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Now that they had successfully captured their target, Ashton planned to take Briar back to the Grant family first.
Interrogating Freddie could wait.
The allure of their wedding night was far more exciting to Ashton than the prospect of interrogating Freddie.
Besides, he had told her two uncles that he was taking Briar out on official business, but they ended up getting their marriage certificate along the way.
They had to go back and tell Briar’s uncles.
Although Ruben and Larry had already verbally accepted him, accepting him and tricking a young woman into secretly getting married were two different things.
“It’s getting late, darling. Should we head home?” Ashton had been holding Briar’s hand tightly ever since Freddie collapsed, afraid she might casually shoot him again.
‘How could Freddie possibly withstand another shot? We can’t let someone like him die so easily, he thought.
Briar looked down at her hand, held tightly by Ashton, then at the nervous looks from Connor and Brandon. She smiled faintly and tossed the gun to Ian. “Alright, let’s go back for now.”
Not giving Briar a chance to change her mind, Ashton immediately led her to the car and waved at Connor and his men, signaling them to quickly get the man out of sight.
Connor glanced at Ian, who was enjoying the drama, and then at Briar, who was reluctantly coaxed into the car by Ashton. He sighed. ‘Having such a capable boss lady is a lot of work sometimes.‘
Ashton stepped on the gas and drove off, ignoring Ian, who hadn’t had time to get in the car.
Briar was amused by Ashton’s tense demeanor. “Ashton, I wasn’t planning on letting Freddie die so
comfortably. So, don’t worry. I won’t shoot them right now.”
Ashton nodded. “I know. It’s our first day of marriage, so we shouldn’t be looking at something so unpleasant. It’s bad luck!”
Briar laughed. “Alright, you have a point. I won’t look.”
The capture was surprisingly smooth, taking less than five hours from start to finish.
If they headed back now, they could still make it in time for dinner at the Grant family.
Briar called her two uncles in advance, telling them they would be home for dinner and had two pieces of good news, which certainly piqued their curiosity.
Ashton didn’t bother clearing out the weapons, leaving them casually on the back seat as he drove into the Grant family. The moment their car pulled into the courtyard, the villa’s security alarm blared sharply.
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head; he couldn’t be any deader.
His body didn’t even twitch as he collapsed, and he stopped breathing instantly.
Freddie clutched the gunshot wound on his shoulder, blood seeping through his fingers as he ran on, panting heavily.
But he had relied on medication to maintain his health for years. While he could manage a brisk walk, such intense running was utterly exhausting for him.
Before long, all Freddie could hear was his own heavy gasping. His legs seemed to be rooted to the ground.
He couldn’t run anymore.
Freddie glanced back to see if anyone was following, but horror filled his expression the moment he turned.
Briar was just three steps away, following at an unhurried, leisurely pace. He didn’t even know when she had gotten behind him.
He hadn’t heard a single sound the whole time.
How terrifying!
Freddie stumbled and his legs gave out. Trembling, he pitched forward and was about to hit the ground.
In his peripheral vision, Freddie saw Briar reach out a hand. He hoped she would help him up, but instead of pulling him, she gave him a hard push.
The last thing Freddie felt before passing out was pain.
Ashton and Ian walked over. Frowning at Freddie’s stiff body on the ground, Ashton said, “He’s so useless. I doubt he’s the mastermind behind the secret live experimentation lab.”
Ian walked over to Freddie and nudged him with his foot. When he saw Freddie wasn’t faking, he nodded in agreement. “Yeah, how could a pathetic old man like him kidnap and sell people for experiments? He has no combat skills, doesn’t seem very smart, and his bodyguards are useless…”
“Seriously? Briar, this is the old guy who chased you all over town when you were a kid?” lan asked.
It wasn’t that he was being nosy; the whole situation just felt strange, no matter how he looked at it.
“That’s it? That’s him?‘ he thought.
Briar pouted, put away her rifle, and took out a small gourd–shaped bomb, tossing it up and down. “I hate to admit it, but he was the source of every danger I faced as a child.”
“He hunted you from the time you were five until you were eighteen?” Ashton asked.
Even before Briar could answer, Ashton’s voice had already turned icy.
He looked at Freddie as if he were already a dead man.
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hapter 258
Now that they had successfully captured their target, Ashton planned to take Briar back to the Grant family first.
Interrogating Freddie could wait.
The allure of their wedding night was far more exciting to Ashton than the prospect of interrogating Freddie.
Besides, he had told her two uncles that he was taking Briar out on official business, but they ended up getting their marriage certificate along the way.
They had to go back and tell Briar’s uncles.
Although Ruben and Larry had already verbally accepted him, accepting him and tricking a young woman into secretly getting married were two different things.
“It’s getting late, darling. Should we head home?” Ashton had been holding Briar’s hand tightly ever since Freddie collapsed, afraid she might casually shoot him again.
‘How could Freddie possibly withstand another shot? We can’t let someone like him die so easily, he thought.
Briar looked down at her hand, held tightly by Ashton, then at the nervous looks from Connor and Brandon. She smiled faintly and tossed the gun to Ian. “Alright, let’s go back for now.”
Not giving Briar a chance to change her mind, Ashton immediately led her to the car and waved at Connor and his men, signaling them to quickly get the man out of sight.
Connor glanced at Ian, who was enjoying the drama, and then at Briar, who was reluctantly coaxed into the car by Ashton. He sighed. ‘Having such a capable boss lady is a lot of work sometimes.
Ashton stepped on the gas and drove off, ignoring Ian, who hadn’t had time to get in the car.
Briar was amused by Ashton’s tense demeanor. “Ashton, I wasn’t planning on letting Freddie die so
comfortably. So, don’t worry. I won’t shoot them right now.”
Ashton nodded. “I know. It’s our first day of marriage, so we shouldn’t be looking at something so unpleasant. It’s bad luck!”
Briar laughed. “Alright, you have a point. I won’t look.”
The capture was surprisingly smooth, taking less than five hours from start to finish.
If they headed back now, they could still make it in time for dinner at the Grant family.
Briar called her two uncles in advance, telling them they would be home for dinner and had two pieces of good news, which certainly piqued their curiosity.
Ashton didn’t bother clearing out the weapons, leaving them casually on the back seat as he drove into the Grant family. The moment their car pulled into the courtyard, the villa’s security alarm blared sharply.
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Briar calinly got out of the car. As her two uncles rushed toward them with guns raised, she opened the rear door and pointed to a black leather case on the seat. “Uncles, don’t worry. This is a gift for you from Ashton.”
Ashton, Ruben, and Larry were speechless.
Knowing he couldn’t explain why he had taken Briar for a ride and returned with heavy weapons and explosives, Ashton simply smiled and nodded. “Yes, uncles. These are gifts for you. Please accept them.”
Larry put away his gun, walked over, and opened the black briefcase. He gasped, “So many bombs?”
“Gourd bombs” were the newest type of explosive in the world. The Grant family were not arms dealers, so they had no way of acquiring such advanced new weapons.
But they were always prepared for danger and paid close attention to weaponry, so they recognized the highly sought–after “gourd bombs” and knew just how in–demand they were.
“Ashton… where on earth did you get such advanced weapons?” Larry chuckled. Every man loved guns. He was thrilled to have such rare weapons delivered right to him.
Since he was giving gifts, Ashton wasn’t one to be stingy. He walked to the trunk, opened it, and waved to Larry, who was grinning from ear to ear while clutching the briefcase. “A few bombs are nothing. I also brought the latest submachine guns, but I only have four for now. Take them and have some fun.”
Larry and Ruben were almost drooling.
‘Four submachine guns, the newest model in the world… to “have some fun” with?! How do we use them? Use them on flowers and plants? Or use them on the mysterious man, who’s been secretly plotting against the Grant family?‘ Larry thought.
Briar nudged Ashton. “Uncles, Ashton meant for you to keep these for collection, not to pick fights with them.”
Ashton continued to smile without offering any opinion.
His wife probably didn’t know that her uncles had been secretly investigating Ben with just as much effort as she had. They kept it from Briar only because they didn’t want her to worry.
Ruben said, “Alright, we love these gifts. That’s very thoughtful of you, Ashton.”
He waved over a bodyguard and had them move the weapons to the basement. Then he smiled and invited Ashton inside, casually asking, “Ashton, you suddenly gave us such fine weapons. Did something happen when you two went out today?”
Ashton calmly followed Ruben inside. He detected the probing question but remained composed. “You’re overthinking it. We just went for a drive and a short hike today. Nothing happened.”
“Then what about the two pieces of good news Briar mentioned on the phone? What are they?” Larry asked.
No matter how well Ashton concealed his expression, it was no match for how well they knew Briar. As the old saying goes, when one raised a child, he would know exactly what mischief the kid was plotting.
Briar had called specifically to show off, so she must have had some good news to share–the kind that would
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make them happy as well.
Ruben and Larry knew Briar very well.
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Ashton rubbed his nose, glancing at a guilty–looking Briar who was avoiding his gaze by looking at the sky, the ground, and her shoes. “Maybe we can talk while we eat?”
“Let’s go. Dinner is ready, so we can talk while we eat.” A sudden sense of foreboding washed over Ruben. He wondered if Briar had gone out and committed some major crime.
Ruben and Larry exchanged a look. Larry discreetly fell back a few steps, summoned a bodyguard, and whispered in his ear.
The bodyguard’s mouth twitched, but he nodded seriously before turning to leave.
Briar saw everything her uncles did and felt the urge to roll her eyes. She wasn’t a child anymore. But they were still so overprotective of her.
She didn’t even have to guess what the bodyguard was up to. Larry must have sent him to investigate what they had been doing, checking if anyone had been foolish enough to bully her.
Her uncles weren’t thinking straight. Not only was she more than capable of handling herself now, but she had also been with Ashton. Who would be foolish enough to pick a fight with him?
AD
