Chapter 371
The fat man tore off his disguise.
"We've been polite enough to you!"
"In our village, a disobedient woman like you would have had her legs broken already."
"Hand over five hundred thousand, and we'll leave immediately."
The old man feigned a sigh.
"Why make this so difficult, girl?"
"If you had listened to our advice, it wouldn't have come to this."
"We only want money."
"You drive a Mercedes. Five hundred thousand is nothing to you."
"Once we have the money, we guarantee you'll leave safely."
Sophia Sullivan was taken aback by their audacity.
They couldn't even be bothered to maintain their pretense.
This was clearly a robbery.
She understood the principle of paying to avoid disaster.
But five hundred thousand was absolutely impossible.
She said coldly, "Thirty thousand, at most. Take it or leave it."
"Thirty thousand? You think we're beggars?"
"A single part from this car is worth more than thirty thousand!"
"This woman won't be reasonable until she suffers a little!"
The tall, thin man raised his hand menacingly.
As his palm was about to strike, a force intercepted it.
The next second, he was kicked flying.
Sebastian Evans retracted his leg.
He stared coldly at the man sprawled on the ground.
"Lay a hand on her? You're not worthy."
He turned to Sophia, his voice urgent.
"Are you hurt?"
Sophia had been shielding her head.
The expected pain never came.
Instead, she heard Sebastian's voice.
Her head snapped up.
She met a pair of eyes filled with concern.
"How did you get here?" she blurted out.
Sebastian laughed in exasperation.
"If I hadn't come, was I supposed to wait for them to extort you?"
"No…" Sophia pressed her lips together awkwardly.
"I mean, how did you find this place?"
"You screamed and then hung up on the phone."
"You didn't answer when I called back."
"Did you think I wouldn't worry?"
"Sorry, I—"
Sebastian cut her off.
"You're not the one who should be apologizing."
His icy gaze swept over the three men.
The kicked thin man scrambled to hide behind his father and brother.
"How… how could you hit someone?" the fat man blustered.
Sebastian smirked coldly.
"Not only will I hit someone, I'll hit you next. Believe me?"
The other man fell silent.
Three or four dark figures quickly surrounded them.
They trapped the father and his three sons in the middle.
"What are you trying to do?!"
Sebastian took off his jacket.
He wrapped it tightly around Sophia.
He made a gesture to the dark figures.
The father and sons were immediately dragged away.
Sebastian looked at Sophia.
"Were you scared?"
"Not really, because—"
She opened her palm.
A folded knife lay inside.
"I had this."
Sebastian's heart clenched.
"Getting bold, are we? Planning to go down fighting?"
"Not that far." She smiled faintly.
"A last resort."
He laughed angrily, a trace of fear hidden in his eyes.
"If they want money, just give it to them."
"Your life is more important than money!"
"Why pick a fight with people like this?"
Sophia nodded, looking innocent.
"I did offer."
"You said you only had thirty thousand…"
"They wanted five hundred thousand."
"If I gave in too easily, they'd think they asked for too little."
"They'd get greedier next time."
"I had to let them know the money wouldn't be easy to get."
"They asked for five hundred thousand, and you bargained down to thirty?" Sebastian was utterly speechless.
Sophia coughed lightly.
"My WeChat balance only had thirty thousand."
"And this knife?" Sebastian took the folded knife.
He flicked it open with his fingertip.
Hiss!
The blade gleamed coldly.
Sophia's lips tightened.
Her expression turned grim.
"What if they didn't want money?"
"When money can't buy your life, you need to keep an ace up your sleeve."
Sebastian fell silent.
Sophia continued, "That's why I said it was the last step."
Using it was a choice.
Being prepared was another matter entirely.
Sebastian sighed softly.
It was as if he was seeing her in a new light.
"The paint on your front bumper is scratched."
"Should I call the dealership to tow it?"
"Okay."
Sebastian opened the car door.
"I'll drive you back."
Sophia instinctively pulled his jacket tighter.
Her movement suddenly stilled.
The fabric still held the warmth of his body.