Chapter Forty-Four: Abduction

“Secretly in love with…” Zhang Can blurted out in annoyance, but just as the word “damn” reached his lips, he forced it back. He saw his own car parked up ahead by the roadside; cars lined the whole stretch. He turned and asked, “Did you drive?”

“No,” Zhou Nan tilted her head, looking at Zhang Can with a playful smile. “What’s wrong, you don’t want to drive, you’d rather walk?”

Embarrassed, Zhang Can pointed toward the white BMW behind the van. “No, I drove myself, it’s over there. If you drove, I’d ride with you, but since you didn’t, I’ll drive mine…”

“Oh? What position do you hold at the antique shop? Even as a manager or store owner, you don’t earn much in a month, so how are you driving a BMW? Quite extravagant!” Zhou Nan laughed as she walked straight toward the BMW. As she passed the white van, its door suddenly slid open from inside. Several men burst out, one covering her mouth, another grabbing her legs, and in the blink of an eye, Zhou Nan was snatched into the van. Zhang Can, alarmed and close by, instinctively grabbed her clothes, pulling her outward with all his strength, his body halfway inside the van.

The men crowded together, beating and kicking Zhang Can, but he refused to let go. One of them suddenly drew a gun and struck Zhang Can hard, yelling, “Let go, or I'll blow your brains out!”

Facing the black barrel, Zhang Can trembled and released his grip. The man struck his forehead with the butt of the gun, and blood gushed out instantly!

Two other men dragged Zhang Can fully into the van and slammed the door shut. The driver, without waiting for instructions, started the engine and sped off.

It took quite a while before Zhang Can regained his senses, his forehead burning with pain. Looking around, he saw four men surrounding them. Zhou Nan, though unconscious, was leaning against him in the middle. Two men were up front, one driving, the other glaring fiercely at him.

Suddenly, Zhang Can remembered that when he’d used his ability at the shop, he’d seen guns and knives inside this van. He’d wondered who these people were: not police, but never imagined they would end up kidnapping him and Zhou Nan. Was it robbery, or something else?

He couldn’t figure it out just yet, nor did he have time to check his own injuries. Turning sideways, he shook Zhou Nan and asked, “Zhou Nan, are you okay? Wake up, wake…”

“Call out again and I’ll kill you!” The man on his left flashed his gun and snarled viciously at Zhang Can. If space allowed, he’d surely have beaten him again.

Zhang Can knew better than to provoke them now. He wiped his bloodied face with his sleeve. His forehead had been split open, his face smeared with blood, looking severe though it was just a flesh wound. No veins had been cut, and after a moment, the bleeding stopped, though the pain remained and a large bump had formed.

Zhou Nan was still unconscious. When they grabbed her, Zhang Can had seen a towel in the man’s hand covering her mouth, likely soaked in some drug.

Earlier, as he struggled to pull Zhou Nan from the van, he’d worried his money bag might fall, so he’d kept it looped around his wrist. After being dragged inside, the bag was still there.

For now, Zhang Can couldn’t tell if these men had kidnapped them on impulse or were seeking revenge. If it was premeditated, it was odd. Thinking carefully, their target seemed to be Zhou Nan, since they went for her, not him. If he hadn’t clung to her, he wouldn’t have been caught up in this.

“What do you want? Is it money?” Zhang Can pointed to the plastic bag on his left wrist and slowly handed it over under their watchful gaze. “I have seventy-eight thousand here. Let us go. If it’s about money, we can negotiate…”

The man snatched the bag, opened it, saw several stacks of hundred yuan bills, took one out and checked—it was real. He passed the bag to the man in the front passenger seat and whispered, “Boss, the money’s real.”

He turned back, glaring at Zhang Can. “Behave, or I’ll kill you!”

“Kill you” seemed to be his habitual threat. Zhang Can frowned—seventy-eight thousand in cash thrown away without even a ripple, and he still didn’t know their true purpose.

There were eight people in the van: six kidnappers, Zhang Can and Zhou Nan. Was it random robbery or targeted abduction? Zhang Can desperately wanted to know, so he could plan accordingly. From what he’d seen, the man in the front passenger seat was the leader—his companion called him “boss” and handed him the money; no one objected, so he was clearly in charge.

Zhang Can could only glimpse the left side of the boss’s face, cold and dark. After a while, the boss pulled out his phone and made a call.

Zhang Can kept his head down but listened intently.

“We got them, but there was a bit of an accident. She was with a guy, so we grabbed him too… Yes, don’t worry, the woman’s been knocked out with drugs, she didn’t see us… The guy saw us though, yeah, yeah… Okay, I understand.”

Hearing this, Zhang Can’s anxiety spiked. The boss was reporting to someone else, so they weren’t the masterminds. This was indeed a premeditated kidnapping; Zhou Nan was the target, and he was just collateral—his own stubbornness had gotten him caught.

What frightened Zhang Can was that the orders from above demanded they not show their faces to Zhou Nan; she hadn’t seen them, as she was drugged at the roadside. But he had seen all their faces. The boss’s instructions seemed to be to kill him to eliminate witnesses—his act of heroism had backfired!

Being a hero was dangerous; one misstep and he’d be killed. If they’d drugged him as well, he’d have some hope, since he wouldn’t have seen their faces. Now, he’d gotten a clear look at all six. If they were ruthless criminals, he was in grave danger.

Zhou Nan, however, might have hope. The phone conversation suggested the mastermind wanted her unconscious so she wouldn’t see her kidnappers, implying she’d be released. Unlucky for Zhang Can—they hadn’t knocked him out.

The van’s windows were covered with curtains; he couldn't see outside or tell where they were heading. Surrounded by burly men, he dared not look out.

The ride lasted at least forty or fifty minutes. When the van finally stopped, the men on either side opened the doors and got out. The man on his left pulled him out, and another joined in. Together, they tightly wrapped his arms and legs with clear tape.

Zhang Can, experienced, didn’t struggle. As they bound his wrists, he flexed his muscles to create a slight gap, hoping for a bit of looseness once they finished. But the men were skilled, binding him as tightly as one would bundle firewood, leaving no room, finally sealing his mouth with tape.

He and Zhou Nan were thrown into a small room, windows covered with black cloth, a single energy-saving bulb overhead. The room was barely ten square meters, but the wooden floor spared them injury when they were tossed down.

The door was securely shut. Now, Zhang Can couldn’t hear the kidnappers outside. He looked at Zhou Nan—she was still unconscious, her limbs taped, lying motionless.

Zhang Can rolled over, his back to Zhou Nan. His hands were tightly bound behind him, but only at the wrists, so his fingers could move. He felt around Zhou Nan’s mouth and loosened the tape, creating a gap—not removing it completely, lest the kidnappers notice and beat them again.

He activated his black-and-white vision, scanning outside the room. In the hall were the six kidnappers; the boss was still on the phone, the others devouring food.

He looked in other directions and groaned inwardly: they were in a remote countryside area, the building a solitary house, surrounded by wilderness. After that realization, his mind went blank and he nearly fainted. The black-and-white vision faded, and after a while, his sight returned. When the dizziness subsided, he found he could no longer see through walls.

That last use of his power had drained him. Panting heavily, he gradually calmed down and gently nudged Zhou Nan, using his fingers to stimulate her, hoping to wake her.

After a few prods, he heard her murmur, as if waking up. He rolled over, trying to cover her mouth, but being behind her, his hands wandered, inadvertently grabbing her chest.

Zhou Nan was awake—the drug lasted only an hour, and her eyes hadn’t been covered. She couldn’t speak, just murmured, but quickly regained alertness and stayed silent. Yet, as Zhang Can tried to cover her mouth from behind, his hands landed on her chest, prompting her to fiercely kick him.

Zhang Can glanced back; Zhou Nan’s eyes were wide with anger.

Despite her temper, Zhang Can breathed a sigh of relief. Zhou Nan wasn’t like other women, screaming in panic; she remained calm.

After a pause, Zhou Nan whispered, “Come closer, I’ll remove the tape from your mouth.”

Zhang Can shook his head gently, indicating no. The kidnappers in the hall could enter at any moment; if they noticed, it would bring serious consequences. It was best to wait for a safer opportunity.

Still, Zhou Nan’s composure soon gave way to worry. She whispered anxiously, “Do you think… they’ll kill us? Will they… will they…”

Her voice trembled, fear growing with every word. Zhang Can, his mouth taped, couldn’t answer, but even if he could, he couldn’t guarantee their safety. With her beauty, she was bound to attract the attention of these ruthless kidnappers.