His Ex-Wife Is A Billionaire (Evadne and Thaddeus) novel Chapter 682

Marilla's heart leaped into her throat, and her paintbrush clattered to the floor with an ominous sound.

In the next second, her eyes widened in horror as she witnessed a body streak past the window!

A loud thud echoed!

Springing to her feet, Marilla felt as stiff as a marionette, her steps mechanical as she made her way to the window to peer down at the scene below.

She wished she hadn't looked. Below lay a girl, her limbs contorted in death, the sight so gruesome that Marilla’s mind went bland; she clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle a scream, her knees buckling beneath her.

Panic reigned below as screams filled the air. Marilla's heart pounded like a drum in her chest. She didn't bother to pack up her things; she just grabbed the teddy bear on her desk and bolted out of the classroom.

"Lily, where are you?!"

Calling out for Lily, Marilla ran through the deserted hallways, the image of the dead girl imprinted in her mind.

She didn't know where she was going when suddenly, the chaos of footsteps and desperate cries reached her ears.

"Help! Someone’s killed, help!"

Someone was killed?!

Marilla spun around in astonishment, her eyes locking on two blood-soaked boys sprinting in her direction. Chasing them was a disheveled middle-aged man, wielding a machete, his clothes smeared with blood!

Marilla had never seen such a horror, clutching the teddy bear, she froze in place.

"Bastards! I'll kill you!"

The man's face twisted with hateful rage as he raised his bloodstained weapon to strike the boys!

Marilla stumbled back, one of the boys grabbing her arm, using her as a human shield before pushing her toward the knife-wielding madman.

"Ahh!"

The teddy bear hit the floor as Marilla crashed into the man. The cowardly boys took the chance to escape.

The man, intending to shove Marilla aside to pursue them, was stopped by the wail of police sirens outside.

"Help, help me! Uh!"

In a panic, the man's burly arm viciously clamped around Marilla's shoulder, positioning the machete at her fair-skinned neck.

"Stay quiet! If you want to live, come with me!"

As word of a knife-wielding assailant spread, students poured out of the building in terror.

Onlookers gathered outside, police pushing the crowd back behind the tape, yet the scene remained chaotic.

Journalists, scenting a scoop, set up their cameras, ready to pounce on for headlines.

"What's the situation now?!"

Aaron, clad in casual clothes, eyes icy cold, strode under the tape, his presence as unyielding as the glare of the sun.

"Captain Ashbourne! The attacker's name is Don, a fifty-two-year-old assembly line worker from Elmsworth Motors!"

Two frantic officers reported, "One female student fell from the building and died on impact. A male student was stabbed five times and didn't make it to the hospital. Two other boys also got stabbed but managed to escape and are on their way to the hospital now!"

Aaron's brows knitted tightly, "Was the girl's fall suicide or?"

"We checked the surveillance footage. She jumped, but Don forced her!"

Aaron found it odd, pressing on, "Did these students know each other?"

"Don't worry. I'll save Marilla, even if it costs me my life. I'm a cop; it's my duty."

He warned her, "Keep Jareth in the dark for now. He's like dynamite and would tear the school apart if he knew. If you want Marilla safe, follow my lead!"

It took Aaron merely five minutes to get from the ground floor to the rooftop, and to review Don's profile.

In those five minutes, he had to plan the negotiation, anticipate any mishaps, formulate a rescue plan, and even prepare for the worst.

Since being a police officer, he'd faced countless hostage situations before, even with bombers, let alone with knives; but this time, maybe it was because the person in danger was Marilla, his attractive face pale as sheet. Before he opened the doors to the rooftop, his mind was in turmoil.

Over the radio, the message came through, "Captain Ashbourne, the sniper is in position!"

Aaron snapped back to reality, his voice cutting through the frigid air like a knife, "No one fires without my say-so. We have to keep the hostage safe!"

He burst through the door, striding with a resolve toward the direction of the captor.

"Don't come any closer! If you step over, I’ll cut her throat right away!" Don was seeing red, his knife's blade pressing menacingly against Marilla's throat.

The girl's porcelain skin was breached, and a scarlet line of blood emerged as a stark contrast to her snow-white neck.

A handful of cops were huddled about ten more meters away, guns at the ready, but none dared to move a muscle.

Tears streamed from Marilla's eyes as she clenched them shut in despair. In this moment of peril, she was whispering the name of the man she loved most.

"Jareth, I'm so scared."

"Don! Keep it together! Don't do anything stupid!"

A familiar voice rang out, piercing the tense air. Marilla's heart skipped a beat, and slowly, she opened her tearful eyes.

"Aaron, Aaron!"