?<strong>Chapter 367:</strong>


    Though they had only reached halfway, Michael was forced to m on the brakes. A massive boulder now blocked the only route down the mountain, an obstacle that hadn’t been there before. Before Michael and Adrian could even process the situation, the car trailing them had caught up.


    Michael clenched the steering wheel and exchanged a meaningful look with Adrian. In those fleeting moments, they formed a n. The car swerved towards the adjacent woods, jolting violently as it made its way down to the lower mountain road. The tires screeched, leaving marks on the asphalt. The windshield cracked, and both Michael and Adrian felt they had just dodged death.


    Michael said, “Bro, Lacey and I will owe you for a lifetime.”


    “No time to waste; we need to reach the airport now.” They continued down the mountain in their damaged car as a heavy downpour started. The ineffective windshield wipers forced them to decrease their speed.


    Halfway through, their path was blocked by a line of barriers. With no choice, Michael hit the brakes again, and a white car halted before them. Amid the rain, a stout man with gold-ringed fingers stepped out, wielding a golf club.


    Trapped, Adrian and Michael unbuckled their seatbelts and surveyed their surroundings cautiously. Soon, a violent sh broke out between the two parties. In the rain, the man’s thick fingers clenched Michael’s hair, mming his head against the car hood.


    “You want to save someone, and I need to save my daughter! I have no choice!” Michael, incensed, grabbed a handful of broken ss and hurled it at the man’s face. The man released him, enraged. “Damn it! Get him!”


    ss fragments covered Michael’s face, but he shrugged off the difort and staggered towards Adrian. Adrian, holding the medical equipment crucial for a heart transnt, was overwhelmed and couldn’t defend himself. Michael fought his way through the assants to reach Adrian. As they attempted to flee, the man’s henchmen caught up with them.


    During a critical moment, Adrian thrust the medical equipment into Michael’s hands. “Run! Get to the airport, and you’ll be safe!”


    “Adrian!”


    “Why are you hesitating? Don’t you need to save Lacey?” Every second Michael dyed worsened their predicament. He gave Adrian a profound look. “Adrian, I’ll find help for you!” Left to face the aggressors alone, Adrian stood drenched, his wet hair clinging to his forehead, his expression determined and fierce.


    Although Adrian had bought Michael some time, his outnumbered strikes grew weaker. The man approached, dragging his golf club along.


    “Adrian!”


    As he felt his consciousness slipping, Adrian thought he heard Michael’s voice once more. Yet, he no longer had the strength to confirm if it was Michael. The golf club swung down; Adrian managed a partial dodge, but it stillnded a heavy blow on his shoulder. Grimacing in pain, Adrian knelt as the man delivered several kicks to his chest.


    “Move aside!”


    “Boss! Look!”


    The heavy rain obscured the man’s vision. Squinting, he barely discerned arge group dressed in ck converging on them. Michael had run into the Ricard family en route, and learning that Joelle had sent them, he brought them to Adrian’s aid.


    “Boss, what now? We’re outnumbered!”


    The man clenched the golf club. “We need to retrieve that heart, even at the cost of our lives! I want that heart at any cost! By any means necessary!”


    Suddenly, the empty road resounded with the battle cries of hundreds of men. Adrian, who had passed out from the pain, was supported by Michael. Michael clutched the medical equipment in one hand while propping up Adrian with the other. The chaos around them faded from Michael’s focus; his only thought was that Lacey could still be saved.


    “Adrian, we’re going back to Illerith now!” Upon arriving at the airport, the medical team Rafael had arranged was ready and waiting. They inspected the heart and employed more sophisticated techniques for its safe long-distance transport. As they stepped off the ne, Michael and Adrian paused to look up at the clear blue sky.


    The tranquility was abruptly broken by the sound of a gunshot. A bullet struck Michael in the right chest. His eyes widened as he uttered his final words to Adrian. “Save Lacey… Adrian, please…”


    The medical team, taken aback, moved Michael out of the sniper’s line of sight for emergency care. Over the quiet tarmac, a loudspeaker red a menacing message. “If you want to survive, hand over what I demand! Otherwise, I will shoot someone every half hour! I don’t care about involving the police; if my daughter cannot live, neither will any of you!” The aircraft held 184 passengers, whose voices filled the air with panic. The ne seemed an isted ind in an immense sea,pletely cut off from assistance.


    One of the medical staff attempted to reason, saying, “Mr. Miller, please think of everyone’s safety here.” Bang! The moment the plea was made, another gunshot echoed. The medical staff member was knocked off their feet by the shot, which came from a new direction, indicating multiple snipers.


    The voice over the loudspeaker said fiercely, “Anyone who speaks up will meet their fate sooner!”


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