trust

trust

"Ugh...you're hopeless!"

Having just finished get off work and being forced to get up again, Jesse, with her hair a mess, sped to the centralized unloading area and started yelling at Milo, who was lying behind a container.

"Didn't you tell me that some relative of yours came to visit you from the countryside? I was wondering where an orphan like you would have relatives. I didn't even dare to ask you." Jesse was extremely annoyed. "You've run off to do this mess again in the blink of an eye? Who told you to be this damn undercover agent?"

Milo stroked Jesse's hair: "Tell me, am I efficient or not? Maybe you could introduce me to work at your police station. I think I have a real talent for it."

Jesse rolled his eyes: "Want to be a police dog?"

Milo looked behind Jesse: "Are you alone?"

Jesse laughed in exasperation: "Have you been watching too many movies? Do you think I can summon the entire police force of Wudong Port? I need at least some solid evidence. Besides, reporting it first might just give those people a heads-up and they'll run away already."

"Did you bring a gun or anything?"

"I have to hand in my gun when I leave work. I'm an honest man."

Milo, who was not being honest, lowered his eyes, looking a little deflated.

Are the police station's gun control measures that strict? But Lanman's private gun ownership is clearly legal... Perhaps, Jesse just doesn't completely trust him.

This conjecture was fleeting, and Milo didn't show it, only feigning disappointment as he said, "After all this talk, we're empty-handed. There's no hope of solving this major case."

"Solve the case? You might not even be able to save your own life." Jesse cursed, but his hands didn't stop moving. He clipped a camera to his collar, adjusted its direction, and aimed it at the car parked at the dock. "How did you get out here?"

Milo blinked: "I stole a sensual diffuser, propped it up on a tree branch, and burned it against the smoke detector. Those people are very conscious of their lives. As soon as the gate opened, I ran away. I happened to hitch a ride with a drunk rich kid and tricked him into driving me all the way to the vicinity."

Jesse shook his head: "You really could do that."

“That villa on the mountaintop is a complete mess. There have been tons of reports of rape cases alone. I don’t know why it’s so hard to investigate.” Jesse said indignantly, “If only we could find a clue and shut down that brothel all at once.”

Jesse was getting really wicked, and Milo didn't dare to reveal that he had made a huge bet up there not long ago.

"By the way, you said Miles took you? Why would he take an ordinary person like you?" Jesse seemed to have realized something. "Could it be that he's secretly funding some kind of student grant, and actually wants to—"

Milo interrupted Jesse's train of thought: "That place isn't for rich people. The son of the owner of the restaurant I frequent can go there too, can't he?"

Jesse shook his head: "I think you should stay away from that Miles guy. He doesn't seem like a good person."

“Hey, they’ve moved,” Milo reminded Jesse.

At the dock, a man wearing a tank top stood for a long time, gazing at the sea, but no ship ever came.

The truck driver jumped out of the truck, and the two argued for a while. The man in the vest made a phone call, and finally the driver opened the back door of the truck and pushed the freezer out.

The truck drove away, and the man in the vest pushed the freezer into the abandoned courier station next to the shipping container. Next to it was a brightly lit bar.

Milo asked in a low voice, "What level of evidence do we need to call for backup?"

Jesse sighed, thought for a moment, and said, "A brawl? Or there are obviously contraband items, or maybe there really is the evidence you mentioned."

Milo nodded: "Give me that thing to wear, I'll go in and film it, I promise I'll come out as soon as I get the shot."

Jesse slapped Milo's hand away: "Are you out of your mind?"

Milo reasoned, "An anesthesia surgery takes about four hours. We have to expose this during those four hours, otherwise those people in the villa who signed the sales contracts will really have their organs removed."

Jesse was a little angry: "You're going to risk your life for someone who'd sell his organs for gambling? Don't tell me the restaurant owner's son is some distant relative of yours?"

Milo was somewhat exasperated by Jesse's stubbornness: "Don't you want to save him even more than I do?"

Jesse had a headache and was annoyed by Milo: "I'm not talking to you about this. If you want to go in, you'll have to follow me. I'm not giving you anything. You can't afford to pay for it if I break it."

Milo was at a loss. That stubborn mule.

The abandoned courier station has had sublet notices posted for several years. Various discarded courier packaging boxes are scattered on the ground, some of which have become soft, rotten, and smelly. The broken courier shelves piled up in the corner are also rusty.

Jesse led the way, followed by Milo at a leisurely pace.

After walking to roughly the designated location, the man stopped and made another phone call. This time, being closer, Milo was finally able to hear the gist of it.

The complaint was that the person who was supposed to receive the goods had been dealt with halfway through, but the boss was very angry and was already on his way, making the situation for this batch of goods very complicated.

Soon, there was the sound of a car screeching to a halt, and a dozen or so footsteps gradually entered the abandoned courier station. Jesse gestured to Milo to be quiet.

The partition blocked the view of the two people.

"You'd better not give me any more bad news," Steven said in a disgruntled voice.

"The transport line has been cut off," the worker said.

"What do you mean by 'cut off'? It's been cut off for so many years, and it's cut off today?" Steven regained some of his composure. "Was it cut off from the south, or from Wudong Port?"

The worker replied, "Both ends are broken."

"Damn it." Steven kicked the freezer in frustration.

The worker said sincerely, "You should have asked Mr. Thornton first; he didn't agree to you starting work now."

Steven snapped, "What nonsense are you spouting? Don't I know? We need money everywhere. Do you think I'm going to print money to feed you all?"

"Transport it!" Steven gave his final ultimatum. "Find me a ship, ocean liner, coastal fishing vessel, international merchant ship... any kind will do. Even if it means being struck by lightning, get it there today!"

The workers had no choice but to obey.

As they were speaking, a figure blocked the exit, like the shadow of death, blocking the workers' way.

The men standing behind Steven instantly drew their guns, their expressions tense.

“Rye?” Jesse looked at the newcomer, narrowed his eyes, and frowned uncertainly.

Milo nodded.

Jesse removed the camera, bent down and fiddled with it, sending the footage of him holding a gun along with an address to the police officer on duty at the station.

When the gunman realized that he had failed to scare the other party away, he decisively loaded the gun.

Blaze moved with lightning speed, so fast that Milo couldn't even see him clearly. He could only see Blaze seemingly slashing at the man's Adam's apple with his palm, causing the man to double over in pain. In a flash, Blaze's hands moved with incredible speed, unloading the magazine and ejecting the chambered pistol, sending the man's pistol parts clattering to the ground.

Jesse was shocked and whispered, "I knew it! I suspected this guy was a trained mercenary."

"Put all the guns away!" Steven's expression was complicated. He stepped forward, put the freezer on, and asked in a gentle tone, "Did you cut the delivery line?"

Blaise did not respond.

Steven sneered: "I haven't forgotten what happened between us before, and we haven't moved on yet. But now I'm doing business with two families. Do you think the Dale family knows you're here to stop me?"

"You're being watched. Leave now, I'll handle things here," a cold, mechanical voice said.

Jesse was confused, but Milo pointed to his mouth and ears and made an X. Jesse then realized that Blaise was deaf and mute, which added another layer of shock to his mind.

Steven sneered: "Just because you say something doesn't mean I have to listen to you. Even Miles wouldn't have that much say."

"There's a car nearby, its engine is hot. It's chasing after your truck and arrived before me," the mechanical voice continued.

Milo felt a chill run down his spine. He looked at Jesse, whose expression was also unpleasant.

Steven didn't move, but then someone rushed up to him and whispered something in his ear.

"That's interesting; even the police station has been alerted." Steven looked at Blaise. "With your abilities, have you figured out who came here with me?"

Steven sneered, "Your little double ran away from the villa. Guess who's calling the police to arrest us now?"

Milo felt as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water. He no longer looked at Blaise's expression and realized that he had been bitten to death by Steven.

His heart pounded, and Milo forced himself to calm down. He looked up and saw an empty shipping box hanging on the second floor of the abandoned courier station, with a load-bearing rope extending all the way to the shelf next to him.

Not far away, a rusted blade was soaked in water.

Milo crawled forward and picked up the razor blade from under his clothes.

Jesse grabbed Milo's wrist tightly: "What are you going to do?"

Milo lowered his voice: "I checked when I came, there are doors on both sides. If we make a noise, we can both leave at the same time, and they won't be able to catch us." As soon as he finished speaking, Milo pointed the blade at the load-bearing rope, "Hurry up! I often deliver goods here, I know the way better than you."

Seeing Milo's resolute expression, Jesse hesitated before letting go of her hand and, following Milo's guidance, slowly turned and moved towards a source of light.

Once Jesse had traveled some distance, Milo held his breath and broke the knot.

With a loud bang, Steven's men immediately drew their guns and went on alert.

Milo stood up in the opposite direction from Jesse and hurried forward, the sound of his body scraping against the shelves like a mouse scurrying away.

The men positioned on both sides followed the sound and surrounded the person, gradually narrowing the area until, unsurprisingly, they finally caught him.

Milo was punched in the face and lay on the ground unable to move. He glanced at the direction Jesse had fled in and only breathed a sigh of relief after making sure Jesse was out of the way.

The abandoned delivery station actually only has one exit, and only one of him and Jesse can escape.

The scent of death loomed close as Milo was dragged by the collar to Steven and Blaise.

"Hey, caught this filthy rat." Steven looked down at Milo, whose nose was bleeding profusely. "Don't you understand the saying 'you come here alive, but you don't leave alive'?"

Milo's mind was buzzing; he suddenly understood Steven's intention.

Steven wasn't stupid; he set a trap for him by deliberately inviting him back to the palace, just so he could see things Miles didn't want him to know. He probably did this to test whether he was on their side.

If they're on the same path, there's nothing to say. If they're on a different path, this is a perfect opportunity to force them to their deaths.

Milo suddenly realized that, despite their seemingly friendly and joking interactions, Steven actually disliked him even more than he had imagined.

Steven looked at Blaise with a sneer: "You never get tired of these lame tricks. You get a surgically enhanced face and you're sure to fall for it again and again."

As he spoke, Steven half-squatted down, poked Milo's face, and said with a smile, "You think you're worthy of parading around with that face?"

Milo ignored Steven and turned to look at Blaise.

Blaise's face was gloomy, and the emotion in his eyes was self-evident, extremely cold.

Milo managed to squeeze out a few words: "I'm not."

Steven laughed when he heard this: "What is it?"

Milo flashed a fawning smile: "I'm not an undercover agent." He shakily retrieved his phone. "I was delivering packages to the bar next door."

Immediately, someone searched Milo's body and found a delivery receipt. It showed that the seller was a bunch of random junk, the merchant was the Church Bar, and the shipping company was a 24-hour adult products store.

Steven crumpled the paper into a ball: "You mean, you went back to the store from my place, took the order, and then traveled across half the city to run the business and deliver packages? You made two trips in one day?" He couldn't help but sneer as he finished speaking.

Milo said humbly, "Mr. Thornton, I'm very short of money."

Steven gritted his teeth, then laughed in exasperation. He immediately beckoned to the person next to him and said, "You lie without batting an eye. Go find someone and ask if this is true."

Milo was forced to kneel on the ground. After a long while, a young man shakily entered the room.

Steven lifted Milo's face and looked at the bartender: "He said he just came to deliver goods to you?"

The bartender trembled like a sieve. In the dim light, he could make out a face, which vaguely matched the figure in his memory. For a moment, his mind was in turmoil, and he didn't know how to answer.

Steven demanded, "Yes or no?"

The bartender stammered, "Yes, yes. This is our supplier. They can get some imported props that many of our customers like to play with."

Steven pressed on to the point: "I'm asking about just now, did you see him come to deliver the goods to you?"

The bartender's throat tightened as he looked at Milo, who was kneeling on the ground. For some reason, despite being restrained, his eyes were unusually calm.

"Yes, yes. My boss told me that there was indeed some goods to deliver just now," the bartender managed to say. "I saw him too; he was the one who came to deliver them."

Steven suddenly chuckled in a low voice. He waved for the bartender to get lost, then half-squatted down in front of Milo, his interest growing stronger: "With so many tricks up your sleeve, you can cover up even the most outrageous lies. Just how many more skills do you have that I don't know about?"

Milofili replied, "Mr. Thornton has a problem with me, he's prejudiced against me, and no matter how I explain, he won't believe me."

"What a spineless bastard." Steven sneered, stood up straight, and with a slight movement of his eyes, someone immediately stepped forward and punched Milo, this time knocking him to the ground, panting heavily.

The man grabbed Milo by the hair and violently dragged him in front of Blaise.

“Aren’t you the best at handling this kind of stuff?” Steven said with a grin. “Then you’d better not delay your progress before the police arrive.”

Blaise looked down at Milo's face, his gaze deep and intense.

Milo struggled, his words faltering, but he still smiled: "I...no...is."

Blaise's decision not to kill him outright proves that his first instinct wasn't to kill him. This lack of desire was his greatest opportunity. His staunch denial at least implied no outward betrayal, giving Blaise a reason not to kill him.

An eerie stillness filled the air, broken only by the thick, blood-tinged breathing of Milo.

Finally, Blaise reached out, grabbed Milo's arm, and pulled him up.

Steven's smile faded. "You believe his nonsense?" he said, shaking his head. "No, no, you don't just believe his nonsense, you're bewitched. You really want to sleep with this man?"

Milos's legs trembled, and he only managed to stay upright thanks to Blaise's tugging.

Seeing that Blaise didn't respond, Steven nodded with a cold smile and said nothing more. He made a gesture, and a man behind him with a gun quietly adjusted his posture, intending to find the right angle to shoot Milo dead.

Just as they were about to make their move, a bullet whistled through the air and pierced the man's wrist, splattering blood everywhere.

Steven was startled and looked around, but couldn't see who had fired the shot.

Before anyone could speak, a second and third bullet pierced the darkness from some direction, and several more people fell, groaning in pain.

Every shot was accurate, yet not fatal.

Blaze alertly reached for his waist. Such skill indicated they had been lying in wait for some time, remaining motionless. Not a member of the police force, their purpose unclear, yet their skills were top-notch.

But Blaise soon realized that the person shooting from the shadows wasn't in a relentless pursuit; their marksmanship, though skillful, was extremely restrained. Either they were running out of ammunition, or they weren't there to kill and rob.

Steven escaped under the cover of the remaining bodyguards, glaring at the freezer with resentment in his eyes.

Blaze hoisted Milo onto his shoulder with one hand and pushed the freezer with the other. When he realized the shooter wasn't targeting him, he simply didn't retaliate and fled the abandoned delivery station with a clear objective.

The old van parked outside opened with a click, and Blaze lifted the freezer and shoved it inside, then pressed Milo into the passenger seat.

A spent cartridge fell at his feet. Blaze paused, glanced at Milo in the car, quickly picked it up, and stuffed it into his pocket. Then, he sped into the car and drove away.

The dilapidated road along the dock leads all the way to the cross-sea bridge. The morning mist, like a thin veil, drifts leisurely between the bridge towers and the sea. As dawn approaches, a faint light breaks through the deep blue expanse where the water meets the sky, heralding the start of a new day.

The scene was full of everyday life, except for the dilapidated car bumping along the road, carrying a freezer full of severed human body parts, and a half-dead, disfigured stand-in.

They stopped several times along the way, each time for about ten minutes. Milo didn't know how Blaze emptied the freezer, only that the last time they stopped was on the bridge, and the freezer was sunk into the sea, bubbling and disappearing without a trace.

After dealing with the trouble, Blaze continued driving, unsure of which direction to take, but it was clear that he was gradually veering off the highway. The increasingly bumpy road made Milo realize that Blaze was heading towards Cape Nova.

"What are you going to do?" Milo asked Blaise, whose face was tense.

The only response he received was the car's speed gradually increasing.

The distant cape, like a sharp blade, pierces straight into the heart of the sea, with steep cliffs and surging waves.

Milo instinctively grabbed onto anything he could in the car.

Blaise suddenly turned his head and glanced at him, without saying a word.

Milo, however, realized the meaning behind Blaise's glance.

Are you lying to me?

Milo shouted, "I'm not lying to you!"

But the car continued to hurtle toward the edge of danger like an arrow, the speedometer needle soaring wildly, and Milo felt his heartbeat drowned out by the wind noise and the roar of the engine.

"I'm not lying to you!" Milo raised his voice, stubbornly denying it.

There has still been no response.

I'm not lying to you!!!

Just as the front wheels were about to veer off the edge of the cliff, Blaise slammed his foot on the ground, the tires screeching and a strong smell of burning filled the air.

The vehicle shook violently, all objects tilted forward due to inertia, and the entire vehicle was forcibly stopped at the edge of the cliff.

The front of the car jutted out slightly, with a bottomless abyss below, and spray from the ocean waves splashing onto the windshield.

Milo was terrified.

In that instant, all he could feel was his heart pounding wildly in his chest.

Milo snapped out of his daze and noticed that Blaze's eyes were red. It was a suppressed anger that could not be released.

It's still that silent question.

Milo gripped the seat tightly with both hands, looked directly into Blaise's eyes, and used a different wording.

"I did not... betray you."

Blaise reached out his hand, and Milo instinctively closed his eyes.

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