Chapter 215: Chapter 215: Kidnapped.
[Edward POV]
My hands were tightly bound with a cable tie as they forcefully shoved me into the back seat of the black SUV.
"Who wants to see me? Mr. Gray? Don't be too rough with me. I might fall in love~" I joked, trying to lighten the mood as they handled me roughly. The two Mexican bellboys settled themselves beside me, while the Russian lady occupied the seat in front.
"Tape his mouth. I have a feel... he will be... more annoying if we let him keep talking," the Russian lady instructed with a thick accent, already tired of my antics despite it being only five minutes since they captured me.
"Aww, that's just hurtful. I actually wanted to have a conversation with you guys. How else am I supposed to find out more about Mikael? I know he's the leader of the Cobra mercenaries, but who is he really? What are his likes, dislikes and hobbies?" I said playfully, trying to keep the atmosphere light.
The car fell into silence. Tension filled the air. The bellboys exchanged glances, unsure of how to respond. Eventually, they decided to comply with the order.
Before the man on the right could tape my mouth shut, the Russian lady interrupted, "Stop... How do you know about Mikael?"
I smiled and replied, "Should that really be your primary concern right now? If I were you, I'd be more focused on figuring out how to evade the police blockade rather than worrying about whether your identity has been exposed."
The Russian lady chuckled and said, "Oh, is our identity exposed? Nonetheless, it doesn't matter. We will not be staying in this country any longer. Pat him down," she ordered the others while taking off her brunette wig, revealing her short blonde hair. Her piercing blue eyes seemed to scrutinize every aspect of me.
'So they aren't from the same group.' I thought to myself. Her expression told me all I needed to know before this. It seemed that the two groups had some conflict with each other because they had taken the same mission target.
(Anna in the 2019 movie, ANNA)
The two Mexican men searched through my pockets, confiscating my phone, an asthma inhaler, and some magnum condoms. The Russian lady expressed surprise and asked, "Rubber? You brought those?"
"Well, you never know when you might need them," I replied playfully. Glancing at the asthma inhaler, I added, "I don't mind if you keep my phone, but it might be wise to let me hold onto the inhaler. After all, a dead hostage isn't very valuable, is it? Alright guys, stop searching my pants, the only other thing you'll find in there is my penis, although it can be categorized as a weapon, you should really get your hand off it."
"Oh, sorry," the bellboy on my left said, realizing what he had mistakenly grabbed.
"You won't die. At most, you'll suffer," the Russian lady responded, rolling her eyes at the bellboy's error. She inspected the inhaler before relenting, "Fine, keep it. And, since I'm feeling generous, you can keep your 'protection' as well."
The car accelerated swiftly after my phone was tossed out of the window. As we journeyed towards our unknown destination, I decided to probe a bit.
The reason I hadn't retaliated or attempted to escape was due to their strategic positioning. Since we were inside the hotel, they had formed a tight circle around me.
If I were to attack one of them, the other two would swiftly come to their defense, making it futile. For now, my strategy was to go along with their plans until I could gather more information. Robin had been onto something earlier, but the information I had received so far was incomplete.
"Lisa? Jamila? Anastasia? Ania?" I playfully guessed, trying to figure out the Russian lady's name.
"What are you doing?" Sasha asked, her brow furrowing.
"I'm trying to guess your name based on your appearance. You have a slightly country look, so I'm going with... Polina," I confidently replied, provoking a frown from Sasha.
"It's Sasha, and I'm not from the country— Damn it! Why haven't you guys gagged his mouth yet?" she exclaimed in frustration.
"Come on, Sasha, don't be angry. It's a nice name, and it suits such a pretty lady as you. Despite the fact that you're kidnapping me, I can honestly say that you're one of the most beautiful girls I've ever met. And trust me, I've met a lot of gorgeous girls," I flirtatiously remarked.
Before my mouth could be gagged once again, Sasha intervened, stopping the man who held the tape. She smiled and said, "You can't sweet talk your way out of this."
"Why would I sweet talk my way out with the truth? People usually lie to do that," I responded, flashing a charming smile.
"Interesting," Sasha replied, batting her eyes flirtatiously at me.
"I wonder, how much did your client pay for you to willingly become the enemy of the entire country?" I questioned curiously.
"You underestimate your importance, kid," the bellboy chimed in, laughing.
Internally, I noted that the other country's military was likely not their client. I turned to the laughing man and asked innocently, "Really? Wow, I guess wrong. So... how much?"
The man excitedly replied, "One million dollars!"
"Each?" I inquired, feeling confused.
"No, total," the man clarified, also becoming puzzled by my response.
"And... How many of you are there?" I probed further.
"Don't answer him," Sasha warned the man.
"No, Sasha, you misunderstand. I'm not trying to gather information about your group. I'm just genuinely confused right now. You went through all of this... for a measly million dollars?" I expressed my disbelief.
"Yeah?" Sasha responded, her incredulity growing as I mentioned the amount of money.
I looked at her with disbelief and remarked, "You guys... Are you sure you're... SMART?"
Sasha smirked with contempt oozing out of her eyes, "1 Million means nothing to you, rich boy. But, it means everything to us."
"OOOh a backstory. Wait, not now Ed. What I mean it, (Exaggeratedly) Oh no, I get that. (Normal voice) I just think that your boss has been thoroughly underpaying you for this assignment." I replied as the car got near a police barricade.
"Stop– STOP!!" The car didn't slow down and the driver, a Jamaican lady, rammed through the barricade and accelerated the car into traffic. Two police cars followed the SUV with sirens blaring. Sasha opened the window and fired a couple of shots at the police car.
"Ah, I made a mistake. You guys aren't professional at all." I mumbled to myself.
...
[General POV]
Jake and Amy stood in the parking lot, frustration evident on their faces as they spotted Edward's phone lying on the ground. "Damn it! They got away!" Jake exclaimed, his voice filled with frustration.
"Goodbye, Mr. Villain," I said as the burly subordinate locked me away in a small room with a bodyguard, a small Latino man armed with a rifle and a baton.
The bodyguard placed a laptop in front of me and ordered, "Break this encryption."
"Hmm? What's this? An overtime?" I began to question, but before I could finish my sentence, he punched me in the face. Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth as I stared at him in disbelief.
He placed his finger on his lips, signaling for me to remain silent. "No questions, no talking. One more word from you, and I'll shove this baton up your ass."
"That's gay," I responded, provoking the man's anger.
In a swift motion, I snapped the cable ties that bound my knees, breaking them in half. I reached out, grabbing the man by the mouth to prevent him from making any noise, while simultaneously seizing the baton he had intended to strike me with. His eyes widened with fear as I grinned devilishly. "Oh, you're in deep trouble now."
*crack*
I held his head and cracked his neck, making him fall immediately. "Shit." I was surprised at my impulsiveness and checked the man's nose with my finger. I was relieved, "He's still breathing. I'm still fine. Wait no– He punched me. He deserved it."
Disarming him of his gun, knife, and baton, I equipped them on my body, preparing myself for the challenges ahead. Retrieving a pack of condoms from my pocket, I tore them open, revealing the small devices I had hidden inside. Among them was an earpiece, which I promptly put on.
"Robin, what's the situation?" I inquired.
"Help is coming in 20 minutes," Robin replied.
"That's not enough time," I responded.
"Sir, I've calculated your plan, and I must discourage you from proceeding. It would be better to wait for help instead of taking matters into your own hands," Robin advised.
"Robin, once they confirm my identity, they'll be more inclined to kill me than let me go," I reasoned. Merging the two small devices together, I extracted the antenna from the rectangular box and pressed the button to scramble communications in the area.
"Let's go," I instructed Robin before leaving the room. A guard stood outside the door, and I swiftly put him in a headlock and dragged him inside. Chocked, he lost consciousness within seconds. However as I tied him up, he had an euphoric expression on his face, creeping me out.
"I didn't give him a happy ending or the sort, did I?" I muttered with disgust.
Then, I slipped out of the room and made my way to the adjacent area.
Inside, seven men were monitoring the surroundings, their panic evident due to the broken monitor. I had already ensured there were no cameras in the hostage room to avoid detection.
Reaching into my pocket once more, I retrieved an asthma inhaler. "Sleepy time," I muttered as I ripped out the gas canister and threw it into the room before closing the door. Some of the men noticed the rolling canister, but after a small explosion, they all succumbed to the drowsiness and fainted.
Satisfied with the outcome, I calmly proceeded towards the main area where the exchange had taken place. There, I spotted the burly man conversing with Manelli's brother from behind a stack of boxes. They appeared anxious, unable to use their phones or contact their informant to verify my identity.
Although I was on the cusp of breaking out of the warehouse, a final hurdle remained. Three fully equipped patrolmen with body armor stood between me and freedom. While my skills were formidable, I recognized the danger posed by a direct confrontation with trained men.
Then, I smiled as I got a plan, "Robin. Can you get the man's number? And call him?"
"I'll see what I can do sir." Robin replied.
2 minutes later, Manelli's bro phone rang. "FINALLY!" he exclaimed before picking up the phone, "Is he really Miranda's son?"
However, Robin, mimicking a garbled, random guy's voice, told him, "The line is *Bzzt* not clear,*bzzt* C–an you go outside?
"FUCK!" Manelli's bro cursed before making his way out of the warehouse, leaving behind only the burly man there.
I snuck behind him, but as he was standing in an open space, he could see me getting near. He automatically turned and pulled his rifle trigger.
One of the bullets grazed my shoulder before I could manage to close the distance and kicked the rifle away from him. He responded by trying to hammer punch me, but I ducked a bit and punched him, right in the balls!!
"Oof-" He exclaimed as his eyes crossed closer together and he fell down on the ground.
"AHH!" Suddenly, Manelli's brother who heard the gunshot rushed towards me. He wore a brass knuckle and wanted to punch me in the face. However, his step and swing were quite slow.
I tilted my head a bit, letting his arm pass by, and without even moving from my spot, I grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. He started choking and I muttered to him, "You know, you really shouldn't be doing impulsive things next time. You should confirm first, who I am, and what I can do."
The police broke through the front at this moment after hearing the gunshot sounds. I stared at the Cuban man and smiled. "If not, you're going to end up in jail with your neck broken."
"What–" The man breathlessly said with veins protruding out of his face. His eyes slowly rolled backwards. But I released him at this time, just before he could lose consciousness.
"Bastard-" He said groggily and took out a sharp knife.
"FREEZE!" Jake Peralta said while pointing his gun at the man.
He lunged at me without thinking. Jake and another officer opened fire. The bullet hit him right on the shoulder and his head, killing him immediately. The blood splatter rolled down my face as I looked at the guy emotionlessly.
The police swarmed the area, and they were shocked when they found out that all of the perps inside the warehouse had already been taken care of.
Jake was in disbelief, "Did you even need us here?"
"I thought you were going to take a longer time to get in?" I asked Jake in confusion.
"Yeah. Then we heard the gunshot. So we just stormed in." Jake replied.
I laughed and turned to Jake, "I don't know why, but I feel like I should say a catchy line right now."
Amy, Rosa and Sarge walked towards me with a smile on their face. Jake was excited and said, "Oh- how about-"
I interrupted him and said, "Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree. Cos this boy's coming home."
Jake gasped and whispered in awe, "Nick Cage. Con Air."