"When will you reveal the last target location, Jared?" Valerie queried again, unable to tolerate the disgusting man's antics anymore.
The moment he had been released, he had walked out of the cell towards the entrance as though he owned the place, smiling devilishly at everyone. His unexpected entrance made all the people at the Intelligence stop and stare. Though not many people were working at this time of night, there were still a few working overtime to solve some important cases.
Valerie closed her eyes as soon as she saw colleagues giving her weird glances. Jared had not even cared to blood on wipe his lips and face, allowing everyone to see his injuries while he sauntered towards the entrance, keeping an eye on Maggie as he did so.
"What is the hurry, Deputy?" Jared turned around to smile at her. "We still have some time, and as I said, I won't be speaking a word about my plans until I am far away from here, in a safe place." He winked at her, irking Valerie all the more.
By now, they had reached the entrance, and barely five minutes after, a black car stopped in front of them, startling everyone except Jared. He smiled widely as he turned around and waved at the group behind him.
"It was nice being here, though I did not like the treatment you guys gave me. But don't worry, I am not a vengeful person. I will just make sure that you receive what you deserve. Now, Maggie, darling, if you would follow me." He opened the door for her and stepped aside, and Maggie rolled her eyes at him in anger.
Her hatred towards him had reached its peak, and she did not know how long she could bear his presence. Maggie was just about to enter the car when Jared stopped her immediately.
"Uh-huh," He shook his head as though he was reprimanding her gently. "Wait a minute, dear. Hand over your gun and your phone."
Maggie's eyes widened as soon as heard him. Even Ryder was shocked for he had no idea about the gun Maggie was carrying.
'How did Jared find out?' He thought himself and the next moment, fear engulfed his heart and mind. Without any phone or gun to save herself, Jared could do anything with her and nobody would find out about it.
Just the thought of it was enough for Ryder to step forward and intervene. "Maggie, you are not leaving." He pulled her behind him and glared at the man who just stared at him in surprise.
"Ryder, have you gone crazy? Let me go." Maggie attempted to wriggle out of his hold but the man remained adamant, forcing her to stay where she was.
"Jared will only hurt you, Maggie. I will not allow you to go with him." Ryder tried to reason with her even though he already knew that it would not work. And just as he had expected, Maggie shook her head immediately.
"I don't care about myself, Ryder. If I do not go with him, people will die. Are you ready to watch innocent people die right in front of you?" Maggie argued, not caring about the crowd around her. All she wanted was to stop Jared from executing his dreadful plans, even if it meant that she had to give up her life.
"But Maggie, Jared is a dangerous man."
"Yes, he is. He is a scoundrel." Maggie did not hesitate to scold him even though he was right beside her, and Jared raised an eyebrow at her immediately.
"Maggie, you do know the consequences of pissing me off, don't you?" His voice was filled with wickedness and warning, and Maggie swallowed all the list of insults she had prepared for him. They were already unsure about Jared's motives and she did not intend to trigger his anger and be the reason for innocent people's deaths.
"I am sorry, Ryder. I will have to go. Innocent lives are at stake. I will have to save them." Maggie managed to wriggle out of his hold and handed him her phone and her gun before entering the car without looking back.
Jared smirked at her actions and gave a provocative look to Ryder. "Although I am touched by your concerns for her, Maggie is now mine. You will soon get what you deserve for even thinking about what belongs to me." He threatened him blatantly, not even caring that the people were watching him.
"And Deputy." He then turned his attention to Valerie who was glowering at him. "I hope that you will be smart enough to not follow me. Otherwise, I will never reveal the last location and you will soon find people dying around you. May we never meet again."
Jared winked at her and entered the car. The moment he closed the door, the car zoomed out of the premises, leaving a crowd behind it. Nobody except Preston and Valerie noticed a car lingering nearby and soon after, it started following Jared's car, making sure to maintain a good distance so as to not get noticed.
The crowd had barely dispersed when another car stopped in front of the three people, and Ian lowered the window. "Get in, Deputy. We need to save Maggie."
For a moment, Valerie stood frozen to her spot on seeing Ian here. But immediately after, she rushed to join him while Preston and Ryder took the seats at the back.
"Was this your plan all this while?" Valerie was still in shock to see him taking action this quickly.
"Not mine. Noah's. He and our men are trailing Jared's car. Once we find the target location, we will ambush them and save Maggie." Ian disclosed the plan they had come up with at the last minute and continued driving, following the direction in which Noah's car was going using the GPS."
Ryder, who had felt his soul leave his body on seeing Maggie leave with Jared, felt himself being revived. Only he knew how scared he had been when he saw her leave with the monster. Though she was in danger, he at least hoped to save her in time and kill that bastard for even thinking about Maggie.
"What if Jared notices us following him?" Preston queried with worry and Ian shook his head immediately.
"I don't think he will notice it for our men are stationed at all the routes he could possibly take once he reaches the junction. It will only seem like normal people are driving in the same lane as him. Don't worry, every car is different."
Ian assured them. "I have already informed them of the car plate number, and they will keep an eye on it. Moreover, with Joshua watching over from the surveillance camera, Jared can't escape from our eyes."
Valerie let out a sigh in relief and she stared at Ian gratefully. Even though it was not his duty, he was helping them greatly and for this reason alone, she was filled with gratitude towards him.
"How do we call him now that I do not have his number? He did not take his phone that we had confiscated from him before leaving." Ryder asked from behind, and it was only then that Valerie realized the problem they had completely ignored.
"Jared is a smart man. He knew we would have placed a tracker in his phone. So, he left it here." Valerie gritted her teeth in anger and glanced at Ian before facing her friends. "But not to worry. Maggie will not allow him to get away with this. She will somehow make sure that he calls us."
"Yes, she will. And if I am not wrong, he will be calling you in a few minutes.." Ian had barely finished speaking when Valerie's phone started ringing.