Chapter 4 Kidnapping

Jessie raised her head slightly, holding back her breath. She took a peak at the man sitting in front. While she was doing this, his phone buzzed, startling her. She was so frightened, she lowered her head and curled up in the backseat.

"Yes, soon," she heard him say on the phone. At this, Jessie's heart gave a lurch. She realized she had to speed up and quickly untied the rope from her feet.

There was only one man in the car and she realized he was about 1.75 meters tall. She got the feeling he wasn't that strong. Since she was a black belt of Taekwondo, she knew she could take him down.

She couldn't let him take her to his territory. If he managed to do so, the consequences would be unimaginable.

'How do I bring him to stop this car, ' she thought, nervously.

She wracked her brains, and suddenly an idea popped into her mind. Sitting up straight, she shouted, "Hey! Stop!" Her voice startled the driver.

'She was supposed to be unconscious, ' he thought. He never imagined the effect of the knockout drops would wear off so quickly.

He was informed its effect would last for over 24 hours. But now, she had woken up in less than an hour. Mentally, he cursed his buddy for not having been more careful.

With some trepidation, Jessie realized the man wouldn't stop the car. He continued to accelerate the car. Jessie had plan B ready. Realizing she had no choice, she took out the knife that she often took with her and held it near her neck.

She was afraid but she knew she had to react quickly. There wasn't much time left for her to escape.

If she failed, she would die anyway!

The man glanced at Jessie nervously from the rearview mirror. He spotted the sharp knife that she held against her tender neck. His fear seemed to convey that if she was dead, he would be dead too. His life was hanging on the edge of a cliff.

She was the person Mr. Mark wanted. If she died, Mr. Mark wouldn't spare him.

"Hey you! Put down your knife!"

The man spoke in a trembling voice. The car flurried due to his nervousness.

From his reaction, she gathered he was afraid.

Letting out a sneer, she thought to herself, 'That's it then!'

Relishing this opportunity, Jessie wished to magnify his fear. She lightly collided the knife to her neck. Few drops of blood trickled down her tender skin. She raised her head deliberately, making sure her bloody neck could be seen through the rearview mirror.

"You, you..."

"Are you going to stop or not? If you don't stop, I'll kill myself!"

Looking at the man's panic-stricken face, she was almost certain he would stop the car.

As expected, the man stepped on the break.

Even before the car came to a steady halt, Jessie opened the door and jumped out.

However, there was an old saying, however strong you are, there's always someone stronger; for every able person there is always one still abler. Just when Jessie thought she had smarted them, she realized there was yet another trap awaiting her.

This was a huge blow for Jessie!

She shot a sharp glance at the man who was driving the car. If looks could kill, he would be dead by now.

Shit! That man was indeed a great actor. He obviously knew they had arrived at the destination. But to keep Jessie from harming herself, he pretended like he was afraid. 'This asshole should be acting in the movies, ' Jessie thought angrily.

She gathered he was quite a trained man.

'Why did he have to ruin everything!' she screamed in her mind.

Now that she was here, she couldn't escape. The only thing she could do was accept her misfortune and obey their orders.

Once again, her eyes were covered with a black cloth. Slowly, she was escorted inside. The way in felt dreadfully long.

The road was quite bumpy and she had a tough time keeping herself from falling.

She gathered they were walking through the woods. But the next second she felt like she was in a desert. One second, the sun scalded her skin and the next second she felt cold wind caressing her hair. To sum it up, she got the feeling that she had walked through the whole world.

The trip in the dark was full of hardship.

"Sir, the woman is here," the man next to her announced in a very respectful tone. "Sir, her name is Jessie. She is the eldest daughter of Darren Lin of the Lin Group. She is 21 years old, and is currently pursuing her education in X Universi-"

"X University? A third-class university?" Mark cut him off. He let out a sneer and a look of disdain crossed his face.

'How could my father select such a girl?

Old people are odd and useless. What I said was right!' Mark thought to himself, gritting his teeth.

Jessie, who had heard the entire conversation, was stunned. 'What's wrong with a third-class university? A third-class university also has talents! Don't judge a book by its cover!

This so-called sir sounds like a superficial man!' she thought, furious at being degraded.

"Hey, mister! What do you want to know? If you want something, why don't you ask directly? Did you go through all this trouble, just so you could look down upon me?"

Jessie questioned, unable to hide her indignation. She didn't know what they wanted, but she saw no point in being nice to them. Moreover, the man who drove her here had witnessed her attempt to escape. He clearly knew she wasn't a weak woman.

There was no point in pretending.

Suddenly, the person who was catching her loosened his grip. The cloth covering her eyes was quickly untied. The first thing she saw after opening her eyes was a pair of sharp black eyes.

"Jessie?" he asked.

"Yes, that's who I am." A sweet smile played on Jessie's lips. In a nonchalant voice, she asked, "May I know why this gorgeous man has kidnapped me?"

Her voice was bereft of fear. Listening to this, Mark glared at her. His expression was cold and frightening.

'Was she pretending to be calm?' he thought, feeling a little annoyed.

'Let's see how long she can pretend!' he thought, brimming with determination.

He took a step forward and grabbed her lovely chin with his slender fingers. He didn't stop until he had it squeezed between his hand.

"Give me that stuff!" His voice was hoarse and terrifying. A shudder went down her spine.

"What are you talking about?" She managed to speak. She had no idea what this man was demanding. What could he possibly want from her? Were they insane? Was she kidnapped by a bunch of psychos?

"I have methods to torture you into talking. Will I have to apply that? Or are you going to give it to me?!"

Mark said, glaring fiercely at Jessie. He was notorious for his cruelty and mercilessness. He had never had a tender heart for any woman. In fact, he was willing to kill anyone who would get in his way!

Jessie raised her head slightly. Her chin had been pinched so hard that she felt an excruciating pain. He delicate face was bruised. Even though she didn't have a mirror, she could imagine how she looked at the moment.

Although she didn't know why they kidnapped her, she guessed they wanted something from her. As she was brooding over the subject, a thought occurred to her. Suddenly, she was very sure they wanted the jade pendant.

She eyed the man standing before her. 'Is there any chance that man's death is related to him?' she couldn't help but wonder.

He was still gripping her chin. Suddenly, he exerted force, intending to hurt her. Pain that shot through her compelled her to let out a cry. Damn it! Was he really going to crush her chin?

Shit! She had to do something.

"Hey, handsome, let go of me. Otherwise, how do you expect me to talk?"

Jessie hid her pain and feigned a smile. "I'll give you one last chance. You better not attempt some dirty trick," he warned. Soon, he let go of her.

Jessie touched her chin, checking if it felt any different. She had always considered her chin as her most beautiful feature.

"Tell me, where is it?" he demanded, bringing her attention back to him.

"Well.... Where is what? If you don't tell me what you are talking about, how am I supposed to give it to you?" Jessie blinked and eyed him with an innocent expression.

"You don't know? Don't play possum with me, Jessie! You had a car accident last night. Don't try to tell me you didn't take it!"

"Okay, I didn't know you were talking about the accident," she lied. Deep down, his words assured her that her previous suspicion was true. Looking straight into his eyes, she said innocently, "But what could I have possibly taken? I didn't take anything. After all, I was scared to death when I ran into that man. Why would a girl like me touch a dead man?"

"You..."

Mark's face turned dark with fury. He flashed her a murderous look.