Chapter 1854 Ashton Arrives
Thinking that it was Garrett’s men attacking, I turned to look. Instead, it was Ashton’s figure that greeted me.
Nathaniel too had noticed his presence. After the two of them exchanged glances, Ashton turned away first and called out to me. “Letty, come to my side.”
Although he was holding a gun, I couldn’t sense any animosity from him. As if he was worried that I would be frightened, he even slowed down his speech on purpose.
I nodded and hurried to his side.
Opening his arms, he embraced me tightly.
After being apart for such a long time, I was finally reunited with the familiar warmth and scent.
Having noticed Nathaniel’s piercing gaze, I was suddenly struck by a thought. Letting go of Ashton, I warned, “Run! Nathaniel has planted bombs all over the house!”
Just as I spoke, I grabbed Ashton’s hand and sprinted outside without giving Nathaniel another look.
Unexpectedly, Ashton pulled me back. Closing his eyes, he signaled for me to calm down. He then turned his attention toward Nathaniel with a darkened gaze.
Standing there, Nathaniel’s eyes were bloodshot at the sight of his rival. Not bothered to hide his emotions, he was filled with enmity toward Ashton.
“The police are on their way. Hence, you still have a five-minute window to flee.” Ashton broke his silence.
When I realized he had come prepared, my fears began to ease.
“Flee?” Nathaniel narrowed his eyes. With an indifferent expression, he spread his hands. “What’s the point of that? We might as well all go down together and end it all right here.”
When I saw how he was on the brink of lunacy, I grew increasingly worried. Tugging Ashton by his sleeve, I reiterated, “Let’s go. Now that Mr. Jensen’s men have been scared away, there’s no shame in leaving. Given how hard it was to reach this stage, I can’t bear for any more accidents to happen.”
In spite of my words, Ashton shook his head and calmed me down. “They don’t understand Nathaniel. He won’t do it.”
“No, he will really kill us all in a suicide attack,” I pleaded with Ashton to trust my judgment. After all, it was pointless to understand someone who was brutal and insane.
Watching us with a hidden smile, Nathaniel looked like he was enjoying a drama.
When I saw the confident look he had, I felt a shiver down my spine, causing me to tug harder at Ashton.
In the end, Ashton gave in to my pleas and followed me out of the villa. It wasn’t until we were about a hundred meters away that we finally stopped.
I heaved a sigh of relief once I was sure we were safe. Patting myself on the chest, I stared at the villa and admonished Ashton, “You were too reckless just now. So what if you were right that he was just trying to scare us? You of all people know how much he hates you. What if he really did it? What would happen to me or the children? Have you ever thought about that?”
After observing me for a long time, Ashton didn’t retort. Instead, he reached his arms over to hug me.
“It’s all right now. Everything is fine. Nothing else will happen.”
Instead of resisting, I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him back, as if that was the only way to prevent us from being separated again.
It wasn’t until the police arrived that we let go of each other. Together with them, we reentered the villa.
By the time we did, Nathaniel was no longer there. Moreover, closer examination revealed that there were no explosives around the house. Nathaniel’s threat was nothing but an empty lie.
I asked Ashton, “How did you know that he was bluffing?”
Ashton smiled at me. “All the credit goes to you.”
“Me?” I pointed to myself, puzzled. Nonetheless, Ashton didn’t elaborate.
Now that I could drop my front, I no longer had the mood to guess what Nathaniel was thinking. Hence, I put it at the back of my mind and changed the topic. “Since you led the police here, why didn’t you wait a while for them to arrest Nathaniel?”
“That was my initial intention, but Mr. Jensen and his men left earlier than expected. We can only lure him out again using Nathaniel.” Now that he could drop the act, Ashton’s tone was relaxed. Smiling, he added, “Even if they were there, I still wouldn’t have done it, as I couldn’t risk putting you in danger.”
