CHAPTER 118: CHAPTER 118: ANN VAUGHN, YOU DARE TO RUN?

Every time she used this move, it required a tremendous amount of arm strength, and given her own strength, she couldn’t use it often.

Grandfather had also taught her that unless absolutely necessary, it was best not to use it casually, otherwise, it could cause some harm to her arms.

"Sis, sister..." The girl who had been protected by Ann Vaughn from behind gently tugged on Ann Vaughn’s clothes, her nose red from crying, "Thank you, thank you..."

She almost thought she was done for today.

She had seen those news and movies, just thinking about what would happen to someone who got kidnapped was enough to make her shudder.

Ann Vaughn offered her a reassuring smile and reached out to ruffle the girl’s hair, "Alright, don’t be scared anymore, you’re safe now. Next time when you visit the night market, it’s better to do it with friends or family."

The girl nodded vigorously, but because she was still recovering from the shock, by the time she remembered to ask Ann Vaughn’s name, Ann had already disappeared.

But it didn’t matter, she might not be able to find that sister, but her brother definitely could!

-

Since Cyrus Hawthorne had put her under house arrest, the small clinic hadn’t been open for business, and the door was covered with sticky notes.

All of them inquiring about when Ann Vaughn would reopen, asking if there was any problem and if there was anything they could help with, left by the customers.

Reading the words on the notes, Ann Vaughn’s bright eyes turned slightly misty, and she opened the door and stepped inside.

It had only been a little over ten days since she was last here, but everything inside was covered with a thin layer of dust, making Ann Vaughn’s feelings mixed.

She entered a small room, and took out the extracted potions from the cabinet, placing them into her bag, and for those she couldn’t take, she painfully poured them away.

The formulation of her Jade Cream and her longevity research materials, she also destroyed them.

These things she had stored in her memory, so those physical documents didn’t matter.

The fear was not being able to return to the small clinic again, and these potions and materials falling into the wrong hands, that would only create trouble for her. It was better to destroy them.

Now, the small clinic was left with just a pile of herbs.

Ann Vaughn sat in the yard for a while, and it wasn’t until the sky was so dark that the sparkling stars became visible, did she get up and reluctantly leave.

After locking the clinic door, Ann Vaughn didn’t want to return to that cage so soon, and the rebellion rising from her heart pushed her to walk in the opposite direction of the road.

Suddenly, a blinding beam of car lights lit up from not far away. As the light drew closer, Ann Vaughn squinted her eyes to see clearly the model of the car.

The next moment, her face changed dramatically, something seemed to explode in her mind, making her involuntarily take two steps back.

Almost as that familiar tall figure stepped out of the car, Ann Vaughn couldn’t see his expression clearly due to the backlight, she could only vaguely make out the outline and the coldness emanating from him.

Ann Vaughn’s pupils shrank, and without thinking, she turned and ran!

— By the time she realized why she was running, she had already run quite a distance.

The steady and soft footsteps behind her followed like a shadow, no matter how hard she ran, the sensation of the distance shortening became increasingly clearer.

A pressing sense of fear climbed up Ann Vaughn’s spine, turning her heart into a tangled mess.

But when the wall at the end of the alley appeared before Ann Vaughn, she was forced to halt. As she turned around, a fierce gust of wind brushed past her ear, making her instinctively close her eyes.

That palm landed on the wall beside her ear, and the uniquely cold and fierce masculine aroma invaded Ann Vaughn’s nose, so close that it made her heart tremble.

"Running?" Cyrus Hawthorne’s deep and magnetic voice rang out above her head, filled with undeniable anger and danger, sending a chill through her spine.

Ann Vaughn’s eyelashes quivered as she opened her eyes to look at him, unexpectedly falling into those deep, unfathomable cold eyes, making her heart tremble violently.

Before she could respond, Cyrus Hawthorne had already clasped her wrist with his slightly cool palm, taking her out of the alley without giving her any chance to argue.

The tightening pain in her wrist made Ann Vaughn frown uncomfortably. The turbulent mix of his angry aura and her own bad premonition surged forth, making her want to break free from his grip.

But the inherent strength difference between a man and a woman made it impossible for her to break his hold no matter how hard she tried.

In no time, he had brought her to the car parked in front of the small clinic, opened the door, and threw her into the back seat.

"Get out, stay far away." Cyrus Hawthorne gave the driver in the front seat a cold glance, giving his order in a chilling voice.

The driver immediately got out of the car and walked far away.

"It hurts!" Ann Vaughn frowned with a low cry, just about to sit up, when Cyrus Hawthorne forcibly parted her legs with his knee, pressing down on her!

Ann Vaughn’s heart tightened suddenly, looking at his face obscured by the backlight, her throat tightened, "What, what do you want to do?"

"Shouldn’t I be asking you that?" Cyrus Hawthorne tugged open his tie with one hand, his slightly tousled dark hair adding a touch of wild arrogance, yet the intense fury in his eyes seemed to burn anyone to ash.

"Threatening the driver?"

"Jumping from the car?"

His words dragged slightly, sounding nonchalant, indifferent, but with each word, Ann Vaughn felt a piece of covering removed from her.

"Ann Vaughn," Cyrus Hawthorne lowered his eyes, focusing on Ann’s face, his hot palm tightly pinching her slender waist, squinting his eyes with a semblance of a smile that only added to her fright, "You dare to run?"

A sharp shudder ran through the light in Ann Vaughn’s eyes, her delicate body slightly trembled under his intense scrutiny, as her red lips moved a few times before she found her voice.

"Susie drank, I was worried about her being alone outside, I wasn’t trying to escape..."

"Do you think I would still believe such a poor excuse?" Her explanation did nothing to extinguish Cyrus Hawthorne’s coldness, his chest heaving with even greater anger.

This woman had never known a moment of peace.

"I didn’t, ah—" Ann Vaughn wanted to explain but the pain made her scrunch up her little face, her delicate fingers pressing unconsciously against his chest, her lips turning pale as she opened and closed them repeatedly.

"It hurts..." Ann Vaughn’s small voice whimpered like a wounded animal, pushing against him as she tried to escape.

But he paid no heed to her feelings, his brows fierce and lips tightly pursed, relentlessly claiming territory that belonged to her, without any pity or hesitation.