NOTE: Hi! Like I said in the note on the fic Dark Paradise, from now on the format of this fic and the others as well will be different. Since some people keep complaining because of the Brazilian format and the use of "-" instead of "", I'll start using "". I'll only change the "old" chapters when I have time. Probably next summer lol

-----

Camila Collins' Point Of View

The sound of our high heels echoed through the empty corridors of that warehouse. I walked ahead, having Normani and Dinah following right behind. One of the men accompanied us to provide the services requested by us. I stared at both women as soon as we stopped before a thick metal door; they nodded briefly, and then I looked at the man.

"You can open it." I ordered.

"Yes, ma'am."

The man approached the door, grabbing the ring of keys from his pocket, and quickly took care of unlocking the door, which creaked as it was being pushed slowly by me.

"You can go for a walk. We'll call you if we need." I murmured at the man who alternated his gaze before the three women in front of him.

"As you wish." He said before leaving.

Dinah entered the dark room, followed by Normani and then by me. The blonde was incredibly beautiful for that situation, as if for my best friend that plan was also an act to be celebrated and reveled in the best possible way. She gestured with her index finger amid the penumbra of the place, signaling that we should be silent. I nodded slowly, and walked to the center of the room. Normani approached the wall, next to a control box. The woman opened the lid, and delicately turned the switch, turning on the spotlight on the man's body tied to an iron chair in the center of that cold room.

Heitor.

The blond was properly tied with his hands behind him, having his eyes blindfolded with a piece of black cloth. Maybe he was unconscious, because his body hung forward. A victorious and satisfied smile flourished in my lips in the exact moment that I had that image in front of me. I walked slowly, letting the sound of my heels be the only sound effect of that place.

"Let's wake him now." Dinah exclaimed.

She and Normani would be the only ones talking in that moment, I'd just watch the show like a perfect spectator watched her favorite TV show. I couldn't afford to participate, even if that's what I most wanted. So, I pulled another chair, putting it in front of his, a few meters away. I sat down on it and crossed my legs gently while resting my golden gun on my lap.

"It's time to wake up, honey." Dinah uttered sarcastically as she pulled Heitor's blond hair. "It's time to talk."

As soon as Dinah's hands left the man's light tresses, his head lolled forward, still unconscious. Normani casted me an intense look, then walked to the other side of the room, perhaps a bathroom. I allowed myself to analyze the body of the man in front of me; he's been there for a few days now, more precisely from the moment I left Switzerland accompanied by Lauren.

"The bastard is completely knocked out." Dinah grumbled as she gave some small slaps on the man's face.

"A bad villain, Dinah." I whispered, making her gesture again for me to be silent.

Before I could mutter in protest, Normani approached quickly, and poured a bucket of cold water on Heitor's head, who awoke in desperation amid a coughing fit.

"Wake up, dammit!" Normani exclaimed in a stern order, making a satisfied smile appear on my lips. "Playtime is over."

Dinah looked at her wide-eyed, and Normani threw her a little kiss in the air. I pointed to Normani and nodded as if to say "That's how it's done". Dinah just shook her head and approached Heitor.

"Who are you?" He shouted desperately, to my delight.

"We are your hell." Dinah whispered close to the man's ear, who moved his head from side to side.

"What do you want from me? Let me out of here!" He exclaimed desperately. " I can give you all my money."

Dinah laughed as she walked around the chair where the man was, her laugh sounded loudly, almost diabolical. I just smiled at the scene, that whole situation was at least fascinating.

"What money, Heitor? You don't have absolutely anything."

"I have some savings, please."

"Your savings are of no use to me! Don't be ridiculous!"

"Don't kill me, please. Don't kill me!" He cried out, making me laugh.

Dinah approached the man again, and gripped his wet hair, arching his head back. She had a silver pocket knife in her hand, which slid gently down the skin of Heitor's neck, just so he could feel what he could expect.

"Are you afraid of death? It can be your best option."

"God..."

"Do you feel powerful now, Heitor? You and Christopher always thought you were the kings of the world. Until he tricked you."

The man's chest rose and fell in a heavy and nervous breathing.

"Who are you? What do you want from me?"

"Well..." Dinah slid the tip of the pocket knife on the man's cheekbone. "You can be obedient and accept the proposal I have for you, or you can choose how you want to die."

"What proposal?"

I looked at Normani and soon after at Dinah, who took a deep breath and continue to speak:

"I want you to hand me over the documents of Charlie Cooper's company, all the documents that proved the bankruptcy."

"I don't have any of that, I don't know what you're talking about." He denied quickly.

"You have the courage to lie to me? I know that you know what I'm talking about, don't play with me. Or I'll kill you." She exclaimed angrily.

Heitor let a laugh escape from his lips, his sarcastic tone filled my chest with grudge. I held my gun tightly, pressing my fingers around the heavy object.

"Kill me? A woman killing me?" He laughed.

I got up from my chair in one swift act, and with all the rage and adrenaline that ran through my veins, I hit the man's head with the butt of my gun, making his body fall to the ground. And as if it wasn't enough, I fired two shots against the nearest wall, making him scream.

"What did you say, Heitor?" Dinah asked provocatively, while Normani held me.

"I say, I say whatever you want, please, don't kill me!"

"You and that bastard sunk that company, didn't you? You stole everything."

Heitor was still lying on the floor, tied to the iron chair.

"It was Christopher's idea! He's the one who embezzled the money, he's the one who stayed with all the shares!"

"You helped! You're as guilty as he is!"

The blonde shouted fiercely, and hit the man's stomach with a nice and strong kick.

"I didn't want the situation to get where it got. I only thought about the money!"

"You piece of shit!"

"Calm down." Normani whispered when she approached Dinah.

"I want the fucking documents!"

"They were forged, the company went bankrupt due to the embezzlements! Charlie signed a contract of a society with me and with Christopher to keep Cooper Enterprise, but he found out."

"He lost everything because of you two!" Dinah exclaimed as she pulled the man's body, sitting him again.

"I already told you, I didn't think that it was that much. What happened wasn't my fault! It was them!"

I closed my eyes for a few seconds, feeling a strong grip on my chest. I let out a sigh and looked at him again.

"Right... I want all those documents, I want everything you have! And if you do it, I'll let you go somewhere else. I just want you to disappear."

"How can I be sure that you won't keep me prisoner? If you won't kill me?"

"You don't have to be sure, you have to do what I tell you!" She inched closer to his face and whispered: "I'll give you a good sum of money for you to hide in the core of the earth if necessary, but I want absolutely everything about Christopher Collins."

"Okay! I have the documents stored, he thinks I threw away the originals, but I hid them all. Maybe I have something much better for you."

"If you help me, I guarantee that you won't regret it."

The blonde walked slowly, making the sound of her heels echo in that partially empty room.

"I can be very good with who collaborates. But if I know that you're lying, I'll find you even in hell if need be, but I'll end your life."

He lowered his head and shook it from side to side.

"I want you to hand me over everything, and when you do it I'll let you go. But you need to get out of here, because you will have not only one, but three sides to run from. It will be Christopher, the cops and me."

"Who are you? I know that there are more people here, I can feel it!"

"It's none of your business! Take care of thinking about everything you have, I'm going to deal with other things, but I'll be back later to continue our conversation."

I got up from that chair, staring at Heitor's bound and completely dirty body. I felt a deep urge to unleash what I was feeling in that moment, but he wasn't the main focus. So I just walked towards the exit, being followed by Dinah and Normani.

"You okay?" Normani asked both me and Dinah.

I just nodded, and Dinah did the same. Even though I have prepared myself psychologically for all that, certain things still left me incredibly shaken. But I was strong enough to overcome them.

"Camila!" Lauren's voice echoed loudly down the corridor after a strong pounding on the iron door.

My whole body shuddered in pure fright with the idea of her discovering me. I stared at both women in front of me with wide eyes, and then took a deep breath, trying to calm down.

"Where is Camila? You assholes! I'm gonna kill you!"

Lauren screamed as she pounded the iron door, causing a terrible noise in the warehouse. One of the men soon entered my line of sight, walking towards the room where Lauren was; as soon as he noticed my presence, he took a few steps back, scared. I changed my expression, now serious, and walked towards him.

"Call two more men and get in there. I want her unconscious."

"Yes, ma'am."

"And pay close attention to how you're going to do it, okay? If I see even a little scratch in that woman, you'll have to deal with me." I let out in a threatening tone, even knowing that Dinah and Normani were right next to me.

He nodded.

"Don't forget about Christopher, I want him knocked out too. Both of them."

"Leave it to me, ma'am." He spoke before leaving.

"Oh my God, just tell me where she is! You pieces of shit! What do you want??"

She pounded on the door angrily, as if she wanted at all costs to find me. Deep down I felt extremely guilty for deceiving her in such a way, but there was nothing I could do. Everything there was thoroughly planned to happen, and I couldn't change anything, not until the end of the game.

"Shit!"

I inched closer to the door, as if I could feel her on the other side. A heavy sigh left my lips, and then I backed away under the gaze of my accomplices. Dinah stared at me with an expression that said "you're screwed" and I really was.

"Let's go to our office, we need to handle the details." I let out as I walked by them.

As soon as we entered our office again, Dinah started to talk:

"What are we going to do now? You already have this pan in your head and I need to know all the details."

I walked to the desk, where I rested my body slowly.

"We're going to do what we agreed. I'll leave Lauren and Christopher on the other side of town, in some empty place. They'll be able to get in touch with Normani and the other girls, and then we'll ask for my ransom." I let it all out tranquilly. "And you need to pretend to be worried, please."

"We better ask 15 millions. I just offered 10 to Heitor, and I want the 5 millions that you gave back because of you little girlfriend."

"Dinah..." Normani murmured.

I rolled my eyes in an almost bored away, making the blonde laugh.

"Alright, 15 millions."

"I'm going to go back to the precinct. Let's keep in touch." Normani spoke as she looked at us.

"Okay. Let's advance one more square. I'll meet you soon, girls."

Lauren Jauregui's Point Of View

I pounded hard on the door a few more times trying to get the men's attention on the other side, but none appeared. I just needed some news about Camila, her absence in the room where Christopher and I were made me more and more apprehensive. I felt my wrists aching due to the ropes that bounded them, but surely, I was way better than Christopher. The men even left me on an old mattress, and the ropes only wrapped my hands, but with the businessman it was totally different. He was thrown on the ground, with his body completely bound.

"Stop with that infernal noise. You'll end up irritating them!" The man muttered grumpily. "She should be fine!"

"You don't know anything! What kind of husband are you?"

"The kind who's smart and doesn't want any of us to die due to insistence and rebellion."

"She could be suffering in another room!"

We heard noises coming from the door, and soon I quickly backed away when the men entered with masks on their faces. They were carrying guns and pocket knives in their hands, but not even that made me scared enough to submit to their orders.

"Where is Camila?" I asked the one I thought to be in charge. "Tell me!" I shouted.

"Shut up!" One of them said.

"Lauren!" Christopher murmured.

"Tell me where she is!"

"Grab them!"

"I told you, damn it!" I heard Christopher's voice in the back.

I didn't even have time to react, two of the men approached, forcing a small piece of cloth against my nose. I moved my body, but felt it being held by the aggressive arms of the men. My line of sight lost sharpness, now remaining only the darkness.

-----

My subconscious alarmed like a protective sensor in my brain; I moved slowly, feeling my whole body hurt, as if every muscle had been coldly mistreated. My eyes opened with difficulty, capturing a blurred and turbid image of the open and sunlit sky. I felt my body heavy, as if my brain wasn't sending the exact coordinations so that it would move. I was thirsty; my throat was dry and my lips completely dry too. I slid the tip of my tongue over them, feeling the partial taste of sand.

"Dammit..." I murmured softly, followed by a groan of pain.

With difficulty I lifted my body, feeling my back burn in pain. I sat up on the thin and yellowish sandy ground. I closed my eyes and opened them again in an attempt to see better, and little by little, that seemed to happen. Once I fully resumed consciousness, confusion settled on me. I looked around, seeing only a huge expanse of an abandoned field. I was no longer inside that dark and gloomy warehouse, on the contrary, the place was now fully open and absent of any kind of way to make me remain a prisoner. I was literally in the middle of nowhere, there was no sign of any dwelling around, except for the wooden hut abandoned in the back, but otherwise, just mountains, sand and woods. Even with the pain, I got up from the ground, staggering to finally stand still.

"God..."

That was the only word that left my mouth when I saw the body of a man lying ahead, it was Christopher. I approached him, who was lying on the ground a few meters away from me; just like me, the businessman had dirty and dusty clothes. He had some bruises on his skin, near the mouth and on the now purplish cheekbones of his face, perhaps caused by punches and slaps. For an unknown reason, or luck, the men didn't dare hit me, much less leave marks. I was sore, but as a result of the hours I spent tied up and thrown to the ground.

"Christopher!" I exclaimed nervously as I knelt beside him. "Wake up!"

I brought my hand to his neck, pressing two of my fingers on his pulse point. He was alive.

"Wake up, for the love of God. We have to get out of here."

I gave light slaps on his face in an attempt to make him wake up. That didn't seem to work, but insistently I continued. We needed to get out of there, we needed help. I wouldn't rest until knowing that Camila was safe and sound.

"What the hell! Wake up, asshole!" I grumbled as pulled his shirt and pushed again, causing his body to crash against the ground.

I lifted my body, standing again. The strong sun made my eyes narrow in search of a better view of that place. The field was very extensive, which made me think about how much I'd have to walk to get help from any local, if there was any in that place. I heard a low growl, accompanied by a groan of pain. My eyes landed on Christopher's body, who was now coughing nonstop.

"Finally!"

"Where are we?" He murmured amid groans of pain.

"I have no idea, but I need you to get up. We have to seek help." The words came out rushed.

"Where is my wife? Camila?"

"She's not here, and that is precisely why you have to get up and walk with me to seek help!" I exclaimed nervously.

"Did they kill her?"

"Oh, shit! Don't talk nonsense!" I turned towards him, giving him an almost murderous look. "If they kept her there, there's a reason, and we have to find out. Now get up."

He seemed to have a hard time getting up, so I approached him and extended my hand to pull him. He lifted his body, standing on his feet next to me. We walked together to the wooden hut that was meters away from where we woke up; but there was nothing that could help us in that moment. The place was totally destroyed, with cobwebs and parts of broken furniture, containing only old and useless objects inside.

"Hell!" Christopher exclaimed as he kicked an object on the ground. "Those assholes! I'm going to kill all those men when I catch them."

"I feel like doing the same, too bad I can't." I grumbled as we exited the house.

We walked down the sandy road for hours; I felt my legs aching, my throat increasingly drier. My body no longer seemed to obey so well to the commands, and to make things even better, I still had to put up with Camila's husband complaining about the pain and the men who captured us. I felt like punching him with such rage that consumed me, but my head was spinning only around the possibilities of where Camila was, and what they did with her. That was really tormenting me, leaving me even more angry and strangely worried. However, it was like a gas that motivated me to chase after her and get her out of the hands of her kidnapers.

"Why haven't they sent a search party? I can't believe that that idiot Brandon hasn't done anything so far, he..."

I took a deep breath, counting from 1 to 100 silently in my thoughts, in an attempt to make my brain block any sound effect from Christopher beside me. The man kept complaining about everything since I helped him get up from the ground, if I knew of all the mental disturbance that I'd suffer, I'd have left him lying there.

"A totally incompetent team, and unprepared..."

I lifted my head and at a distance saw the dust of the road being raised; I narrowed my eyes, when a sigh of hope emerged. There was a car, maybe a truck heading in our direction.

"I'll have a meeting and file a complaint..."

"Can you shut the fuck up for a minute?" I shouted, making the man look at me wide-eyed. "There's a car coming, yell to get its attention!"

Christopher casted me an angry look, but didn't reply. We yelled and waved at the approaching car, and a man with gray hair stopped the vehicle, lowering the window of the truck slowly. He stared at us with a frightened expression, perhaps because of the deplorable state of our clothes and the bruises on the face of the man beside me. We asked for help, and in a comprehensive and kind way, he gave us a ride to the closer establishment. I thanked the man, while Christopher was still complaining, now I felt him more enraged than a few minutes ago.

A woman of a certain age, owner of the establishment that I thought was a small market, offered us her phone so we could ask for help. I thanked her and accepted the phone, quickly dialing the number of my phone at the precinct. I was greeted by Vero who exclaimed loudly and nervously how she was relieved to hear from me, since she had already activated the entire police station because of our disappearance. I gave her the information provided by the old woman, so she could send a team to meet us as soon as possible. Christopher was sitting in one of the stools, as he cleaned the wounds with a small wet cloth. I rested on one of the chairs, as I drank the water contained in the glass. He didn't even exchange a word with me since the moment I told him to shut up, at least he was obedient.

"Deputy," the woman approached, "Do you need anything else?"

"No, I'm good. Thank you so much for helping us."

"No need to thank me, I'd never deny help on something so important. The young man over there told me that his wife is still kidnapped, I'm so sorry."

My thoughts wandered to Camila, and to what she might be going through right now. The feeling of helplessness was terrible, when my only desire was to have her in my arms and tell her that everything would be alright. I continued talking to the woman for long minutes, until I heard the sound of cars arriving. I got up from the chair where I was, walking towards the door.

"Oh, God, Lauren! I almost died of a heart attack." Vero exclaimed as she came towards me, hugging me tight.

I wrapped the woman's body with my arms, squeezing hard her body against mine.

"Same here, Vero."

"Lauren!" Ally stepped forward, and as soon as Vero released me, she grabbed me in a hug. "I was so worried."

"Everything is okay, or almost everything." I whispered.

"Agent Jauregui, it's good to see that you're okay!" Normani hugged me tightly.

Other police officers helped Christopher, as I continued to talk to the girls.

"We need to find that place, I have no idea where it is. I only know that it's an abandoned warehouse."

"We have to activate more teams!"

"Activate all the teams you can, and put a bug on the phones of Collins' house. They'll ask for something in return, they can't keep Camila forever." I let out nervously.

"We're going back to the precinct. You can go home and get some rest." Ally murmured worriedly.

"Allyson, I won't be able to sleep until I find Camila."

"You need to calm down." Normani spoke sincerely.

"I can't, just thinking about what they can do to her, I feel like killing them."

I no longer cared about what they'd think of all my concern with the Latina, that was what least mattered in the moment. Of course I'd have to face some serious questionings later, but it wasn't something that tormented me.

"We have to go." I said towards Christopher.

"We do, this way I can call someone with quality to solve this problem."

I turned towards him, frowning in confusion. My eyes landed on his, connecting our gazes, which crossed almost in a murderous way.

"What are you talking about?"

"That you are to blame for all of this! If we were kidnapped is because your service isn't worth a shit!"

Christopher shouted loud and clear, attracting the attention of everyone who was in that place. I felt my whole body boil, as if the hatred accumulated with all the other bad feelings that I suffered in the last hours were joining.

"I am to blame? You are the one to blame, you moron! I am responsible for covering your wife's safety and not yours! She would be safe if you were with your damn security guards, because I'd have taken her out of that damn car, and left you in the hands of those thugs!"

He stared at me astonished at the audacity in which I regarded him. I didn't care about his economic level, or even his power over Brandon. I wouldn't let him throw on me the blame for something that wasn't in my hands to fix, not alone.

"I'm sure those guys wanted you! And not her! But now they saw a weak spot, and they'll abuse it!"

"You don't know anything! You're just a shitty little cop!"

I balled my hands into fists, trying to control the urge I had to punch him in that instant.

"You should've already solved this damn case, but no! I'm being robbed nonstop."

"You asshole, everything was going well! I already had your damn proof! You only think about your fucking money? When your wife is in the hands of men who can kill her?"

"Why are you so worried? Why do you try so hard?" He asked furiously as he took a step forward.

We stared at each other face to face, in an exchange of angry and scary looks. My breathing was heavy, I squeezed my fingers tightly in a way to hold my anger.

"Because it's my job to take care of her, I was hired for that! And I'll save Camila, whatever the cost."

"Lauren..." I heard Vero's voice, accompanied by a gentle touch on my arms.

"Oh my God!" Ally exclaimed. "Hello?"

I took my eyes off Christopher's, and looked at Allyson who had a frightened expression.

"I'll give her the phone, just a second!"

Ally walked quickly towards me, handing me the cell phone with trembling hands.

"It's the kidnapers, they want to talk to you."

I quickly grabbed the phone from her hands, and touched the small icon that activated the speakerphone.

"Hello?"

A deep and raspy voice, which I thought belonged to the man in charge, started to talk:

"Pay close attention, I'm here with the Mrs. And I'm even being very nice with you, but I don't intend to continue like this."

"What do you want?" I let out nervously "Where is Camila?"

"Shut up, just listen!"

I exchanged a look with Christopher, who looked as tense as me.

"I want you to get 15 million dollars for the ransom until the end of the night."

"What?!" Christopher exclaimed incredulously.

"That's exactly what you heard. If you don't get the money until the end of the night, I'll be forced to get rid of her. And I guarantee that I won't do it in a kind way."

"Lauren... Chris..."

My heart pounded in frantic beats at the sound of Camila's tearful voice in the background; I felt as if someone was holding my heart tightly, causing me that discomfort, that pain. I felt weak, helpless, angry.

"We'll get the money! Don't do absolutely anything to her, please." I whispered.

"I want the money in cash. Not transfers. I'll only meet with the cop, and she has to be completely alone, do you hear me? If there's someone with her, I'll shoot this woman. And I won't mind doing so.

"I'll go alone, but tell me the place!"

"I'll get in touch in four hours to confirm the address."

"Let us talk to her! Please!"

"Help me, please! Get me out of here!"

Camila's desperate voice in the background made my whole body freeze. I swallowed hard, receiving Veronica's caress, who among everyone there, was the only one who knew about my connection to Camila.

"Four hours." Those were the last words before the phone switched off.

"We have to get the money." I spoke to Christopher.

"I'm going to change clothes and then I'll go to the bank to withdraw the amount."

I shook my head quickly.

"No, we're going now. Get in the car, and tell me where your bank is."

I walked towards the car parked outside under the gaze of everyone present there. Before leaving the establishment, I turned towards the woman who kindly received us and thanked her sincerely for her help. I received a maternal gaze and an incentive to find Camila. I said goodbye and went towards the vehicle outside.

"Lauren, you can get some rest. We'll accompany Christopher to the bank to withdraw the money." Normani informed as she approached. "At night you're going on the mission to save Mrs. Collins."

"No, I need to fix this soon."

"Laur, listen to Normani. You'll only wear yourself down by going to the bank. Go home, take a shower while we get the money with Christopher."

Even reluctantly I accepted my friends' plan, and was left in my apartment, while they went with Christopher to the bank. I took a shower, letting the warm water fall on the strained muscles of my body. After getting out, I put on light clothes and walked towards the living room as I removed the excess water from my hair. I stopped before my organizational chart, staring at all the interconnected systems.

"This is much more complex than I thought."

I stared at the faces in those pictures for a certain time. I closed my eyes, letting the images of the kidnapping, of Christopher's humiliations, of the moments with Camila mix in my head. Things seemed to play like a movie in my brain, but in a disorganized and fast way. I took a deep breath, feeling my heart race and my breathing alter. I was sweating cold.

"Shit..." I exclaimed as I opened my eyes and stared at the board again. I slid my hands down it hard, causing the organizational chart to get destroyed completely. "Do your job." I whispered.

-----

I pressed the end of the cigarette against the wall in the outside area of the precinct, watching it go off completely before being thrown to the ground. I took a deep breath, trying to stay as calm as possible, avoiding at all costs the anxiety that wanted to take over me. It was night, and I was completely ready to go get Camila, but so far the kidnapers hadn't given any sign of where I could find her. The suitcase with the 15 million dollars was inside my office in the care of Vero and Ally; Christopher had dropped it as soon as he left the bank, and he was duly escorted by Brandon and two more men. It was already past 9PM, and none of the phones had rung.

My confused thoughts wandered to the moments I had with Camila, from the first contact at Jared Drink's, to the events in Switzerland. I found myself totally disturbed with the ideas that roamed my thoughts, but I took care of pushing them all away and just do my job. That was why I was there, right?

"Lauren!"

I heard Vero's voice, who was running towards me. She looked nervous and breathless, I approached and she handed me the small paper that was in her hands. The other officers involved in the case, along with Christopher and Brandon went to the outside area with us.

"They just called, and they only gave this address."

"Try to trace the line as fast as possible. I'm going to save Camila."

"Are you sure that you don't want a team? We can stay hidden."

"Vero, we'll do it their way. I don't want anything to go wrong."

"Here's the money, save my wife."

I stared at Christopher in a serious way, just like he did. There was now a heavy atmosphere between us, as if at any moment we could go into an endless fight. I just grabbed the suitcase from his hands, and turned my body to face my friends and coworkers.

"I'll get in touch with all of you as soon as I have Mrs. Collins."

I said goodbye to everyone, and descended the stairs towards my car. I put the suitcase with the amount of money in the passenger seat while I settled into the driver's seat. I glanced one last time to everyone who was at the entrance of the precinct, and only then I started the car. The place indicated in the address was quite far from the city center, it was located in a more rural area, without the presence of houses or buildings. I drove with the help of the GPS down the sandy roads, extremely similar to the ones I walked in the morning. The weather was totally closed, the clouds covered a good part of the sky of New York, being illuminated only by the lightnings that cut the space, bringing with it the sound of thunder.

I stopped the car in the exact instant that the GPS signaled that I had reached my destination. I got out of the car, and like a déjà vu, I came across an extensive and completely empty field. Only the headlights of my car illuminated the place taken by the darkness of the night. I leaned on the vehicle, and felt the small drops against my skin.

"Dammit..."

I entered the car again, watching the rain fall and gradually increase over time. I looked at my watch, when a light caught my attention. I looked at it through the windshield that received the torrential water of the rain, when again the light flashed, they were headlights. I narrowed my eyes when the lights flashed again, giving me the image of a hooded man with a gun attached to his arm, and on the other side the other arm threw a body on the ground.

Camila.

I looked at the gun on the seat next to the silver suitcase. I put it in my underarm holster, to then close my jacket partially. I held the suitcase and got out of the car, leaving the headlights on to offer me a partial view of the path that I'd follow until reaching the men. The rain bathed my body, drenching me quickly due to its intensity.

"Do you have my money?" He shouted as he kept the gun pointed to Camila's body.

She was kneeling on the ground, her body was surrounded by thick ropes, and her mouth properly covered with a piece of cloth. She kept her head down, but lifted it slowly as soon as she heard my voice.

"I have your money, it's all in here." I said as I lifted the suitcase.

"If you brought someone, we'll kill everyone. Hope you know that!" He looked angry, he pushed the barrel of the gun against the top of the woman's head.

I stopped walking, keeping a safe distance between us.

"I'm alone! Please, leave her alone!" I shouted.

My eyes met Camila's, and she seemed too shaken up to face me.

"How can I be sure?"

"Trust me. I'm here with all the money in this suitcase, just let me have her!"

"You!" He shouted to one of the men. "Go to her slowly and grab the suitcase. Now!"

The man nodded and walked slowly towards me. The man in charge who was next to Camila raised his gun, aiming at me, while his man walked under the storm to meet me. My heart was vibrating in desperate beats only with the possibility of everything that could happen in that moment.

"Hand me the fucking suitcase!"

From his height and voice tone, it was the same man I hit with my elbow, having his nose broken. His dark eyes stared at me firmly, without looking away for a second.

"Come on, dammit!"

"I want you to release her first!"

"Oh, fuck. Just hand him the fucking suitcase once and for all!" The man in charge pushed Camila's body, which fell to the wet ground. "Don't try to be brave, I'm not playing!"

In that instant all the possibilities to shoot the men went through my head, but among many options, none left Camila's life totally safe. I took a deep breath, and lifted the suitcase to the man who in one swift act took it from my hand. I saw him walking towards the man in charge in quick steps, while he still pointed his gun at me.

"Open the suitcase!" He ordered still with his eyes landed on me.

The other man opened the object, giving me the view of all the money inside the case.

"I want you to stay away, and only approach the moment we get inside the car, did you hear me?"

I just nodded, as I counted the seconds to have Camila in my arms. The man stepped back, walking backwards to the car that was waiting for him in the back. He kept the barrel of his gun pointed at the brunette the whole time, as if he wanted to make sure that I wouldn't do absolutely anything. A third man opened the door, and they all entered. Now they were all inside the car, and all I could hear was the engine roar sound loud.

"Camila!"

I ran towards her, seeing her body fall on the dirty and wet ground. I knelt down beside her, lifting her to my lap, to then pull the cloth that covered her mouth.

"Lauren..." She whispered weakly. "I'm so happy that you're here... I..."

The rain fell on us in a great intensity, bathing our bodies now partially dirty with mud. In a clumsy way I tried to untie the ropes that wrapped her body, being careful not to hurt her more. Camila had bruises on her body, and a few small cuts on her mouth and eyebrow. I lifted my head seeing the car driving away at a distance, to the point of disappearing completely in the darkness. I pulled the ropes, freeing the woman who clung to my body quickly. She was nervous and crying.

"Thank you! Thank you, Lauren..." Her voice choked amid all the emotion.

"Shhh, no need to thank me. Everything's alright..." I said as I squeezed her body delicately against mine. "I won't let anything else happen to you, Camz."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

-----

NOTE: When Evelin updates again, I'll translate and post it.