The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 572

Dead silence.

Lance lay slumped against the deflated airbag, his ears ringing violently. It wasn't a normal ringing; it felt as though his entire head had been plunged underwater. No sound could get in, and nothing could get out.

He twitched a finger. It moved. He tried his arm—it moved, though his shoulder screamed in agony, feeling as though it had been ripped clean from the socket.

His face felt wet. He didn't know if it was blood or something else.

He tried to lift his head, his neck popping stiffly. The airbag had completely deflated, revealing the horrifying aftermath.

The windshield was entirely spider-webbed, rendering the outside world an incomprehensible blur. Thick white smoke billowed from the crumpled hood, and the acrid stench of burning rubber and scorched metal choked the air.

The pale, sickly glow of a streetlamp spilled through the shattered windows.

Lance gripped the steering wheel, trying to force himself upright. His lower back screamed in protest; his spine felt as though it had been stomped on by a giant.

He took a ragged, desperate breath, forcing his mind to clear.

And then—

He heard footsteps.

Not one person's. Two.

Dress shoes crunching rhythmically over the shattered glass. They were approaching from the front of the vehicle, drawing closer with every agonizing second.

Lance's body froze entirely.

He tried to move, but he was pinned. The seatbelt was locked tight, the buckle warped beyond use. All he could do was tilt his head slightly, peering through the jagged remnants of the driver's side window.

Two men.

Dressed in dark, tactical clothing, their faces obscured by the shadows and the backlighting of the streetlamps.

One of them leaned down, peering through the broken glass into the front seat.

Lance instinctively squeezed his eyes shut.

His heart hammered so violently it felt like it was going to tear through his ribs.

The man said nothing. He simply stood back up, turned to his partner, and spoke—

In English.

The voice wasn't loud, but in the eerie, suffocating silence of the night, every single syllable fell like an anvil.

"Target eliminated. Let's go."

Lance's heart completely stopped.

Target eliminated. Let's go.

Not, 'Are they alive?' Not, 'Call an ambulance.'

Target eliminated.

His blood turned to ice.