Stella countered, "Oh, shut up, she just slipped, it was an accident."

What the heck was with this? She really didn't want to talk to Finley. He made her want to scream.

Finley kept on, "Ha, plenty of people have lost their footing around Hull, but I haven't seen a woman yet who dared to actually take off..."

"Enough already." Hearing Finley start to run his mouth again, Stella could feel a headache coming on. She really had zero desire of listening to him.

"You really have a knack for talking yourself into trouble," Stella sighed.

Finley was caught off guard. He glanced at Ronald, who was looking a bit out of sorts, and wisely decided to zip it.

Stella addressed, "Ronald."

"Okay, I'll give Hull a ring."noveldrama

Finley was rendered speechless.

Of course, she was the princess around here, who else could get Ronald to jump like this?

Ronald took the phone and called Hull. It rang once, twice, but no answer. It went straight to voicemail.

Stella heard the dial tone fade out and felt her heart tighten.

Ronald commented, "Looks like things have already kicked off."

Stella was in shock.

Oh no... This was bad. Susie had really tried her best, but time just wasn't on their side. If only she had called sooner, maybe she could have pulled her out of this mess.

...

Meanwhile, Susanna was huddled under Hull's legs, trembling. From the moment she got in the car, she hadn't been able to move from her spot beneath him. Her hands were covering her head, eyes squeezed shut.

Outside, there were explosions and the constant rattle of gunfire. It was so intense it felt like her heart was going to stop. All she could do was silently pray.

"Dear God, please let me get through this."

The past two days had been one trial after another, each more terrifying than the last.

The car was moving fast, jostling her about. The space under Hull's legs was cramped, and she kept bumping against his calves. "Ah..."

The sound of an explosion made Susanna scream.

It felt like her eardrums would burst, as if the chaos outside could tear her apart at any moment. Fear, helplessness, terror...

This went on for over an hour before the car finally stopped.

A man's voice came from outside

the window. In a foreign accent, he said to Hull, "It's all clear. I'll take

Silas to go over the in

Hull replied with a simple, "Okay."

But even that brief response sounded dangerous to Susanna's ears. She was scared out of her mind.

Back in Portis City, she had thought

she had seen it all. But now? This

was a whole new level of chaos, like a storm ready to swallow hepwhole.

Finally, the chaos settled. Susanna was still trembling.

Hull seemed to forget she was even there, pulling out his phone to call Ronald, casually crossing his legs.

"Ugh," came a muffled groan from beneath him, making Hull pause.

He glanced down and spotted the shivering little bundle. It took him a moment to remember Susanna was there.

Ronald picked up on the other end. "Is it over?"

Hull responded, "Yeah, it's done. The Doyne family was cautious, took a while."

Ronald reminded, "Make sure everything is handled."

"Understood," Hull replied respectfully.

Just as he was about to hang up, Ronald asked, "Is Susanna with you?"

"Yeah, she's under my legs."

Back on Ronald's side of the call, both Stella and Finley were at loss for words.

Ronald had put the call on speaker

as he asked about Susanna, and when Hull mentioned her

whereabouts, Stella and Finley exchanged wide-eyed glances. en