Ivanka used her gun to hold off Mr. George’s men while urging Sandy to leave quickly.Sandy cried desperately. She wanted to leave with Ivanka. She wanted to tell her she could not make it on her own, but they had no other choice.Ivanka was not just helping her escape. She was creating a chance for both of them. This was the only way either of them could survive.Sandy sobbed and said, “Stay safe and wait for me. I’ll come back for you.”Ivanka smiled and nodded. Then she said in a serious tone, “No matter what you hear, don’t stop. Just keep running up the mountain. That’s the only way you’ll be safe. Got it?”Sandy nodded vigorously. Once she saw Sandy leave, Ivanka turned to fight back.Her gun did not have many bullets left. She did not want to hurt anyone because she knew it would only make Mr. George angrier, and she would have to pay for it.She only wanted to hold them off for a little while, but one of the men recklessly charged forward.Ivanka had no choice but to
Mr. George did not say a word. He just stared at Ivanka with a cold, menacing glare.She stood tall and composed. After a moment, Mr. George broke into a slow chuckle. “Ivanka, you’re something else. I really underestimated you.”Ivanka smiled faintly but remained silent.In an instant, Mr. George’s expression darkened. He pulled out his gun, cocked it, and pointed it directly at her forehead. He said ruthlessly, “Do you have any idea how many of my men, who fought alongside me, you’ve killed?”Ivanka said nothing. The truth was, she also was not sure either.Earlier, her shots had been meant as warnings. The bullets were intended to intimidate, not to kill. But in the heat of the moment, the last six bullets had been aimed directly at people. She had no idea if they had hit vital areas or caused fatalities.Mr. George held up three fingers. His face twisted with rage as he shuddered. “Three! Three of my brothers are dead because of you!”Ivanka shrugged and said calmly, “Mr.
She waited, but no car showed up. Instead, her pursuers arrived.Five men armed with machetes closed in on her.Their eyes were fixed on the helpless Sandy with menacing grins.Sandy screamed in terror, but her desperate cries only excited them as they watched her helplessness.She found herself in an isolated, helpless situation. She was utterly alone, and there was no way out.She could only watch as the five men closed in on her. In her mind, she kept thinking of Ivanka, who had desperately tried to clear the way for her escape.Sandy shook her head and backed away. A tear slid down her cheek.Eventually, she stumbled and fell to the ground. Exhausted and helpless, she could do nothing but watch as the men drew closer.The leader smiled and said, “Hey, gorgeous. Let me send you on your way.”When she saw them pulling out knives in front of her, she quickly shut her eyes and cried out, “No!”... After Ivanka was captured, she was taken back to the same abandoned factory.
“It looks like your subordinates are the ones who have a fate worse than death, not my friend, Mr. George.”Ivanka smiled. Her smile was usually warm and refreshing. But at that moment, it was chilling. Her bright smile made the atmosphere even more tense.Mr. George was infuriated and slapped her hard. Her face immediately swelled up.But she did not cry out in pain. She kept a smile on her face. It was as if she was silently asking if that was all he got. Mr. George felt so insulted that he dragged her to a water tank nearby and pressed her head down into the water.As the cold water hit her face, she shivered. She did not have time to hold her breath. The water rushed into her nose and throat. It was painful and suffocating.No matter how much she struggled, the large hand continued pressing down on her head.Her hands were bound tightly behind her back, and she could not find anything to hold onto.She knew he was being serious this time. She closed her eyes, stopped s
Travis spoke so softly that Ivanka could not hear what he said. Then she heard Mr. George say no while dismissing him. Clearly, Mr. George did not want Travis to bring up the topic again. Travis looked nervous. He drew closer to Mr. George and said, “Boss, your ultimate aim is to humiliate her and Michael instead of making money, so why wouldn’t my idea work?” Ivanka was horrified and had a bad feeling about the “idea” they were sharing. For some reason, the traffickers they had contacted could not make it. On top of that, she had previously killed their gang members. Therefore, some of them could no longer hold back themselves and wanted to humiliate her and Michael immediately. Ivanka knew she must not show her fear at that moment. Her fear of them would only make the b*stards grow even more exciting. Nonetheless, she refused to allow those b*stards to ruin her body. If worse came to worst, she would perish together with them. Still, she refused to accept the fact
“Don’t you feel sorry for what you’ve done?!” Ivanka stared at Travis as if she was staring at an idiot. “Mr. George is the one who killed him. Since you were so close to Benny, you should hate Mr. George instead. Why are you forcing me to regret myself for what I’ve done to him?” Ivanka looked at Travis in puzzlement. Travis was afraid of Mr. George because of his power, so he targeted Ivanka, who was weaker in comparison. Travis knew Mr. George was the one who had killed Benny. But he tended to delude himself and put all the blame on Ivanka. All he wanted was a peace of mind. Ivanka felt speechless. She sighed while looking at the rancid food. She wondered when she would be rescued and when the opportunity would come to leave this place. An opportunity presented to those who were well-prepared for it. When it was time to leave this place, she could not run away with an empty stomach. It would only cause her trouble. So, Ivanka decided to take the plate. Little
Suddenly, Ivanka saw a human face appear outside the window. She was shocked. She looked carefully at the human face and realized that it was none other than Michael. Ivanka cradled her mouth for fear that she would cry out in excitement. Her eyes teared up. When she was taken away, threatened, and mistreated, she barely showed any emotions. It was not because she was not afraid of them. Mr. George was ruthless. He was a madman. She could not look fearful in front of these men. She needed to protect Sandy. As she continued to act tough, she became used to it. It was not until she saw Michael that she finally met her savior. Michael had trekked all the way up the mountain to find Ivanka at all costs. He also bore the risk of being discovered by Mr. George and his group at any time. But the moment he saw Ivanka, he thought everything he did was worthwhile. “Are you still alright?” Michael mouthed. Using his lips, he asked about Ivanka’s current condition. Ivanka n
That was how Michael showed up in front of Ivanka. Michael found his way based on Sandy’s description of the location. Ivan wanted to stop Michael but failed. Michael had expressionlessly said, “If Sandy was taken instead, I wouldn’t stop you either.” Ivan had no choice but to make way for Michael. He reminded Michael to be careful. Nonetheless, all that was no longer important. The moment Michael saw Ivanka safe and sound, everything became worthwhile. The two did not need to say much. They could tell from each other’s gazes, and the rest was redundant. Ivanka was relieved when she saw Michael. But she could not completely relax herself yet. She briefly mentioned Fiona’s matter. Upon hearing her words, Michael fell silent for some time before asking, “Has Mr. George met with Fiona before this?” Ivanka was startled. The next moment, she shook her head. “I don’t think so.” “Are you sure?” Michael narrowed his eyes. “This is very important.” Ivanka recalled care
Instead, she remained standing in front of Jimothy and studied the group of men with a smile.“He works at our company. Since I’ve run into him, I’m obligated to come over and check on him. Pray tell, what has happened between you and why do you feel the need to resolve it with violence?”Jimothy stared at Candice while she stood with her back facing him. The look in his eyes was conflicted.The men exchanged glances with each other and saw a hint of astonishment in one another’s eyes.The man at the front of the group, who was likely their leader, said, “We just get paid to do this, lady. You should stay out of it.”When Candice heard his advice which also sounded like a threat, she did not intend to back down at all. Instead, she asked him, “Oh? How much did you get for this? I’ll pay you double. I just told you that this guy works for us, so I have to intervene.”The leader started laughing, and so did the men behind him. They did not even bother to hide the mockery in their t
Candice ordered some food she liked, and the dishes arrived soon after.Sandy suggested that they all took a picture together.The others did not object.Sandy gave her phone to the waiter.Then the five of them moved their chairs to sit in a row.Michael and Ivan each took the outermost seats.Naturally, Ivanka was seated next to Michael while Sandy, who paid for the dinner, was right beside her.Next to Sandy was Candice, who sat awkwardly in her chair. Ivan was beside Candice.The second the waiter took the picture, Ivanka and Michael exchanged glances inadvertently. Meanwhile, Ivan stared past Candice, and his eyes fell on Sandy.Sandy and Candice were the only people who looked into the camera.But each and every one of them had a genuine smile on their face.Once they had taken a picture, they started eating together.It was a nice, relaxing dinner. They did not talk about work or how annoying Coco had been.They mostly chatted about the fun anecdotes they had he
The call was soon answered, but the person who picked up was not Rosie. It was Mrs. Ruth.“Ms. Lane, you finally called! Mdm. Barkworth will be over the moon when she wakes up!” Mrs. Ruth sounded quite excited as she spoke.Ivanka smiled and asked, “Is Grandma resting now?”“Yeah, she hasn’t had a good rest after learning that you’d be kidnapped. Once you were safe, she finally allowed herself to rest.”Ivanka nodded and told Mrs. Ruth to take good care of Rosie. She later said that she and Micheal would visit Rosie soon.With that, she hung up the phone.Meanwhile, she also reflected upon herself.Rosie had gotten old, yet Ivanka always made her worry. From that moment on, Ivanka would consider the consequences before making any decision. It was not only for the sake of herself, but the important people in her life, who also cared about her.As she contemplated this, Ivanka inevitably thought of the gathering. It would be quite fun.Before they were about to get off work, San
Coco practically ran out crying.Candice glanced at Ivanka worriedly and asked, “Will something bad happen to her?”Ivanka was not concerned at all. “What could possibly happen? She is an adult. Even if something bad happens, she has to bear the consequences of her own action.”Hearing that, Candice no longer fretted over the matter.She was not really worried about Coco. She was just afraid that something would happen to Coco, and Ivanka would be blamed for it.But Ivanka had made a good point. Candice did not want to trouble herself with Coco’s matters. It would only be an unnecessary emotional burden to her.Everyone in the office began discussing the progress of their project.Perhaps it was because Ivanka had made an example of Coco, the other employees became especially energized and diligent during their discussion.They were even more focused than before, since they were all afraid that Ivanka would treat them harshly as well.Hence, they were particularly efficient.
“Why don’t we leave now so that you can deal with this matter, Ms. Ivanka?”The director of the project department, who was perceptive and shrewd, planned to leave right then. Ivanka shook her head and signaled everyone to sit down.They were all uneasy, and they kept giving Coco weird looks.Two people had dared speak to Ivanka like that in the past—Ferris and Mandy.But those two were no longer with the company.At the thought of those people, the project department staff began looking at Coco with pity.However, Coco could not care less. All she wanted was to make a fuss.She wanted to see how shameless Ivanka could be.Unruffled, Ivanka stared at her. She did not get angry and seemed rather affable as she asked, “Tell me what upset you. Have we falsely accused you of something you didn’t do?”Before Coco said anything, Ivanka added cruelly, “Oh, I forgot that you aren’t familiar with the protocol here, so you have no idea what you did wrong, right?”Coco paled. Undoubte
Candice was momentarily stunned by his answer. She was a little offended.“Then why did you come to my office for this conversation?” Jimothy’s grin was mischievous. “To prove your company’s HR is blind, and you just lost a great talent. That’s all.”With that, Jimothy stood up, dusted off his sleeves dramatically, and turned to leave.“Your resume!” Candice called after him.Jimothy waved dismissively without looking back. “Keep it. Enjoy reading it. And don’t let an incompetent HR handle your interviews again.”Candice stood there for a moment and processed the scene before an involuntary chuckle escaped her lips. This one had personality.Regardless, the incident served as a wake-up call for Candice.It became glaringly clear that Coco was not only incompetent but also prone to overestimating her abilities.Before the task was assigned, she had the chance to decline. Candice had given her the opportunity and explicitly asked if she could handle it. Yet, Coco confidentl
The college student finally believed her and walked toward Candice.On the other hand, Coco seemed guilty and was desperate to prevent it. “He has no respect for our company! Are you really going to hire someone like him who won’t follow orders?” Coco’s tone was sharp. Her finger trembled as she pointed at the young man.She scanned the room for backup in hopes that the people who had been flattering her earlier would speak up in her defense.Unfortunately, no one stepped forward.Those who flattered Coco only did so out of respect for Ivanka. Yet Candice had a close relationship with Ivanka and was the company’s vice president.The gap between a vice president versus an intern was as vast as night and day.Anyone with common sense knew where to align themselves.Coco felt a mix of despair and resentment.Candice ignored her entirely. Why Ivanka was so wary of someone as clueless as this was beyond her comprehension.Coco was simply dumb.Without wasting another thought o
However, reality proved she had worried for nothing.Candice had called her over merely to ask if she had the most basic professional knowledge and whether she could handle the afternoon’s interview.Coco let out a deep sigh of relief before patting her chest confidently and assuring Candice she was more than capable.Knowing Coco came from the mountains, Candice was naturally skeptical, so she asked again, “Are you sure?”Coco thought to herself that it was just an interview. All she needed to do was just ask the candidates some questions. They could just choose someone who wrote the resume well.Not wanting to embarrass herself in front of Michael’s cousin, Coco pretended to be confident and accepted the task.Candice was half-doubtful, yet she still gave her instructions and let her go.However, Coco’s firm assurance eventually led to trouble....“Your company must be a joke to hire someone like you for HR. You’re offended? You’re not even a real professional. What? You ca
Word quickly spread within the HR department. After learning about Coco’s connection to Ivanka, some colleagues were vying to curry favor with her.Although some observant individuals noticed that the relationship between Coco and Ivanka was not as harmonious as it seemed, it did not deter the opportunists. Relentless flattery and attention poured in.One moment, a male coworker would offer to grab her food while placing his own lunch order. Next, a female coworker would ask if she wanted to order some coffee too.At first, Coco was caught off guard and politely declined. However, as she realized their intentions were purely self-serving, she began to accept their gestures without hesitation.By midday, Coco had become the department’s little queen. Ironically, as an intern, she should have been the one fetching coffee, running errands and collecting mail. Instead, she had colleagues practically lining up to do those tasks for her.Coco quickly assembled her own little e