The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Gunshots echoed through the lab, but the Vanguard Agency was ready for anything. The GTO guards

left behind were caught off-guard, especially since their boss had hightailed it out of there.

It was a spectacular defeat, like watching petals swept away by a swift stream.

Vivienne continued to monitor the screens, her fingers dancing over the keyboard with urgency, “The

left passage is clear. Follow it.”

She was analyzing the layout of the building, switching to real-time mode, and connecting to infrared

imaging to track Scott’s possible escape routes.

Although Percival had come prepared, they were short on hands, what with all the kids around.

Scott knew the place like the back of his hand; if he had planned an escape route in advance, he would

be a tough one to catch.

Suddenly, Vivienne spotted a blinking light on the screen. “Mr. Wolf, watch out, there’s a bomb!”

A loud explosion rocked the area 800 meters from the lab entrance.

The thermal imager fizzled out, and the screen became a flurry of scrambling red dots.

Vivienne cursed under her breath, slammed her laptop shut, and sprinted toward the blast site.

“Mr. Wolf! You oka…”

“Vivienne.” Percival emerged from the ashes, one hand gripping Thomas, the other holding Leopold.

“I’m fine. Check on these two.”

Leopold let out a groan. “Vivienne, my hand’s done for.”

Thomas gestured to his own left hand. “Same here.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, Vivienne quickly picked up some scattered wooden planks and expertly

fashioned splints for their broken hands.

“This will do for now. We’ll get it fixed back at the base. It’s not a big deal.”

Vivienne’s gaze met Percival’s.

He was staring into the rubble, his expression grave, eyes sharp as blades.

She understood his frustration.

They had been so close to capturing Scott.

Who would have thought a new type of bomb was buried here, one that even their detectors had not

picked up?

If Vivienne had not switched to the real-time map, they might have been dealing with more than just a

couple of broken hands. Whether they would even be found in one piece was up for debate!

Vivienne stepped forward, placing a hand on Percival’s shoulder. “Mr. Wolf, let’s head back.”

Percival nodded. Scott was GTO’s third in command, not someone they could easily apprehend.

“Captain, we’ve found all the missing infants. Two are critical and need… Ma’am’s attention.”

Vivienne blinked at the term ‘ma’am.’

Turning around, she saw everyone except Leopold looking at her expectantly.

Oh, the ‘ma’am’ was her!

“Don’t be ridiculous, people, we’re only engaged, not married! ‘Ma’am’ sounds so old!” She protested

inwardly.

Leopold, sitting on a rock, kicked the messenger. “What ‘ma’am?’? Did I give my blessing to be called

that? Keep babbling nonsense, and I’ll knock your teeth out!”

The team member blinked but ignored the ‘little Husky’s’ outburst, focusing instead on Vivienne.

“Ma’am, we’re running out of time.”

Vivienne snapped back to the situation, patting her subordinate’s shoulder, “Call me Vivienne next

time.”

With that, she rushed to the lab; time was of the essence.

Percival also dusted himself off, consoling his team member, “Husky’s bonus is yours this time.”

“Thanks, Captain, thanks, ma’am,” The team member beamed, then thanked Leopold, “And thanks,

Leopold!”

As Leopold was about to clench his fist, a jolt of pain reminded him of his injury.

‘Percival, you heartless man!’ But, of course, these words remained unspoken.

Meanwhile, Percival’s phone rang. Checking the caller ID, his deep-set eyes narrowed.

After a brief conversation, he announced, “Calista was released three hours ago.”

He could not even delay it for a full day.

Vivienne’s eyes narrowed, a cold laugh escaping her. “The reach of our adversaries is surprisingly

long.”

Percival’s expression darkened, but he remained silent.

“At least the kids are safe now. We’ll deal with that man slowly.” Vivienne noticed Percival’s mood was

off.

Being the team captain responsible for national security and having someone pull strings over his

head, it was no wonder he was upset.

Hearing her, Percival managed a smile. “Yes, we’ll take care of them one by one.”

Back in the lab, the situation with the two infants was indeed dire.

But it was not just them; all the children were affected.

To ensure the infants’ normal physical development while keeping them quiet, GTO had injected them

with a new type of sedative.

Though it was meant to foster organ growth for their experiments, such a drug could harm the brain,

potentially causing brain death.

The two critical children had already been cut open, their half-developed hearts partially removed.

Vivienne’s eyes blazed with fury as she realized GTO’s intention to use the children’s hearts for virus

experiments.

Such inhuman cruelty!

She administered the antidote to the sedative to each child. Apart from the two with damaged hearts,

the rest were sent to the police station, awaiting their parents to claim them.

The incident became a national sensation.

However, the news erased any trace of the Vanguard Agency’s involvement.

Over in Rivenwood, at an apartment, Brody gave Scott a thorough check-up and found not a single

ailment.

Not even a hint of poisoning, not even a mouth ulcer!

“Poisoned, my ass! You got me all excited for nothing, damn it, I’m out!” Brody stormed off.

He had thought they finally had a chance to counteract the Specter Healer’s poison, not just treat some

simple broken limb. And now, it was all for naught. Disappointing, to say the least.

Scott did not stop Brody.

He had only used the Specter Healer’s reputation to lure him in to cure Calista.

Now that Calista was fine and he was not poisoned, there was no reason to keep Brody.

As soon as Brody disappeared, Calista emerged from the room.

Though she owed her recovery to Brody’s medical skills, Calista could never shake off a deep-rooted

fear of him. Being in the same room felt like walking a tightrope over a pit of snakes. She might just get

bitten at any moment.

“Dad.” Calista approached Scott hesitantly, her words lingering on the edge of silence.Books Chapters

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Released just hours earlier, she’d made a beeline for this place, a sanctuary of sorts.

Scott, already annoyed by Mila’s constant clinger act, extended his disdain to Calista, too.

He would not have saved her if she were not useful to him!

Even though Calista was his flesh and blood, he did not care much for her. Things easily gained were

easily disregarded.

“Speak up!” He barked.

Calista flinched, intimidated by Scott’s current mood.

She sat slowly, reaching for the first aid kit to tend to his wounds.

Brody had checked for poison, sure, but had not bothered with the injuries Scott got while escaping.

“I was just thinking.” She began tentatively, dabbing antiseptic on a cut. “The task you’ve given me,

maybe with Brody’s help, I could do it twice as well. Why not let him join us? You’re formidable on your

own, and now that he’s alone, the odds are in your favor.”

Scott let out a scoff. “If I had pushed him just now, what you’d have in front of you would be nothing but

a skeleton.”