Chapter 288

"Bang!" A bullet tore through the air, breaking Monroe’s time control.

Landon snapped back to his senses and barked, “Do you not care about Monica’s life?”

As he spoke, he pressed down the blade even harder.

More blood gushed out, dripping down the blade and onto Monica’s dress.

“Stop!” Monroe halted in his tracks, finally starting to panic.

He glanced around, completely baffled as to why his time control – a power that had never failed him before – had suddenly stopped working.

The freeze was supposed to continue.

Standing ten feet away, Monroe took a deep breath. His burly frame heaved like an angry bear, chest rising and falling rapidly.

It seemed like with a single roar, he could swallow Landon whole.

Then, he unleashed his ability once more.

“Bang!” Another gunshot rang out, throwing him off completely.

Monica exploded with rage. “Landon, did you bring in snipers?”

“Yes,” Landon sneered.

He had arranged five snipers, with one stationed every 30 feet.

The monitor on his body allowed the snipers to see what was happening inside the Montgomery estate and take action when needed.

It turned out Monroe’s time control only worked within a 30-foot range.

And it could be disrupted if a third party intervened.

As long as Monroe stayed still, the snipers would immediately shoot to break the stalemate.

“Who told you that?” Monroe glared at Landon, his expression grim.

Time control was his exclusive ability. Only his wife, daughter, and the late Jonny knew about it.

Even his brother- and sister-in-laws, the heads of the Kington Gang, and the deceased Kyle couple had no idea about his secret.

It baffled him as to how Landon had found out.

“Who was it?” Monroe shouted, his voice rising with agitation.

“Tsk, the mighty Mystic Sect leader can’t even keep his cool? You think just because you’ve got some supernatural powers, you can call yourself a master? How shameless,” Landon sneered.

Monroe was momentarily stunned.

‘I’m the chosen one with supernatural power. I can’t possibly lose to others. No matter how skilled Landon is, he is still just an ordinary man!’

Monroe thought in contempt.

A man who had been through countless storms quickly pulled himself together.

“Not bad. The Flying Tiger Sect really does have their fingers in a lot of pies,” Monroe said coldly. “You just want the antidote, don’t you? Fine, but you let my daughter go first.”

“There’s an antidote for charm poison?” Landon laughed again.

But it was a derisive laugh that chilled the air around him. His eyes brimmed with a chilling, murderous intent.

Giovanna had said before that there was no cure for charm poison – only a life for a life.

That’s exactly why Shelby, Marvin, and Lucia never gave him the antidote, no matter what.

No one would willingly sacrifice their own life for someone else, especially for someone they hated.

“Let go of my daughter first. She’s bleeding. She needs medical attention,” Monroe said with genuine worry.

That cut was so long and deep. It would definitely leave a scar.

Monroe knew Monica cared too much about her looks to ever accept a scar on her body.

“It’s not life-threatening,” Landon said, completely unfazed. “Don’t you have people watching Norava? Give my mother the antidote first, then I’ll let her go.”

“Who are you talking about?” Monroe narrowed his eyes.

‘Damn it, who went to Norava without telling me and alerted them?’ Monroe thought, furious.

“Joanna,” Landon said.

When Landon uttered that name, Monroe’s eyes darkened.

“Once the antidote is administered, I’ll send her back,” Landon said, dragging Monica with him as he turned to leave.

Monica darted in front of him, blocking his way. “You’re not going anywhere!”

“Or do you want me to just kill her right now?” Landon pressed the knife down again.

“Stop hurting her!” Monroe cried out, his voice raw with anguish. “Fine, take her! Just tell me where you’re taking her so I can find you.”

Landon said, “No need. Once my mother is better, I’ll bring her back myself.”

“And what if you go back on your word? How can I trust you?” Monroe demanded, his voice tight with anxiety.

“You don’t have a choice,” Landon replied coldly.

They stood there in a tense standoff for a moment, until Monroe finally gave in.

With every drop of blood Monica lost, it was like his heart was being sliced open.

If it dragged on any longer, Monica would die from blood loss.

Just as Landon stepped outside with Monica in tow, Monroe suddenly gave an order. “Attack!”

But the burly men who had just bought Landon back earlier stood frozen, as if they hadn’t heard a thing.

“Are you deaf?!” Monroe reared.

Only then did the men snap out of it. “Mr. Montgomery?”

“You…” Monroe’s eyes narrowed as he finally realized something was wrong.

These were the elite bodyguards he had specifically assigned to deal with Landon. They were strong and quick-witted.

But somehow, they had brought Landon into the house while he was completely free from any control. And now, they just stood around like statues.

“What happened to you just now?” Monroe asked.

“Mr. Montgomery, what do you mean?” The men exchanged bewildered glances, clearly at a loss as they looked back at Monroe.

Monroe’s brow furrowed, his face growing increasingly grave.

‘They must have been controlled by someone else… Could it be another person with powers?’ he thought, his mind racing.

“Mr. Montgomery?” someone called out, still looking lost.

“That’s enough. You can all leave now.” Monroe waved his hand, then stood there alone, lost in thought.

‘Damn, could there be more chosen ones in this world besides me? If that’s true, things are about to get a whole lot messier…’ he thought, his face growing darker.

“Mr. Montgomery, what should we do about Miss Montgomery?” one of the servants asked.

The cleaning lady, though in an apron, moved like someone trained in combat.

And the gardener, the butler – none of them looked like your average staff, either.

If Night Owl hadn’t hypnotized those burly guys carrying the boxes, there was no way Landon could’ve gotten into this place and walked out in one piece.

“She will be back,” Monroe said, then called Joanna.

After Joanna took Marvin to hide out in Pinecrest, she stayed put and made no further moves.

Marvin was at a total loss. He had asked her over and over about what they would do next, but Joanna never gave him a straight answer until Monroe’s call came through.

“Joanna, do you realize you alerted the enemy?” Monroe’s voice was sharp.

Joanna trembled and apologized meekly. “Sir, I was just following Miss Montgomery’s instructions…”

“And the kid?” Monroe pressed.

“He… he was rescued…” Joanna stammered, her eyes shifting uneasily.

Marvin noticed and narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

“Useless idiot! Didn’t I tell you to stall Amelia?” Monroe snapped.

“…I did. Amelia is too busy dealing with me to care about Landon. She’s just scared I’ll try to snatch the kid again…” Joanna stammered.

Monroe snarled irritably. “Shut up!”

Joanna quickly forced a smile and dared not argue further.

“Is Marvin there?” Monroe asked.

“Yes, yes, I got him out,” Joanna replied quickly, her voice a little shaky.

Monroe ordered, “Have him remove the charm poison from Gloria.”

“What?” Joanna shot Marvin a look of shock.

Gloria’s charm poison was made by Marvin himself. If anyone wanted to cure her, it would cost Marvin his own life.

‘I went through all that trouble to break him out, only to send him to his death? Seriously, what was the point?’ Joanna thought, feeling completely exasperated.

“Get it done by tomorrow!” Monroe ordered, his tone brooking no argument.

Joanna was silent.

“You let the kid go on purpose, didn’t you?” Marvin stared at Joanna, still not realizing just how serious things had gotten.

If they still had Landon’s son in their hands, they would totally have the upper hand right now.

The more Marvin thought about it, the more pissed off he got. But he didn’t dare curse out his superior to her face, so he could only stew in silence.