Chapter 185 Cheap Tricks
A deafening bang shattered the tense silence.
A gunshot.
A body then hit the floor.
Renee remained in position, gripping her weapon tightly. With only William to coordinate with, she wasn’t entirely sure how things would play out. All she could do was wait for the perfect opening.
“I’ll count to three. Then I pull the trigger again,” the leader announced, his voice cold and unwavering.
“Please, don’t…”
“Have mercy…” Desperate cries rang out.
“Three!”
“We beg you…”
“Mom…”
“Two! One!”
“Wait!”
A sudden voice cut through the chaos, commanding attention. Heads whipped around toward the source. A tall figure emerged from the stairway, his stride unhurried, his face unreadable–except for the ghost of a smile lingering on his lips.
For a beat, the crowd was paralyzed with shock. Then, realization dawned, and emotions surged–a mixture of relief, disbelief, and raw, overwhelming gratitude. People sobbed openly, as if waking from a nightmare.
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It was Shaun!
He had stepped forward of his own free will.
Renee’s breath hitched.
What the hell was he thinking? It simply wasn’t like him to risk his own life for others.
Whatever his reasons, now wasn’t the time for rash moves. She stayed put, watching closely, waiting to see how this would unfold.
“Shaun, hand it over.”
One of the thugs trained his gun on him, eyes narrowing as he noted that Shaun was alone. No backup. No tricks.
But what was so valuable that these men would go so far–hijacking a cruise, slaughtering innocent people?
“Mr. Doyle… please, save us!”
“You brought us here, Mr. Doyle! You can’t just stand by and let them pick us off one by one.”
The crowd turned to Shaun, their voices raw with desperation.
Their gazes locked onto him, brimming with hope as if he were their last lifeline.
From her vantage point behind the vent’s slats, Renee studied Shaun, searching his face for any sign of fear, any crack in his composure.
But Shaun remained an enigma–calm, collected, unreadable.
“Let them all go, and I’ll give you what you want,” Shaun said smoothly.
The thug leader scoffed, “Not so fast. Show us the stuff first.”
Shaun arched a brow. “I’m alone, and there are plenty of you. What, afraid
I might pull off a magic trick and vanish?”
The gunmen exchanged wary glances, but none lowered their weapons.
With a careless shrug, Shaun exhaled, his voice dripping with indifference. “Fine by me. Suit yourselves, then.”
To everyone’s shock, he strolled over to a chair and sat down as if he were merely waiting for a late lunch to arrive. Leaning back, he spread his hands in mock surrender. “Go on, then. Kill everyone here, me included. But mark my words–if you lay a finger on anyone, you can kiss that staff goodbye. Even if I die, you’ll never get your hands on it.”
A ripple of tension shot through the room. One of the thugs, clearly the hot -headed type, lost his patience. He stormed toward Shaun, jamming the barrel of his gun against Shaun’s forehead.
Gasps erupted.
Shaun was their last hope. If he died, so did any chance of survival.
Yet Shaun didn’t flinch. Didn’t blink. He merely lifted his gaze, meeting the thug’s glare with something dangerously close to boredom.
“Shoot me whenever you feel like it,” Shaun murmured.
“You think I won’t?” The thug’s grip tightened on the gun, his voice a low snarl.
Shaun chuckled, shaking his head. “No. You won’t.”
The thug’s face darkened. “You son of a-”
“Don’t do anything stupid!” another gunman snapped, pulling him back.
The leader turned back to Shaun, his voice sharp with warning. “Fine. We’ll release the hostages. But first–you show us the stuff.”
The thug who kept his gun firmly pressed against Shaun’s forehead, voiced his suspicion. “I don’t buy it, guys. No way he’s handing it over just to save these people. I say we tie him up and break him down–he’ll talk soon enough.”
Despite the deadly threat inches from his skull, Shaun’s lips curled slightly, amusement flickering in his gaze.
“Fine,” he said coolly. “Go ahead. Give it your best shot.”
The thug’s patience snapped. With a furious snarl, he tightened his grip, his finger twitching on the trigger. “Damn it!” he barked, ready to fire.
At that very moment, William moved. His gun, which had seemed to be trained on Shaun, had subtly adjusted–its true target now the thug’s head.
“Stop,” another thug barked, yanking his accomplice back before the situation spiraled further out of control.
A flicker of disdain crossed Shaun’s face. His voice was almost lazy as he said, “Do you really think cheap tricks like these are enough to rattle me?”
