questioning Aileen, checked the condition of the girl in front of him. Then he shifted his position and blocked Aileen from William, who approached them again, even though he no longer had a chair with him. At least the man didn't look like he was going to attack again.Aileen seemed to nod despite the excruciating pain in one shoulder. She was strong enough to bear the pain. Participating in taekwondo activities during high school and college was enough to keep her trained now. Although it had been a long time since she
Three thugs were left behind, overpowered by Mark. Alone, armed, and with a body that was also strong under his suit. If Aileen had seen Mark's skill in dodging and counterattacking his opponents, her admiration for him would have increased dramatically.Unfortunately, the girl was in a race against time herself, and her breathing was ragged. She was unable to stop her steps to take a deep breath. The soles of her feet hurt from the many sharp pebbles and bushes along the way, as it seemed to be a forest area in the middle of nowhere.Aileen, who was just a newcomer and had to work every day as soon as she arrived in the city, needed more time to get to know many other areas outside the city center, which offered everything she needed with complete availability, except, of course, vacations. Yes, come to think of it, she had rarely taken a vacation in the past year. And even when she did, she used it to return to her hometown.Behind her, the sound of running feet came closer. Oh God!