Ugh!
The sound that came out of Ian's mouth as his body was suddenly stopped by the rope, just moments away from hitting the water. Caught off guard, he felt the pull and struggle between gravity and the tautness of the rope, causing a sharp pain in his ribs.
"Damn!" Ian cursed quietly to himself at his unfortunate situation of being thrown from one danger to another.
"That's all you've got after falling asleep? Tsk tsk... Weak," mocked the man holding the rope, which was connected to a hook underneath the bridge.
Tap.
The sound of the red-haired woman's feet reaching the ground below the bridge with grace, as she giggled while watching Ian dangle and spin on the rope.
Something was interesting when Ian saw them standing side by side. They were twins, with remarkably similar facial features, only differing in gender. The man was bald, but his eyebrows indicated a shared ethnicity with the woman.
"Let me down!" Ian pleaded.
"Why? Just wait a moment, and you'll be ready to serve," the man jested as if Ian were merely a piece of roasted meat.
"Eric, we need to hurry. The car will be passing by soon," the woman's urgent tone compelled Eric to reluctantly agree. He signaled to Ian to swing and reach the concrete surface.
Hup.
Ian's feet made perfect contact with the solid ground, and he swiftly freed himself from the entangled rope. Eric quickly rolled it up, while the woman dashed towards a darker section of the bridge, uncovering a cloth that concealed a boat tied there. She carelessly discarded the cloth and climbed aboard. Ian followed suit, standing at the river's edge, awaiting further instructions.
"Get in!" she commanded, starting the engine. Ian jumped into the boat, taking a seat beside her. Eric joined them shortly after, tossing the heavy coil of rope into Ian's lap. Damn! His behavior was so childish.
If he thought Ian would be provoked by his bullying, he was mistaken. Ian knew that silence would be the most effective punishment for someone trying to disturb him. Ian casually set the coil of rope aside, despite the throbbing sensation in his thighs.
"Come on, come on, Erica!" Eric urged Erica to quickly get them out of there.
Woosh! The speedboat sliced through the river, following the current just as the car they had been avoiding arrived on the bridge.
"Lower your heads!" Erica commanded as the boat emerged from beneath the bridge.
"Hey!" Shouts came from above, directed towards them as they aimed their guns.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A hail of bullets from three of Bartwin's henchmen rained down from above, hitting Erica's windshield and shattering it into pieces. Ian lowered his head even further. Not wasting any time, Erica increased the speed of the boat, causing it to skip and slap against the water's surface.
It didn't take long for them to leave Bartwin's men behind. Afterward, Erica navigated the boat through a winding maze of swamps. Here, the foliage grew denser, and the air became oppressively humid.
Erica steered the boat to a stop. Ian didn't see any buildings around. What was Erica's plan? As they approached the shore, Erica gave a signal to Eric.
"Put these on," Eric instructed Ian as he tossed two plastic bags in his direction. Ian furrowed his brow, not understanding the purpose of the objects handed to him.
Eric demonstrated this by wearing them over his shoes. Now Ian understood that they were meant to cover their tracks. He gave them credit for their cleverness. Ian quickly followed the instructions.
Eric touched Erica's arm to switch places. Erica handed the steering wheel to Eric, also donning a plastic bag over her own shoes.
After that, Erica grabbed a roll of rope and leaped onto the land's surface with agility, followed by Ian, while Eric kept the boat's engine running.
The boat continued on its course, guided by the flow of the water.
Erica led the way toward the direction they had come from. Once again, Ian had to acknowledge their cautious approach. If they had stopped right at their base, they would have been easily discovered.
Erica moved diagonally, further away from the river, cutting through the dense forest. Ian had never been to a place like this before. He had grown up and lived in urban environments, so the atmosphere created by the thick wilderness felt strange to him.
The air was humid, with the scent of damp earth mixed with moss. The sounds of the bustling forest animals and the flapping of disturbed birds filled the air. Ian looked around with his mouth agape, absorbing all the events happening around him.
They had been walking for almost an hour without stopping. Ian's stomach growled loudly since he had only had breakfast that morning.
'Wait, what about Josh and Roe if Bartwin doesn't find me? They will become victims! Yue too! They didn't do anything wrong.' Awareness hit Ian.
"Wait. I have to inform my friends to find a hiding place." Ian reached for his phone, but Erica snatched it away and stomped on it with all her might, destroying it.
"Hey!" Ian protested in frustration. Now, how could he send a warning to Josh and Roe?
"Do you want our position to be traced?!" Eric grabbed Ian by the collar, his face filled with anger.
"I don't care. I have to contact my friends. If you don't agree, then I won't cooperate."
"Be patient, we're almost there. You can contact them using our secure communication channel."
"Fine then."
"Watch your behavior, or else..." Eric threatened, but Ian remained unfazed.
"Shush. Let's hurry before nightfall," Erica reprimanded Eric.
Ian could see that Eric seemed to yield to his twin sister. As they walked, Ian thought hard, considering the safest place for his friends. He felt guilty even though nothing had happened yet. Once again, he had put his friends in danger.
Twenty minutes had passed as they arrived in front of an old orphanage building with weathered black-painted wooden walls. Several young children were busy playing, paying no attention to them. These children appeared uncared for and thin.
A nun observed from a dust-covered window with an indifferent gaze, her eyes sunken and tired. Ian couldn't believe that this was their hiding place. It was truly a perfect camouflage.