Filed to story: The CEO’s Wife Is a Secret Boss Novel (Allison & Jeremy) Free Online
Angelina left to do so and didn’t return, even after a long while had passed.
Lauren didn’t even notice when Angeline had left as she was too focused on her art.
A shrill and terrifying scream suddenly pierced the silence.
Lauren’s pencils fell to the floor as she flinched in shock.
She then saw a human body fall outside the window, followed by a loud slam.
Lauren immediately rose from her chair, her body strung tight. She sheepishly walked over to the window and looked downstairs.
Her mind went blank in an instant. She clasped her mouth in fright and stumbled backward, legs beginning to quiver.
A woman had fallen off the building and was lying dead on the ground outside.
Panic ensued just then as screams of terror rang out from downstairs.
Lauren’s heart pounded heavily in her chest. She grabbed her teddy bear and promptly ran out of the classroom, not even bothering to pack anything else.
“Angie… Angie, where are you?” Lauren cried as she ran through the hallways. The image of the dead woman had branded itself into her mind.
After running to who-knows-where, there came frantic footsteps from behind Lauren, followed by panicked wails.
“Help! Someone has been murdered! Help!”
Murdered?
Lauren turned around in shock. Two male students were running frantically in her direction.
Behind them was a middle-aged man drenched in blood with a cleaver in one hand.
Lauren was rooted to the spot in fright, hugging her teddy bear tight.
“Bastards! I’ll kill all of you!” the man roared viciously, raising his blade in the air and aiming it right at the male students.
Lauren took a fearful step back.
Just then, one of the students grabbed her arm and dragged her over to shield himself from the knife’s blow.
“Ah!” Lauren slammed right into the man as her teddy bear dropped to the floor.
The two cruel students had already run off by then.
The man was about to shove Lauren away when police sirens blared from outside the window.
“H-Help me!” Lauren shrieked before the man grabbed her by the shoulder and pressed his knife against her neck.
“Shut up and follow me if you still want to live!” he barked.
All the students had run out of the building in fright as the killer was on the loose.
Many onlookers crowded outside the building. The police had to stop them from going past the safety tape, creating quite a chaotic scene.
There were even reporters eager to get tomorrow’s headlines right away!
“What’s the situation right now?” Cyrus asked, going past the safety tape and heading into the building.
“Chief Cyrus, the suspect is one Denver Whitman, age 52. He works at an assembly line!” Two officers reported to Cyrus as they marched behind him.
They continued, “There’s a female casualty who fell off the building, followed by a male who was cleaved five times and died on the way to the hospital. Two other male students were hurt, but they escaped just in time. They’re already on their way to the hospital!”
Cyrus’ brows knitted together. “Did the female student commit suicide?”
“She did, but after we reviewed the footage in the area, she’d only done it because Whitman forced her to!”
Cyrus found this peculiar. “Do all the five students know one another?”
“I’ve asked their teachers and classmates. They all told me those five are pretty good friends. They’re always hanging out and smoking on the rooftop!”
Cyrus narrowed his eyes. “Is that where the crime scene is?”
“Yes, sir!”
Cyrus immediately figured out that Denver wasn’t just mindlessly killing people.
It was a premeditated act of revenge.
“Chief Taylor, we’ve got bad news!” Another policeman rushed over, covered in sweat. “The killer is at the rooftop with a hostage! He threatened to jump to his death with the hostage if we refused to release him.”
Then, he handed a phone to Cyrus. Cyrus took the phone and saw the scene of Denver bellowing at the policemen with a female hostage in his arms.
His eyes widened in shock as he recognized a pale-looking and tear-stricken Lauren in Denver’s grip. His heart sank, and panic surged through his veins.
How could Lauren be the hostage?
Cyrus, who had always dealt with the toughest armed criminals with calm, found himself breathing unevenly. He immediately dashed toward the rooftop.
At the same time, Angelina rushed toward him with fury in her eyes, holding Lauren’s teddy bear.
“Is the hostage… Madam Lauren? Is that true?” She sounded teary.
Cyrus nodded with a serious face. She looked like she was on the brink of a breakdown.
She offered, “I’ll go with you!”
“I know you’re in a panic, but your presence will only worsen the situation. You know nothing about the criminal, and you don’t have the negotiation skills. If you provoke the criminal, he might take Lauren’s life!” Cyrus advised.
Then, he stared into her misty eyes. His tone softened. “Have faith in the police; trust me!”
“Mr. Cyrus, please save Madam, no matter what it takes!” Angelina had no choice but to plead with Cyrus and placed all her hope on him, even when she knew he was a thorn in Landon’s flesh.
“Don’t worry. I’ll risk my life to save Lauren because it’s my duty as a policeman,” Cyrus promised.
After that, he warned Angelina, “Do not alert Landon Harper just yet. He’s a hot-tempered man. I fear he might show up with his men to blow up the school in a panic. Listen to my instructions if you want Lauren back safe and sound.”
It took Cyrus only five minutes to race up the rooftop from the first floor and memorize the background information of Denver Whitman.
Within five minutes, he had to structure the negotiation and construct various scenarios to rescue the hostage. He even had to consider the worst-case scenario.
In his long career, he had been involved in hostage rescue countless times. He had even faced criminals armed with knives and hostages with bombs planted on them.
This time around, his face turned white from shock and his mind went blank before he opened the door to the rooftop, perhaps because Lauren Walsh was the hostage in a daunting crisis.
He heard a remark from his earset. “Chief Taylor, the snipers are in position!”
Snapping back to reality, he said coldly, “Do not fire without my orders. We need to protect the hostage!”
Then, he opened the door and headed toward Denver Whitman with determination.
“Do not take one step closer. If you do that, I’ll slash her neck!” Eyes filled with a murderous look, Denver pressed the blade harder against Lauren’s neck.
He made a cut on her neck, and blood started trickling from the wound.
A couple of policemen stood not far away from Denver with guns in their hands, but none dared to approach him.
Tears rolled down Lauren’s cheeks. She shut her eyes in despair. In the moment of desperation, all she could think of was Landon, her one and only love. She muttered his name repeatedly, “Landon… Landon, I’m scared.”
“Denver Whitman, calm down! Don’t make any move!” A familiar voice echoed in the area, surprising Lauren. She slowly opened her eyes.
Spotting Cyrus, she called out to him, “Cyrus. Cyrus!”
Lauren’s voice squeezed Cyrus’ heart.
“Cyrus, save me^” Lauren’s face was devoid of color. Tears rolled down her cheeks, which hurt to watch. He so wanted to comfort her, but such an attempt might provoke the criminal and place her in greater danger.
He cast a deep glance at Lauren before shifting his attention to Denver’s crazy eyes. He said, “Denver Whitman, please calm down. That young lady is innocent. She has no idea about your backstory and doesn’t even know the five students. She’s just an innocent outsider.