The hostage was none other than Kira!
Though she was held captive, she couldn’t stop tears from streaming down her cheeks at the sight of Devin.
Devin scowled. “Why are you here?”
“S-Shanae left me with these men. Devin, I wasn’t the one behind Coldbridge’s incident. Shanae forced me to do that. She threatened to give my parents a hard time in the Wood family. Aunt Jasmine is dead, so I had no choice…” she trailed off and wailed sadly.
Devin was speechless.
One commander asked, “Major Devin, is she your cousin? What should we do now? If we rescue her and let them leave, our efforts for the past few days would be in vain.”
Though they were clearly reminding Devin of their mission, he couldn’t leave her to die.
After all, Kira was his cousin. If she were to die here, he wouldn’t be able to face his aunt and uncle for the rest of his life.
Thus, Devin ordered them to allow the criminals to leave.
When Kira was released, she scurried to Devin, hollering, “Devin!”
Without hesitation, she threw herself into his arms and trembled profusely.
Devin was about to shove her out of his arms instinctively, but when he saw her shaking figure and pale face, he changed his mind.
“You’re all right now. I’ll ask someone to take you to the base so that you can get some rest. After wrapping things up, I’ll visit you.”
“Okay.” Kira released her grip on him reluctantly.
A special forces member led her out of the forest to their base.
Everyone was caught off guard by the sudden situation. They had been working for a long time to capture those smugglers, but a woman appeared out of nowhere and ruined their plan.
“Devin, why did your cousin suddenly appear in the hands of the smugglers?”
After the other commanders left, one remained. He was close to Devin and posed the question to him.
Devin frowned. “I’m not sure. She claimed someone handed her to the smugglers. I need to confirm that first.”
His gaze was as cold as ice.
Is Shanae capable of handing a Wood to the criminals? When did she get this bold? I can’t believe she’s this cruel. Isn’t she afraid that the head of the Woods family will skin her alive?
Devin wasn’t completely convinced.
He gathered a few commanders to hold a meeting in the tent. They decided on a plan before he left the forest and returned to the base.
“Major Devin, you’re back? The girl’s sick. The doctor said she has dengue.”
“Dengue?” Devin was planning on questioning her thoroughly when he heard about the news.
Dengue?
His face fell as he lifted the mesh at the entrance and stepped in.
It was true, for Kira was lying on the thin bed, unconscious from the high temperature she was running.
Upon spotting him, the doctor rose to her feet and reminded anxiously, “Major Devin, you’re back. Your cousin has dengue, so we have to send her to the hospital as soon as possible.”
Hospital?
They were in the rainforest, and the nearest hospital was a few hundred kilometers away. It wasn’t an easy journey.
Devin took one look at his cousin who was mumbling, “Devin, Devin… It hurts.”
Her lips were chapped.
However, she could still mutter Devin’s name when he showed up, though the fever fried her brain. Her rosy cheeks were stained with tears, as the pain was too agonizing for her.
Devin fell silent.
After a brief pause, he relented. “I’ll arrange for a car. How did she contract dengue, though?”
“Her legs were wounded, thus weakening her immune system. She had been in the rainforest for some time, so it was normal for her to get bitten,” the doctor explained as she pointed to Kira’s bandaged leg, shrugging helplessly.
The revelation stunned Devin as his gaze landed on her leg.
He promptly turned around and left to arrange for a car.
The emergency made him forget about the photos he received a while ago.
Back in Avenport.
Sabrina and Isaac finally completed the initial model of her Jeep Wrangler after a day’s work.
“Ms. Hayes, it’s late. Let’s continue tomorrow. The light isn’t great, so the final product might have flaws if we are to continue now.”
