Chapter 134: The Chase Through Darkness
Chapter 134: The Chase Through Darkness
The very next second~
Victor slammed his foot onto the accelerator.
VROOOM!
The Mercedes-Benz E450 shot out of the restaurant parking lot like an arrow released from a bow, disappearing into the evening traffic in the blink of an eye.
The sudden burst of speed caught everyone off guard.
Even Chloe, who had remained calm and in control throughout the entire operation, couldn’t hide the slight change in her expression.
"...He’s running."
Lucas’s face darkened instantly.
Without waiting for another command, he threw open the SUV’s rear door.
He didn’t even bother getting out properly.
Instead, he climbed over the seats, jumping from the back into the driver’s seat in one swift motion.
"Move!"
The bodyguard behind the wheel reacted immediately, scrambling out of the driver’s seat as Lucas took over.
The moment Lucas’s hands gripped the steering wheel~
He floored the accelerator.
BOOM!
The powerful engine roared like a wild beast finally being unleashed.
The black Cadillac Escalade lunged forward, its tires screeching violently against the asphalt before tearing out of the parking lot.
Outside...
The remaining bodyguards stared blankly for a split second.
"...Move!"
One of them shouted.
Everyone snapped back to reality.
They hurried into the two backup SUVs parked nearby before chasing after Lucas at full speed.
Unfortunately...
Not everyone reacted in time.
The two bodyguards who had remained inside the restaurant were several seconds too late.
By the time they rushed outside...
The entire convoy had already disappeared.
Only drifting exhaust smoke remained.
The two men stood there, completely dumbfounded.
"...We’re... stranded?"
Inside Victor’s Mercedes...
Debbie’s breathing gradually became heavier.
She blinked repeatedly.
Her vision started becoming blurry.
"W-What’s..."
She pressed a hand against her forehead.
Her body suddenly felt unusually weak.
Her arms refused to obey her.
The strength in her legs seemed to disappear little by little.
Her heart skipped a beat.
"The wine..."
She finally realized.
Something had been added to it.
Debbie immediately turned toward Victor.
"You..."
Before she could finish speaking, Victor’s polite smile disappeared completely.
Replacing it...
Was a sinister grin.
Debbie immediately reached toward the steering wheel, trying to stop the car.
"Stop...!"
Victor casually pushed her arm away with one hand.
The difference in strength was overwhelming.
Debbie was already losing consciousness.
She couldn’t even resist properly.
Still...
She refused to give up.
Again.
And again.
She struggled, trying desperately to unlock the door or grab the steering wheel.
Each attempt was effortlessly thrown aside by Victor.
His expression remained calm.
As though none of this surprised him.
Meanwhile...
Lucas gritted his teeth as he stared at the taillights disappearing ahead.
"Damn it!"
He pushed the accelerator even harder.
The massive Escalade roared through traffic.
Yet...
The gap between them wasn’t shrinking.
Victor’s Mercedes-Benz E450 was significantly lighter and far more agile than the heavy armored SUV Lucas was driving.
Every sharp turn...
Every lane change...
Only widened the distance.
Lucas slammed the steering wheel in frustration.
"This piece of junk..."
Beside him, Chloe remained remarkably composed despite the dangerous speed.
She had originally wanted to tell Lucas to keep his distance.
To avoid alerting Victor.
But...
The moment she saw how quickly Victor was pulling away...
She swallowed those words.
There was no point anymore.
If they didn’t catch up now...
They might lose him completely.
Lucas drove like a madman.
Ignoring traffic lights.
Ignoring speed limits.
Ignoring everything except the Sliver Mercedes ahead.
The city lights blurred into streaks around them.
Cars swerved frantically out of the way.
Several drivers blasted their horns as the Escalade tore past them.
Still...
They couldn’t catch him.
It almost felt as though...
The farther Lucas chased...
The farther Victor became.
Inside the Mercedes...
Victor remained completely unaware.
He never once looked in the rearview mirror.
He had no idea an entire convoy was racing after him.
Right now...
Only one thought occupied his mind.
He needed to reach his destination.
As fast as possible.
As the chase continued, Chloe finally picked up her phone.
Her calm expression had disappeared entirely.
She dialed a number without hesitation.
"The target is fleeing."
Her voice remained steady despite the speed of the vehicle.
"I need immediate assistance."
She quickly reported Victor’s vehicle model, license plate, and last known route before ordering nearby police units to establish roadblocks along every possible exit.
Within seconds, sirens began echoing across several districts.
Police cruisers rushed toward major intersections while highway patrol units sealed off the nearest expressways.
Yet...
Victor was nowhere to be found.
By now, they had already entered the highway.
The silver Mercedes had become nothing more than a tiny silhouette in the far distance.
Every few seconds, it disappeared behind another truck or around another bend before reappearing again.
Even Chloe narrowed her eyes.
"...We’ve almost lost him."
Lucas didn’t answer.
His hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles had turned white.
His eyes never left the road ahead.
Unlike everyone else inside the vehicle, he wasn’t simply chasing Victor.
He was calculating.
Every intersection.
Victor wasn’t driving randomly.
He had a destination in mind.
Lucas silently replayed the route inside his head.
"If he wanted to return to the city..."
"He would’ve taken Exit Seven."
"He didn’t."
"If he wanted the airport..."
"He would’ve turned east."
"He didn’t."
"So..."
Lucas’s eyes narrowed.
"He’s heading somewhere isolated."
The two bodyguards sitting behind them exchanged confused glances.
To them...
Victor had completely disappeared.
But somehow...
Lucas still seemed to know exactly where he was going.
Although the Mercedes had become barely visible, Lucas could still catch occasional glimpses of its taillights in the distance whenever the road straightened.
"He’s still there..."
Lucas muttered quietly.
"Just barely."
The others instinctively looked ahead.
All they saw...
Was an endless stretch of highway.
Nothing else.
Minutes turned into nearly an hour.
The convoy sped farther and farther away from Silvermont.
Soon, the towering buildings disappeared behind them.
The busy city roads gave way to empty highways.
Streetlights became fewer.
Traffic gradually vanished.
Eventually...
There wasn’t another vehicle in sight.
Only endless asphalt stretching into the darkness.
Even Chloe frowned.
"...Where exactly is he going?"
No one answered.
Behind them...
The escort convoy gradually began falling apart.
Several of Chloe’s SUVs reached different highway junctions at the same time.
Without knowing which road Victor had chosen, they had no choice but to split up.
"Team Three, take the eastern route!"
"Team Five, head south!"
"Maintain communication!"
One after another, the black SUVs peeled away, disappearing onto different roads.
Even the police encountered the same problem.
Roadblocks had already been established across multiple highways.
Patrol units searched relentlessly.
Nearby checkpoints were alerted.
Yet...
None of them ever spotted Victor’s Mercedes.
It was as though the vehicle had vanished into thin air.
Inside the Escalade, silence filled the cabin.
Everyone was beginning to doubt whether they were still chasing the right direction.
Everyone...
Except Lucas.
His sharp eyes remained fixed ahead.
Every now and then...
He caught the faint glow of Victor’s taillights disappearing behind thick trees before flashing into view again.
"They’re still there..."
He muttered quietly.
"You can hide..."
"But you can’t disappear."
Then~
Without any warning~
Lucas violently turned the steering wheel.
The heavy Escalade swerved off the smooth highway and plunged onto a narrow dirt road hidden behind rows of overgrown bushes.
BANG!
The SUV bounced violently as its tires slammed onto the uneven ground.
Dust instantly exploded into the air behind them.
"What are you doing?!"
One of the bodyguards shouted, grabbing the handle above his head.
The road ahead was barely wide enough for one vehicle.
There were no streetlights.
No buildings.
Only endless bushes, scattered trees, and abandoned farmland stretching into the darkness.
The farther they drove...
The rougher the road became.
It looked less like a road and more like an old village path that had long been forgotten.
Chloe immediately looked toward Lucas.
Her eyes narrowed.
"...How did you know he came this way?"
Lucas didn’t answer.
His eyes remained locked on the faint pair of red taillights flickering in the distance.