Chapter 189
Chapter 189
Joanna never expected to be kicked out of the Blair residence one day–all because of Sylvía. Her hatred for Sylvia was eating her alive.
After seeing Joanna leave the Blair residence, Sylvia turned to Zack and said, “Don’t forget to do your homework tonight.” With that, she headed out as well. For her, nothing at the Blair residence was worth holding on to–except her son, Zack.
Sylvia needed to return to the company for a meeting to discuss the release arrangements for Angel’s new single. Now that Joanna was no longer around to bother Angel, Angel could focus entirely on recording.
Joanna was driving home through the pitch–black night when her phone suddenly rang. She frowned before answering. A gravelly voice growled through the phone, “Joanna, when the hell are you going to pay me back?”
Joanna had racked up a lot of debt lately, and the loan shark calling her now was ruthless. Forcing a smile, she said, “Mr. Carson, I’m really short on cash
right now.
“Could you give me a few more days? Or… maybe I could come over and keep you company tonight?”
Desperate to delay her debt payment, Joanna offered herself. The last time she had an illicit encounter with this loan shark, Zack happened to spot them
together. Although Zack had told Liana about the incident, she simply refused to believe him.
“Stop playing the victim card. The money you owe me is no small change.” Dallas Carson was a shameless and ruthless bastard–the kind who’d screw one over once he got what he wanted.
His voice dripped with menace. “If you don’t pay up, don’t blame me when things get ugly.”
Joanna pulled over and sat there in silence for a bit. Then her eyes lit up, and she muttered, “Mr. Carson, you can push me all you want–I’m broke. But I’ve got an idea. One that’ll get you your money and help me settle a score.”
“Alright, what’s this fucking plan of yours?” Dallas sounded intrigued.
Joanna’s voice dropped to a whisper. “Remember Sylvia Sullivan I told you about? She’s loaded. Snatch her, and you’ll get your money–plus, from now on, I’ll be yours alone.”
Joanna had long harbored thoughts of killing Sylvia. She’d schemed to have Freddy Colon run her over, but he ended up siding with Sylvia instead. Forced to put her revenge on hold–for now.
Now though, she had someone better lined up: Dallas. This kind of job was right in his wheelhouse.
But after thinking it over, Dallas shook his head. “I already looked into Sylvia. Snatching her’s going to be tricky. She’s always at the studio or the office. Not an easy target.”
A vicious glint flashed in Joanna’s eyes as she gritted her teeth and said, “I’ve got a plan. We don’t even have to kidnap Sylvia–we can still make her
dance to our tune.”
The next day at Francisco Memorial School, the sun was shining, and kids were wandering across the lawn in little groups. Zack was on his way to find Ruby so they could grab lunch together,
He was humming, in a pretty good mood, when a girl ran up to him, out of breath. “Zack, there’s some man outside the gate asking for you. Said he’s a friend of your mom’s.”
Zack’s face lit up with joy as he broke into a run toward the school gate. “Mom must’ve sent someone with treats for me and Ruby, Zack thought.
A white van was parked at the school gate. A man inside called out, “Zack, come on now, get in–Sylvia needs you for something
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Zack glanced at the man inside a total stranger, middle–aged, with a sear running down his face. He immediately grew wary and stepped back. “I don’t know you. How do I know my mom actually sent you?”
The man was none other than Dallas. Seeing Zack wasn’t falling for the bait, he suddenly burst out of the vehicle. Before Zack could react, Dallas pressed a chemical–soaked cloth over his mouth.
Zack’s head swam, then everything went black. In one swift motion, Dallas hauled his limp body into the van.
It all happened in just a few seconds. So fast, the old security guard by the gate didn’t catch a thing—he was too busy watching shorts. By the time anyone realized something was off, the van had already sped away and disappeared down the block.
Joanna was the one who put Dallas up to kidnapping Zack. At this point, she didn’t just hate Sylvia anymore. She hated Zack too–for being an ungrateful little brat.
For years, she had been manipulating Zack, hoping he would help her marry Byron as soon as possible. But she never expected that ungrateful little traitor would end up siding with Sylvia–and even have her kicked out of the Blair residence last night.
‘They’ll pay for this–no way I’m letting it slide,‘ she vowed to herself.
After Zack was kidnapped by Dallas, Ruby sat anxiously in the cafeteria, waiting for what felt like forever.
When Zack still didn’t show up, a wave of unease washed over her. Her face scrunched up in worry as she poked at her food, completely losing her
appetite.
“Mom, Zack promised we’d have lunch together in the cafeteria, but I waited forever and he never showed up. I tried calling him, but he’s not answering. Ruby pulled the tiny phone from around her neck and dialed Sylvia, her little voice soft and worried.
Sylvia’s heart clenched as she answered, her voice tight with urgency. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’m on my way.”
Sylvia tried calling Zack several more times, but still couldn’t get through. A wave of dread washed over her as she jumped in her car and sped toward
the school.
“Madam, have you seen Zack?” Sylvia urgently asked as she reached out to Zack’s homeroom teacher.
Realizing something was wrong, the homeroom teacher hurriedly joined Sylvia in searching the campus thoroughly, but they couldn’t find any trace of
Zack.
“Check the security cameras–now.” Sylvia’s face went deathly pale as she shouted at the teacher.
With help from the teacher, Sylvia pulled up the security footage. Finally, on a camera near the front gate, they caught a blurry glimps been drugged and taken by someone they couldn’t identify.
ack. He’d
The moment Sylvia learned Zack had been kidnapped, her blood ran cold and her body started to shake. She took a deep breath and forced herself to
stay calm.
Whoever kidnapped Zack would be sure to contact them soon–whether it was for revenge or ransom. Right at that moment, Sylvia’s phone rang–an.
unknown number.
“Sylvia, Zack is with me. Get 16 million ready. I want cash.” A cold voice came through the phone. Cash was harder to trace—and unlike transfers,
couldn’t be frozen.
Sylvia’s eyes flickered as she replied. “Money’s not the issue. But I need a little time to get it together. Don’t worry, I’ll bring the full amount.
“Fine. Two hours. I’ll call back then.” The man gave a low chuckle.
“Wait, I want to hear Zack’s voice right now-” But before Sylvia could finish, the line went dead.
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Right then, Joanna showed up at the school. The mastermind behind the kidnapping was now acting like she didn’t know a thing.
She had a small cake in her hand and said, “Oh hey, Sylvia. What are you doing here? I brought Zack something sweet. Where is he?”
Sylvia gave Joanna an unreadable glance. “Zack’s been kidnapped.”
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Joanna put on a flawless act, feigning shock as the cake slipped from her hand. “What? Zack’s been kidnapped? Sylvia, what are you going to do? Should we call the police?” The truth was, she’d come specifically to test Sylvia’s reaction.
