This Time, I'll Be the Villain's Favorite Daughter novel Chapter 404

Chapter 404 New Adventure

The system hinted, “Check if there’s anything in his trunk.”

That wasn’t a hint. It was a direct order.

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Maya latched onto the man’s wrist with both hands, keeping him from pulling free. Her wide, bright eyes curved into a sweet, dangerous smile. “Hold on, sir,” she said sweetly. “I dented your car, so let me find someone to fix it for you.”

The man hadn’t even finished processing those words when a perfectly aimed kick connected with the back of his knee. A moment later, he hit the pavement hard, driven to his knees in one clean, brutal motion.

The man in the passenger’s seat had barely shouldered his door open when Maya’s backhand connected squarely with his temple.

His vision went dark in an instant. He crumpled back into his seat, soft and boneless as a ragdoll.

From start to finish, the whole thing was done in under five seconds.

Maya yanked the keys from the ignition and made her way to the back of the car.

A sharp little click rang out from the trunk, and its lock snapped open.

The two children closest to the opening were curled up like cargo, mouths taped shut and hands and feet bound tightly with coarse rope. Pure, unbridled terror swam in their eyes.

Maya called 911.

Three kids, total.

And one of them was someone she recognized.

Edric was tucked all the way in the back. He’d been perfectly calm the entire time, as still and unresponsive as a corpse.

The other two children were trembling so hard they could barely keep themselves upright, but Edric alone kept his eyes open, staring blankly into the distance at something only he could

see.

The moment the trunk flew open, light came pouring in.

And that was when he saw her.

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13:04 Sat, Aug 15

Chapter 404 New Adventure

Maya, turning up in the most inexplicable places yet again, for no rhyme or reason.

The boy blinked once, slowly.

Those dark, fathomless eyes locked right onto her, unwavering.

But then he ignored her entirely.

His head dropped, and he looked for all the world like he’d gone completely blank.

Maya opened her mouth, but not a single word came out.

She hadn’t expected him to burst into tears at the sight of her. But this level of cold indifference? That she hadn’t been prepared for.

Maya had grown up now.

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But even after all these years, she still remembered what Edric was like as a little boy: slow and gentle with his words, sweet and obedient in the most endearing way, the kind of kid who’d quietly do her laundry for her.

But maybe the Maya standing before him now looked too different from the girl he used to know.

The boy clearly hadn’t pieced together that the young woman in front of him had anything to do with the companion he’d probably assumed was long dead.

Maya left the other two for the police to find.

By the time responding officers made it to the scene, she had already slipped away with Edric.

They’d walked a good distance before the boy suddenly broke the silence. “Hey, miss…” he said.

His voice was cold in a way that had no real reason to be. “If you dare take me anywhere,” he said, “a sniper’s going to blow your head clean off in about two seconds.”

Maya stared at him, completely thrown. She couldn’t pull a single word together for a moment.

“Weren’t you just kidnapped?” she finally asked. “Where would a sniper even come from around here?”

The corner of Edric’s mouth twitched, just barely, in a way that could’ve been a smirk or a sigh. “Couldn’t you tell?” he asked. “Those kidnappers were complete amateurs.

“Honestly, I just wanted to get out and see the world,” he went on. “When those two idiots asked if I wanted to come with them, I tagged along. It was my first time leaving the house, and my grandfather didn’t try to stop me. He must’ve decided to let me have my way.

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13:04 Sat, Aug 15

Chapter 404 New Adventure

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“The snipers and gunmen trailing me from the shadows never made a single move. Even without you, I wouldn’t have been in any real danger.

“And yet, instead of those gunmen, it was a nosy Good Samaritan who ended up pulling me out

of there.

“You know what?” he asked.

“I absolutely despise being around strangers.” He didn’t bother hiding his disgust.

Maya couldn’t find the words. Not one.

He’s

gone completely rotten. Completely!

She glared at the little brat, a clear challenge blazing in her eyes.

“Then let’s find out,” she said. “If I take you right now, do you think your snipers can actually do anything about it?”

Grown–up Maya was so much taller than nine–year–old Edric.

She was strong, and she scooped him up before he could blink. He barely came up to her waist.

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