CHAPTER 106: CHAPTER 106: KNEEL, AND I’LL LET HER GO!

Vincent Preston said viciously, "My dad was willing to reconcile all because Adrian Grant spoke up, wasn’t it? He made me blind in one eye, so I’ll make him taste the feeling of losing his wife!"

However, Adrian Grant opened his mouth to let the Preston Family negotiate privately, and ultimately it was because of her.

The car drove deep into the dense forest, and after some time, it stopped.

As soon as the car stopped, Eleanor Winslow immediately went to open the car door.

Vincent Preston watched Eleanor Winslow’s actions with a smirk, as if enjoying a show.

Eleanor Winslow realized he had deliberately locked the car door and paused.

Vincent Preston grabbed a rope and ordered Eleanor Winslow, "Stretch out your hands!"

Eleanor Winslow looked at him warily, not moving.

Vincent Preston immediately restrained his smile, opened the car door, got out, and walked around to the back door, intending to forcibly tie up Eleanor Winslow.

He had just moved when he suddenly changed his mind.

Vincent Preston’s hand grazed Eleanor Winslow’s pretty face, "Eleanor Winslow, let’s make a deal. You serve me well, and I won’t tie you up. How about it?"

"Do you like me that much?" Eleanor Winslow chuckled.

Vincent Preston was mesmerized by her smile, irrationally leaning half his body inside.

Eleanor Winslow seized the opportunity and kicked hard!

Vincent Preston was kicked backward, falling heavily to the ground.

Eleanor Winslow took the chance to jump out of the car and ran!

"You bitch, stop right there!"

Vincent Preston’s furious roar startled the birds in the forest.

Eleanor Winslow ignored him, running even faster.

Vincent Preston sneered and pulled out a tranquilizer gun from the trunk, taking aim—

"Whizz—!"

Eleanor Winslow felt a sudden pain in her right leg, then it went numb and uncontrollable, causing her to fall to the ground with inertia.

Before she could struggle to get up, Vincent Preston had already approached.

The sound of leaves crunching underfoot.

Vincent Preston grabbed Eleanor Winslow’s hair, ruthlessly pulling her up!

"Luckily, I was prepared. Mia Winslow was right; you’re a sly one!"

"Mia Winslow?" Eleanor Winslow’s eyes widened in shock.

Vincent Preston ignored what Eleanor Winslow was saying and angrily slapped her, punishing her for trying to escape earlier.

The mechanical eye in his vicious smile appeared even more sinister and terrifying, threatening, "Eleanor Winslow, if you dare to run again, I’ll break your legs!"

Vincent Preston learned his lesson and immediately tied Eleanor Winslow’s hands and feet.

The wounds on her wrists hadn’t completely healed, and Eleanor Winslow felt the stabbing pain as the bindings pressed against them.

-

An entire night, a carpet-like search yielded no results.

Adrian Grant was surrounded by an intimidating aura, his emotions stretched to the limit, his face expressionless, making everyone truly realize that the usual slight smile was just Adrian Grant’s hypocritical mask.

Suddenly, Adrian Grant received a text message, his pupils slightly trembling.

The message read: [Prepare a box of gold bars and one million US dollars. Go to Mount Norcrest alone. No police or bodyguards. If there’s one more person, I’ll rape and kill her first!]

Who "she" referred to was self-evident.

In the next second, another photo arrived— In the photo, Eleanor Winslow had her eyes closed, her hands and feet bound, clothes disheveled, exposing large areas of pale skin, and on her face... was also a palm print!

Did that person actually hit her?!

"President Grant, don’t go alone, it’s not safe!" Charles Rhodes said, "We’ll follow you quietly, they won’t notice."

"Stay put!"

He couldn’t risk Eleanor Winslow’s safety one bit!

-

A small wooden cabin deep in the forest.

It had been more than ten hours since Eleanor Winslow had any food or water, her whole body cold and limp.

Her body was stiff and tied up, perhaps the scabs on her wounds had cracked open, fresh blood was soaking through the bandages on her wrists again, but the wound didn’t hurt anymore, she’d gone numb.

Thankfully, the inside of the wound had healed, and the bleeding from her skin and flesh wasn’t enough to cause her to lose deadly amounts of blood.

Vincent Preston was smoking, crouched nearby, puffing away, a look of ecstasy on his face, appearing manic.

That cigarette wasn’t just a simple smoke; it was laced with poison.

Suddenly!

Vincent Preston picked up the gun, chambering a bullet.

Outside, leaves scattered, footsteps were crunching on the fallen leaves, getting closer and closer.

Vincent Preston pressed the muzzle of the gun to Eleanor Winslow’s head, warily watching the door.

A tall, strong man carrying two safes appeared in view.

His face was extremely somber, and upon seeing Eleanor Winslow under the gun’s aim, his expression darkened further.

Adrian Grant had come...

Eleanor Winslow’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Unexpected, but not completely unexpected.

Somehow she believed, subconsciously, that he would come to rescue her.

"It’s actually you!" Adrian Grant was surprised.

He never expected Vincent Preston, the least reliable member of the Preston Family, to actually dare to kidnap his woman!

"I’ve brought the gold and dollars." Adrian Grant’s face was gloomy as he opened the two safes in front of Vincent Preston.

Vincent Preston had installed surveillance outside, confirming no one else came with Adrian Grant, and laughed triumphantly.

"Adrian Grant, aren’t you something? Aren’t you badass? Now you still have to listen to me, don’t you?" Vincent Preston suddenly grabbed Eleanor Winslow’s shirt and tore it hard!

In the sound of ripping fabric, the woman’s skin was blindingly white.

Eleanor Winslow wanted to speak, but her long lack of water and blood loss made it difficult to open her mouth.

She appeared like a numb puppet, watching the man outside the cabin.

Adrian Grant’s expression was grim, "Don’t touch her!"

Vincent Preston’s hand fell on Eleanor Winslow’s snowy shoulder, deliberately caressing, "Adrian Grant, forgot to tell you your woman has already been with me! That taste, I still savor it! Do you know why I called you here? I want to humiliate you to your face!"

Eleanor Winslow realized why Vincent Preston hadn’t touched her earlier.

He had been waiting for Adrian Grant!

This madman wanted a thrill in front of Adrian Grant!

"I’ve brought the money, why aren’t you releasing her?" Adrian Grant noticed the blood on Eleanor Winslow’s wrists.

"Let her go? Sure, I could!" Vincent Preston smiled maliciously, pointing at the ground, "Adrian Grant, kneel down! You kneel and beg me, and I’ll let her go!"

Eleanor Winslow widened her eyes in shock, turning her head to look at Vincent Preston like he was a lunatic.

Seeing Adrian Grant unmoving, Vincent Preston suddenly thought of something good!

He pulled a packet of powder from his pocket, crazed, "Eleanor Winslow, try some good stuff!"

Eleanor Winslow realized what it was, the calm facade she had been maintaining shattered instantly, shaking her head in fear.

Such a thing, once tainted, would ruin her entire life!

"It’s good stuff! Just a little!" Vincent Preston pushed the powder toward Eleanor Winslow’s nose and mouth.

Eleanor Winslow shook her head in refusal.

"Don’t touch her!" Adrian Grant kneeled down without hesitation, emitting a piercing sound as his knees hit the ground.

Every nerve in Eleanor Winslow seemed to stiffen at that moment, a word squeezing out of her throat: "No—"

The word "no" was completely drowned out by Vincent Preston’s maniacal laughter.

"Hahahahaha! The mighty ruler of the Grant Family kneels to me! Hahahahaha! People should see what a dog they worship!"

Eleanor Winslow gritted her teeth, tears involuntarily welling up in her eyes.

Adrian Grant, even while kneeling, still managed to project an aura that dominated Vincent Preston.

Vincent Preston sensed it too, becoming displeased, suddenly turning the gun around!

"Bang!"

The bullet shot out of the chamber, hitting Adrian Grant’s thigh straight on.

Blood splattered everywhere, and the man’s body instinctively tilted from the pain, almost causing him to fall, but he forced himself to remain standing.

"Adrian Grant!"

Eleanor Winslow’s voice cracked, a sharp pain tearing through her throat.

Vincent Preston tapped Eleanor’s face with the gun’s muzzle, puzzled, and asked Adrian Grant, "Aren’t you divorcing Eleanor? Why care about her so much?"

"I never admitted to divorcing her," Adrian Grant replied decisively.

Eleanor Winslow’s eyelashes trembled slightly.

"Then kneel and come in!" Vincent Preston reveled in humiliation, as if all the suppression he’d experienced before was to be reclaimed today.

"Don’t..." Eleanor squeezed out a word from her throat, shaking her head in refusal.

She didn’t want to see Adrian Grant like this.

But Adrian Grant seemed oblivious to her signals and deaf to her voice, kneeling and crawling forward.

Blood continued to flow relentlessly from the wound on his left leg, and with each movement, the blood flowed faster.

The man’s face grew paler, his forehead covered in cold sweat from the pain.

As their eyes met, Eleanor’s heart ached nearly to the point of suffocation, her vision blurring as if shrouded in a veil of moisture.

"Adrian... Grant..."

Her dry lips parted, silently mouthing his name.

Eleanor tried to widen her eyes, wanting to see him clearly, but the more she tried, the worse the veil of tears became.

"Hahaha! Adrian Grant, even you have a day when you’re like a lapdog!" Vincent Preston was triumphant, his peripheral vision catching Eleanor’s face.

He pinched Eleanor’s chin, lowering his head as if to kiss her in front of Adrian!

He let his guard down, the action causing the gun muzzle to move away from Eleanor’s head; adrenaline surged, triggering Eleanor’s bodily responses.

Eleanor seized the moment, headbutting Vincent Preston sideways!

Simultaneously, her body lunged upward, her numbed hands quickly seizing the gun from Vincent Preston’s grasp!

Bound hands with only the fingers able to move, Eleanor took the opportunity to fire, the bullet grazing Vincent Preston’s arm!

As Vincent Preston dodged the bullet, Eleanor took the chance to throw the gun towards Adrian Grant!

"Bitch!"

Vincent Preston roared in anger, kicking Eleanor, almost simultaneously as another gunshot rang out!

Adrian Grant swiftly grabbed Vincent Preston’s gun, "Bang—!"

The bullet pierced through Vincent Preston’s lower back, blood gushing out as he fell to the ground in agony.

"Eleanor!"

Ignoring his leg wound, Adrian Grant rushed into the cabin to support Eleanor.

Vincent Preston, seeing this, suddenly broke into a sinister smile.

"You think I want the money?" Vincent Preston said, "I want you both to die together!"

He pressed a button, embracing death on the ground, watching Eleanor and Adrian Grant with smug satisfaction.

"Beep! Beep! Beep—"

The shrill countdown sound sent shivers through the soul.

"Go quickly!"

Eleanor forcefully pushed Adrian Grant.

The hidden entrance of the cabin harbored a bomb counting down:

"3!"

"2!"

The cabin had one window, beyond which lay a cliff and a raging river below.

Adrian Grant held Eleanor and, without hesitation, leaped!

"Boom—!"

The shockwave brought a scorching wave that nearly burned through the nerves.

Before Eleanor could react, she was submerged in icy waters from the rapid fall, the intense impact quickly causing her weak body to lose consciousness.

-

When Eleanor’s thoughts returned, all around her was darkness.

She lay on grass, her body soaked and shivering from the cold.

Her hands and feet were freed, the bindings removed, her hands were clearly stinging, the original bandages had been removed, and replaced with new ones.

Eleanor was stunned for two seconds, the scenes before her blackout rapidly replaying in her mind.

The explosion...

The escape...

The fall...

Adrian Grant... where was Adrian Grant?!

She anxiously looked around, seeing a dark figure a meter away.

A tall man lay slumped on the ground.

Eleanor crawled over, seeing Adrian Grant’s eyes tightly shut, unconscious, through the moonlight.

"Adrian Grant! Adrian Grant, wake up!"

Eleanor disregarded the pain in her wrists, painstakingly turning him over, only to find a patch of warmth and moisture.

It was blood from his leg!

Eleanor’s fingers trembled, forcing herself to quickly calm down.

"Adrian Grant!"

Eleanor pressed her hand against his leg wound, her voice trembling as she called out his name.

The bindings on her hands had to be his doing, the new bandages were likely prepared by him beforehand, as the sealed packaging kept them dry.

So why didn’t he treat his own wound first?

His injury was clearly so severe!

Eleanor painstakingly removed the new bandage from her wrist, wrapping it around Adrian Grant’s leg wound in the dim light.

The man’s body was heavy, Eleanor’s grip weak, every movement a struggle.

Suddenly, a large hand pressed on hers.

"What are you doing?"

The man’s voice was deep and hoarse, unable to conceal his weakness.

Eleanor looked up, the tears pent up in her eyes falling before she could control them.

The teardrops briefly glimmered in the moonlight, falling onto Adrian Grant’s heart.

"Your hands are still injured, don’t move around." Adrian Grant held her hand, "Does it hurt a lot?"

He thought she was crying from the pain.

She had been pampered since a child, always stubborn even when getting shots.

"Why?" After nearly drowning, Eleanor’s throat felt oddly soothing despite its dryness.

She asked, "Why do this?"

"What?" Adrian Grant brushed her hair, patiently asking.

Eleanor looked up at him, a pang of sourness in her heart: "Adrian Grant, you’re very good to your wife."

To pay the ransom, and even... to kneel.

Such words, she couldn’t speak aloud.

She felt it was humiliating to Adrian Grant!

What a proud man he was!

The forest wind scattered the woman’s voice.

Adrian Grant gazed at Eleanor for a long time, seeming to sigh silently.

"Zia Winslow, it’s not that I’m good to my wife, but I’m good to you."

And you happen to be my wife.