She had no intention to spare Corey even a second of his sorry life.
Mason’s lips twitched at her bloodthirsty suggestion. He clapped a hand on her shoulder and said, “Stay still. I’ll bring the men in.”
“No,” Janet protested, tugging on his shirt to prevent him from leaving her. She was displeased as she said, “Remember what you promised me?” We’ll take him down together. She refused to let him have all the fun without her, and insisted for him to make good on his word.
The man smiled, his eyes turning into crescents as he regarded her teasingly, “I didn’t peg you for the clingy type.”
She blinked at his remark, then broke into a small laugh before turning to beckon her underlings over. “Fall in.”
“Roger that.”
Mason stepped in front of Janet, shielding her as he said, “Stay behind me.”
Knowing that she had no choice but to follow him, Janet kept silent as she stood behind him. However, just as they were about to charge in, the doors to the lounge swung open.
Everyone, including Mason and Janet, turned to stare at the open doors. The air around them seemed to grow still as they held their breaths and waited for someone to step out from within. Much to their surprise, the only figure that came out from behind those doors was a staffer dressed in uniform.
False alarm. The underlings exchanged looks with one another. “Oh—it’s just a false alarm.”
Janet and Mason, on the other hand, were silent, though they remained wary. Just as the staffer was disappearing from view, Janet narrowed her eyes and found that there was something off about her. “Don’t you think there’s something familiar about that woman?” she asked, her crisp voice breaking the silence.
Mason raised his brow, and his dark eyes became slits as he guessed, “Do you think it was Corey?”
“I do,” Janet answered firmly.
“Let’s go, then.”
Meanwhile, Sean was stationed just outside the boarding hall, scanning every person that filed past him. He looked somber as he called out his orders to the other men, “Let me know if you see anyone suspicious.”
“Understood.”
Just then, a tall and broad-shouldered woman dressed in uniform was making her way up the plane. When she passed by Sean, the briefcase she was carrying accidentally scratched his thigh. Nevertheless, he shrugged it off and continued to scrutinize the other passengers.
Suddenly, a deep voice called out from behind him, “Sean, stop the plane from taking off!” He turned and was shocked to find Young Master Mason running toward him.
Meanwhile, the plane engines were roaring to life, which meant that the plane was going to take off soon.
A thought flashed in Sean’s mind. The tall and broad-shouldered woman from just now… Could that… Could that have been Corey?
His eyes widened but by the time he turned back to look at the plane, he saw its wheels were already moving on the track. “Stop the plane!” he roared, but his voice was drowned out by the loud whirring of the plane engines.
When Mason and Janet finally arrived at the scene, the plane had already taken off. “F*ck!” Mason cursed and the air around him grew cold. He kicked the signboard next to him with such force that it cracked into two; it was clear that he was outraged.
Everyone held their breaths, afraid that the slightest sound from them would only infuriate the man further. Sean, on the other hand, knew that he had made a grave mistake. He lowered his gaze and walked toward Mason with his head hung low, the self-blame thick in his voice as he said, “It was my fault, Young Master Mason. I wasn’t attentive enough and I let him get away. I will gladly receive any punishment from you and Miss Jackson.”
A deadly silence settled in the hall. Mason’s lips were pressed into a grim line. He then barked coldly, “He was right under your nose! How could you let him slip away like that?”
Sean’s head dropped even lower. He could not protest, because he did let the man slip past him when he should have followed his instincts and detained that suspiciously tall and broad-shouldered ‘woman’.
A shadow passed over Mason’s handsome face. “From today onward, all of you will spend half a month at the training base, and don’t bother coming back if you don’t complete the mission!”
Upon hearing this, Sean shuddered. In all the years he had served by Mason’s side, he had never once made a mistake grave enough to be sent to the training base for half a month as punishment. Even he knew how brutal things could get at the training base.
Sean lifted his gaze, a look of disbelief on his face. Janet, on the other hand, pursed her lips and glanced at Mason as she murmured, “It wasn’t entirely Sean’s fault, so…”
