He Gave Me Hearing, Then Taught Me What Silence Really Means novel Chapter 183

Juniper sat quietly in the van, listening to the three men converse.

"This is a massive payout, boss. Millions of dollars. And this chick is gorgeous. It's a damn shame we're handing her over to that piece of trash."

The three men were wearing masks, their eyes completely concealed behind dark sunglasses.

They spoke bluntly, clearly entrenched in the criminal underworld, and this was definitely not a small-time operation.

The driver wore a cap, his arm crisscrossed with deep scars. They were brutal reminders of a past fight that had nearly severed the limb.

He popped a piece of chewing gum, laughing gruffly. "When you're rich, you can have any woman you want. Ms. Lane is stunning, but unfortunately, we don't have the luxury to enjoy it."

The men burst into rough laughter, their predatory gazes lingering on Juniper.

They were seasoned professionals. Juniper knew that no matter what she asked, they wouldn't spill a single secret.

She opted for silence, having no idea where she was being taken.

Since she got into the car, she had blindly dialed a number on her phone in her pocket. She didn't know who she had called; it didn't matter. As long as someone heard what was happening and called the cops, that was enough.

Halfway through the drive, one of the men tightly blindfolded her.

She remained perfectly still, so unnervingly calm that the man tying the blindfold frowned. "You've got some nerve, Ms. Lane. Aren't you afraid we're going to kill you?"

With the black cloth covering her eyes, Juniper's tone remained remarkably flat. "Who are you delivering me to?"

The man snorted coldly and gave her a rough shove. "You'll see when you get there. Someone has been dying to get his hands on you for a long time."

Half an hour later, they dragged her forward. A brutal shove to her back sent her stumbling straight into a private suite.

Juniper's hands were bound tightly. She had tried to break free, but the rough ropes only left her wrists raw and bleeding.

Her mouth was taped over securely. The adhesive dug painfully into her skin, squishing her slender cheeks together and turning the delicate skin red.

Juniper didn't fight him immediately. She was silently straining against the coarse ropes binding her wrists. The skin was rubbed completely raw, blood slicking against her palms.

Her eyes were terrifyingly calm. She had learned her lesson. Screaming and thrashing would only drain her energy. She needed a chance for a single, fatal strike.

Corbin reached up and trailed a finger down her cheek. "You really are beautiful. No wonder Nelson liked playing with you."

At those words, Juniper froze. She slowly raised her head to stare at Corbin.

She couldn't speak, but Corbin caught the shift in her eyes.

At the mere mention of Nelson, Corbin's face twisted in rage. He slammed his fist onto the table. "That arrogant bastard! One day I'm going to make him suffer. He dared to lay a hand on me. Unbelievable!"

Despite his tough words, just picturing Nelson's terrifying aura made him shrink back instinctively.

He tossed Juniper onto a small bed in the corner of the room. The suite was decorated with elegant, antique furnishings. The bed was a good forty feet away from the main dining table, concealed entirely behind a massive, heavy solid wood privacy screen that would take serious effort to knock over.