Parking Lot of the Imperial Hotel

"What the fuck? Why hasn’t that woman come out yet? It’s already past office hours, and she still hasn’t shown up?"

Vincent slammed his palm against the steering wheel in frustration. They had already waited since morning, and it was already nine at night, but Sienna still hadn’t come out.

The loud noise startled the three men sleeping in the back seat. They opened their eyes briefly, glanced at him, then returned to sleep as though they had already grown used to his temper.

"Calm down, man," Blade said while keeping his eyes on the staff entrance. "She’s probably working late—"

"Working overtime?" Vincent frowned. "But it’s almost nine, man!"

Blade didn’t respond.

Vincent rubbed his face before looking around thoughtfully. "Is there another exit?"

For a moment, silence filled the vehicle.

Then Blade suddenly turned toward Vincent. "Did she leave through the hotel’s main entrance?"

Before Vincent could answer, Blade immediately looked at the three men in the back seat. "You three, wake up and go check the—"

His words stopped abruptly when Vincent pointed toward the staff entrance.

"Blade, look. She finally came out..." His voice had dropped instinctively, as though he was afraid Sienna might somehow hear them.

Blade immediately focused his attention outside. "There she is!"

"Should we kidnap her now?"

"We can’t do anything here," Blade replied calmly. "There are cameras everywhere. We’ll follow her home first."

However, his calm expression gradually disappeared when a Rolls-Royce pulled up in front of Sienna. Without hesitation, she opened the door and got inside.

The sight left everyone in the vehicle stunned. Not only Blade, but Vincent and the others were equally shocked.

Vincent let out a whistle and slowly shook his head. "Wow. This woman is interesting. Her father owes our boss a mountain of debt, yet she’s riding around in a Rolls-Royce."

"Or maybe she’s being kept by some rich old man," one of the men in the back suggested.

Another added, "Maybe she’s the mistress of a wealthy businessman."

Their comment immediately triggered laughter throughout the car.

Unfortunately for them, the amusement didn’t last long.

"Vincent, stop wasting time! Follow them," Blade ordered. "And make sure they don’t notice us."

"Oops. Sorry." Vincent grinned and quickly started the engine.

Keeping a safe distance, Vincent followed the Rolls-Royce through the city streets.

Traffic was relatively light that night, making it easy to keep track of the luxury vehicle without attracting attention.

Not long afterward, the Rolls-Royce finally slowed and came to a stop.

The location immediately confused everyone inside the car.

"Where does she live?" one man asked. "Why did she stop in front of a convenience store?"

"Maybe she needs to buy something."

A moment later, they watched the Rolls-Royce pull away.

"Look, the car left. Did it just drop her off? I think it did."

While the others exchanged guesses, Blade remained silent. His gaze followed Sienna as she entered the convenience store before shifting toward the apartment complex nearby.

After studying the area for a few seconds, he finally spoke. "You three wait on the street leading toward that apartment complex. I bet she lives there."

Everyone followed his line of sight.

The large sign for Orchid Garden Apartment stood clearly in the distance.

Blade then began explaining his plan to abduct Sienna once she returned home.

...

Inside the convenience store, Sienna remained completely unaware of the danger waiting outside.

She was focused on browsing the medicine aisle, searching for a few things she needed.

After making her purchase and heading toward the exit, her phone suddenly vibrated inside her bag.

She immediately checked it. The moment she saw the caller’s name, warmth spread across her face.

"Hello, Zach," she greeted happily.

"Hi, dear." Zachary’s familiar voice instantly eased the fatigue from her long workday. "Are you home yet?" he asked.

"I stopped by a convenience store to pick up a few things."

She pushed open the glass door and stepped outside while continuing the call.

The street leading toward Orchid Garden Apartment was usually quiet at night.

"It’s pretty late, Sienna," Zachary said, unable to hide the concern in his voice. "Is Logan with you?"

"No, I only asked him to drop me off nearby. But I’m done here and heading home now."

"Alright. Be careful." His voice softened further. "Call me when you get home."

"Sure, I will."

After ending the call, Sienna slipped her phone back into her bag and continued walking along her usual route.

The familiar path should have made her feel safe. Instead, a strange feeling of unease slowly crept over her. A familiar feeling she had years ago.

Not far ahead, three men appeared from the opposite direction.

Even under the dim streetlights, she could tell they were large and muscular. They weren’t simply walking past her. Instead, they appeared to have blocked her path.

Sienna’s fingers curled tightly at her sides. A sense of danger settled heavily in her chest. The way they looked at her, with faint smirks on their faces, made her instincts scream that something was wrong.

’Relax, girl! Maybe they’re residents too. Don’t overthink it.’ Sienna tried convincing herself while maintaining a normal pace.

At the same time, she casually glanced behind her, wanting to know her escape options if things turned bad.

The sight almost made her stop walking. Another man was following her by several meters. Like the others, he was tall and jacked-up, broad-shouldered, with the same threatening presence.

Her pulse immediately quickened.

Even then, part of her desperately wanted to believe she was imagining things. Perhaps it was a coincidence. Perhaps these men had nothing to do with her.

Then a voice called from behind.

"Miss Sienna?"

Her footsteps slowed, but she didn’t turn around. Every alarm in her mind went off at once.

’These men were not residents, and they definitely weren’t good people. How else could a complete stranger know my name?’

Before she could respond, one of the men standing ahead spoke.

"You need to come with us, Miss Sienna. Our boss wants to meet you."