Chapter 380: Chapter 380: Ms. Sinclair, We Finally Meet
The parents of the Thorne Family wanted to step forward and pull Vincent Hawthorne, but Jonah Rivers forcefully pulled them aside, warning coldly, "Don’t get handsy! This isn’t your village! If you dare to cause trouble, you’ll be charged even more severely!"
Vincent Hawthorne couldn’t be bothered to waste any more time and strode forward with his long legs.
Leah Thorne jogged to catch up.
"Mr. Hawthorne!"
Vincent Hawthorne didn’t stop walking, only responded with a cold voice, "If you’re here to plead for your parents, I can have my lawyer go easy on them, but this will absolutely be the last time we meet."
Poverty isn’t the issue; sometimes, in the eyes of people like Vincent Hawthorne, poverty is actually a plus for beautiful women.
But they mustn’t be a nuisance.
"Mr. Hawthorne, you’ve misunderstood." Leah Thorne tugged at the hem of Vincent Hawthorne’s coat, the strength not enough to make him stop, yet Vincent halted, looking down at the fingers tightly gripping his sleeve.
He turned around, looking down at Leah Thorne.
Leah Thorne seriously said, "I wanted to thank you. At the same time, I apologize for showing you such an embarrassing side of me."
With a bitter and self-deprecating smile, she added, "I originally thought of maintaining my image in front of you, at least so you wouldn’t see what kind of family I come from." She bit her lip lightly, slightly raising her face as if gathering the courage to speak, "Mr. Hawthorne, please don’t dislike me."
Leah Thorne’s gaze was cautious.
Vincent Hawthorne gazed into her eyes, then he gently touched the bruised side of her face.
"Come down from the sky another day, I’ll come to find you for a meal." Vincent Hawthorne’s tone softened considerably.
Leah Thorne smiled broadly, nodding vigorously, "Okay!"
She stood in place, watching Vincent Hawthorne’s retreating back, the curve of her lips slowly falling, replaced by calm and long-missed relief.
Finally... finally free.
She turned back, seeing her parents being roughly dragged out by two tall and strong security guards.
The guards shouted, "You said you were here to see your daughter, that’s the only reason I let you in! But you came here to cause trouble!"
Just now they were so terrifying in front of her, pressing down on her like mountains, but now the guards were seizing them like little chicks.
The scene was even somewhat comical.
They cursed loudly at Leah Thorne, then turned their heads to beg the guards for mercy.
Leah Thorne’s feelings remained unruffled.
Jonah Rivers approached Leah Thorne, handing her a business card.
"Miss Thorne, I am Mr. Hawthorne’s personal assistant, Jonah Rivers. Mr. Hawthorne said if you have any trouble in the future, feel free to contact me directly."
Jonah Rivers spoke politely, with a distant tone, and showed no excess emotion.
Leah Thorne accepted the card, saying, "Thank you."
To Jonah Rivers, she was probably just another gold digger shamelessly climbing into a rich man’s bed.
It didn’t matter anymore.
She was terrified of poverty, weary of hardship, and people who are both poor and struggling have no room for pride.
Standing at the doorway, Leah Thorne looked up at the window of the floor where she lived, genuinely smiling.
"Thank you..." she slowly glanced at her reflection in the glass door, raising a hand to touch her face, "Thank you, Tanya Sinclair."
Across the ocean.
When the military airplane landed on Gralen Island, dusk had already set in.
There was a nine-hour time difference from Aris, but unlike the snowy winter in Aris, Gralen Island was tropical, with the air drenched in a humid scent mixed with the oppressive smell of decay.
It was as if the plants were overripe, with heat escaping from every pore.
An armored vehicle was waiting nearby.
Tanya Sinclair took a seat in the car with two plainclothes soldiers who had flown with her.
"Ms. Sinclair, according to their demands, the hostages will be exchanged at the port. Don’t worry, our people are hidden in the nearby fishing boats, we’ve already set everything up! Moreover, among the kidnappers, we have a mole. I don’t know his exact identity, but he has an eagle tattoo on his right shoulder! Just follow his lead, he’ll do his utmost to bring you back safely!"
"Okay." Tanya Sinclair looked calm, though her palms inevitably grew damp with sweat.
Claiming not to be scared would be a lie.
But she had to make this trip.
Soon, the vehicle arrived at the dock.
Tanya Sinclair got out of the car and saw that three boats were anchored at sea, yet none had docked.
Then, several soldiers in camouflage uniforms approached.
The leader introduced himself, "Ms. Sinclair, I’m Kyle Crawford from the International Criminal Police Organization, currently in charge here. You can call me Crawford."
Before Tanya Sinclair could speak, suddenly the loudspeakers on either side of the dock emitted a piercing noise, threatening to split eardrums, Tanya Sinclair covered her ears.
Next, a man’s deep voice echoed out.
"Ms. Sinclair, finally we meet. You look more beautiful in person. Please board the middle boat."
The man’s voice was awkward, evidently a foreigner attempting to speak in Chinese.
As soon as he finished speaking, a plank descended from the middle boat, perfectly bridging the edge of the dock, and four armed men appeared on the deck.
Tanya Sinclair was about to step forward when Crawford extended a hand to stop her.
