The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

This bomb was nothing like the cutting-edge devices they’d encountered before.

This time, it was more intricate, more cunning, with an arrangement that was both deceptive and, upon

closer inspection, almost childish.

Yes, that was the word—childish.

Atop the delicate balance lay a common spherical dog toy, the kind that shouldn’t be nudged in the

slightest. A mere touch could set the whole thing off.

But who the heck puts a dog toy on a bomb? Especially one that squeaks.

“Vivienne, what’s the situation in there?” Percival could only peer through the crack in the door, unable

to see the full picture.

Vivienne held a pair of scissors in her hands, the familiar sight of the wiring giving her a sense of déjà

vu.

Percival, getting no response, called out again, “Vivienne?”

Vivienne shook the scissors, “All good.”

She got down on her knees, scanning the rainbow of wires before snipping one decisively.

Tick!

The toy fell off the balance, rolling across the floor and ending up under the desk with a soft thunk.

“Come on in,” Vivienne said, placing the scissors on the table.

The bomb wasn’t inherently difficult; it just appeared dazzlingly complex. In reality, it was still the red

wire.

Percival entered, realizing he was sweating bullets. He had defused a thirty-second countdown bomb

in his heyday without breaking a sweat, but this had unnerved him.

It wasn’t until he heard Vivienne’s voice that he understood just how frightened he’d been.

“It’s not a new type of bomb, just an ordinary one with a fancy setup. Looks tough, but it’s just a smoke

and mirrors act.”

Vivienne flashed a nonchalant smile at Percival, noticing the seriousness in his eyes and

subconsciously suppressing a smirk. She looped her arms around Percival’s neck, her alluring gaze

warming him like the first ray of sun on a winter’s day, “Mr. Wolf, what’s on your mind?”

Percival pulled her into an embrace, burying his face in her neck, inhaling her reassuring scent.

Vivienne knew Percival was scared.

“It’s not like we haven’t been through worse.”

The time Felix kidnapped the students from Class Eighteen had been far more harrowing.

A chill flashed in Percival’s eyes, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Vivienne gently patted his back, “This is the enemy’s tactic. I’ve defused it, and this

little trick wasn’t going to take my life.”

Percival knew all too well that Vivienne was the most intelligent woman on earth. And if anyone wanted

to take her life, they’d have to get past him first.

But when Vivienne was truly in danger, his belief wavered with fear. This fear was instinctual, an innate

dread of losing Vivienne.

They held each other tightly, their heartbeats slowly synchronizing.

Tick-tock… tick-tock…

An eerie ticking broke the silence in the office.

Vivienne’s eyes narrowed as she located the source.

Percival crouched down, eyeing the spherical dog toy beneath the desk. It was now pressing on the

actual bomb switch!

Suddenly, the supposedly defunct bomb activated a countdown, rapidly ticking down to single digits!

Even Vivienne and Percival were caught off guard, with no time to react.

“Vivienne, get out!” Percival shoved her towards the door and quickly locked the office behind him.

Vivienne pounded on the door, “Percival, open up, OPEN UP!”

In that instant, she knew what he intended to do.

He planned to shield the blast with his body, buying her time to escape.

“Percival, open the damn door!” Vivienne kicked at the lock with all her might.

But the door and lock of the TCL lab were made of top-grade materials, impervious to brute force.

Percival cradled the bomb in the far corner, using his body as a barrier.

All he wanted was to buy Vivienne a few precious seconds.

Vivienne took a deep breath and kicked at the door with all her strength!

Bang!

A cloud of smoke enveloped the office, followed by a sound akin to a popping balloon. Vivienne’s

mighty kick had obliterated the sturdy lock.

She rolled on the floor from the momentum, charging through the haze towards Percival.

“Mr. Wolf!”

Percival’s face was smeared with dust, his shirt torn at the chest, his hair sticking up in wild tufts.

The usually stoic and dignified Percival looked downright comical for the first time.

Yes, comical.

Vivienne was shaking with fear, staring dumbfounded at Percival.

It took them a full ten seconds to realize the truth.

This wasn’t a bomb! It was just a ridiculous smoke bomb!

A banner fell from the bomb’s wrapping—Congratulations, you’ve passed the first test.

Percival licked his lips, “First test?”

Vivienne clenched her fist, dispersing the remaining smoke with a loud curse, “Old man, you’re gonna

pay for this!”

There was only one person who could concoct such a diabolical bomb setup and turn it into a farce

with a banner—her supposedly “late” mentor, Finnian!Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay

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Percival caught on, realizing there had been no bomb at all, just a cruel prank played out of love.

As the smoke cleared, Vivienne spotted something else on the floor, revealed by the explosion.

All the experimental data from Calista!

That was the real reason Vivienne and Percival had come to this place.

Through the analysis of these experimental data, one could infer what kind of virus GTO was

researching and the connection it had with “potion.”

Since Mr. B had vanished into thin air, and Calista’s whereabouts were a mystery, the significance of

this data couldn’t be overstated. If it went missing with them, months of hard work would have been for

nothing.

Luckily, Finnian had the foresight to locate and duplicate the data, ingeniously hiding the copy inside a

bomb.

Percival let out a sigh of relief, “All’s well that ends well.”

Vivienne ground her teeth in frustration, “Not so fast. That old man thinks he can play me for a fool?

He’s got another thing coming.”

She squatted down, inspecting the remains of the blasted container, noting it was rigged with a

fingerprint recognition system. Had it not been Percival holding the bomb when it went off, they might

not have been so fortunate.

“That old coot, he’s a real tormentor, just like his infamous disciples,” she mused.

Vivienne carefully pocketed Calista’s experimental data, “When I catch up to him, I’m adding a hundred

bucks to my fee, or I might as well have been doing charity work!”

Percival couldn’t help but chuckle; his little spitfire was just too endearing.