Chapter 3

Yvonne admired her manicure, then gave a slight nod of her head toward the cable car. "Go ahead and toss it inside."

It was then that the wasp nest was tossed into the cable car in an arc, with the wasps peering out cautiously at first, then swarming toward Mom and me in a frenzied blur.

I couldn't move out of the way in time; a large welt formed on my arm where I was stung, rapidly turning red and swollen.

"I heard an old wives' tale that wasp stings work wonders for heart conditions. I'm just trying to help your mother, so don't be ungrateful, Zoey," Yvonne explained with a laugh.

She then shot a look at the bodyguard, and before long, a bucket of honey was splashed over us, the cloying scent further aggravating the wasps.

I gritted my teeth against the pain as I scrambled to pull a coat from my bag to shield us both, looking completely disheveled. Henry and Yvonne's shrill laughter echoed through the valley. It was obvious they were treating us like a form of entertainment.

In the end, due to the sudden movement, the cable car started swaying again, causing Mom and me to be violently thrown to one side. We slammed hard against the metal frame of the door.

I suddenly spotted a single heart medication pill lying in the corner of the cable car. I ignored the swarm's stings, lunged for it, and shoved it into Mom's mouth.

I then kicked the wasp nest straight out of the cable car and watched it drop into the valley, the swarm trailing behind it. Finally, I breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the floor.

Mom was still reeling, her body incredibly frail. She realized that we were the only ones left in the cable car, so she hurriedly grabbed my hand and asked, "Where's Roger, Zoey?"

I couldn't help but start tearing up upon hearing the mention of Dad. I immediately turned my head away in silence, unwilling to respond.

Mom immediately understood.

Henry, on the other hand, was still laughing shrilly. "Your mother just won't die, will she? Why don't I help you two along and send you down to join your father, Zoey?"

Having said that, he fired another shot, directly hitting the steel cable.

Mom dug her nails into her palms, her eyes filled with a murderous rage. She scrambled through her pockets until she fished out a flare gun. "Use this to alert the Thunderbolt Squad from the Glover family. That'll alert them to rescue us, Zoey."

Mom was in a terrible state, so the moment she said her piece, she passed out.

I didn't waste a second. I aimed at the sky and pulled the trigger, causing the flare to shoot through the clouds and explode in a blaze of color high above. It completely eclipsed the infinite display of fireworks Henry had launched for Yvonne earlier.

Henry's composure shattered upon seeing the flare. He slapped the armrest of his chair and lunged to his feet. "Why did your mom have that with her?"

That flare had been fired—a signal that the head of the family was in peril and required immediate rescue.

Henry, being a Glover himself, understood the gravity of the situation. He knew that once the Thunderbolt Squad arrived, there would be no hiding what he had done.

"I-I can't let Mom and Dad find out about this," Henry muttered to himself before a savage glint flashed in his eyes, radiating pure murderous intent. He then reloaded his weapon, chambered a round, and took aim at my head.

Yvonne's eyes lit up with a predatory gleam. "That's right, Henry! You'll have nothing to worry about once Zoey is dead!"

Yvonne's words aligned perfectly with Henry's intent, so he didn't hesitate and pulled the trigger.

Henry's bullet flew toward me, but a shot from the southwest was faster, intercepting it and causing the two bullets to explode midair.

In the meantime, the mercenaries from the Glover family's Thunderbolt Squad swept in, their helicopters box-circling Henry, who was forced to keep his eyes shut from the massive downdraft.

Robert Glover, Henry's uncle, stood with his hands clasped behind his back, bellowing, "How dare you, Henry!"

Henry's face paled with fear as he faced Uncle Robert's domineering presence. He then tried to bluff his way out of it, saying, "You've all been tricked by that wretched woman, Uncle Robert! Zoey stole the flare gun! Mom isn't even anywhere near this place!"

Uncle Robert ignored his excuses entirely. He slid down the rope, landed right in front of Henry, and delivered a sharp backhand across his face.

"You impudent fool! Have you forgotten all the rules drilled into you since childhood? How dare you talk back to me!"

Henry was seething with resentment, but he had no choice but to submit under Uncle Robert's absolute authority. He lowered his head and mumbled, "Got it, Uncle Robert."

In the meantime, the Thunderbolt Squad moved with professional efficiency, rescuing Mom and me from the cable car in one swift motion.

Henry glared at me and hissed, "You'd better be smart about this, Zoey. I'll personally kill you if you dare breathe a word about this to Mom and Dad—"

He was cut off mid-sentence by his assistant, who was staring and pointing at Mom's hand with a ghostly pallor. "How could the scar on that woman's hand look exactly the same as the one on your mom's hand, Mr. Henry?"