Ch. 541..545: Charmed by the Billionaire CEO Chapter 541-545

Chapter 541: You father is in danger...

[Two hours ago]

Richard had just checked out from the hotel and was heading to the airport. He was excited to attend the teaser launch of Ashley’s first-ever movie, so he made sure to depart a day before the event.

While his car drove in the direction of the airport, Richard came to realize something odd.

The route his driver took didn’t lead to the airport, instead to headed somewhere else.

"Eric, this is not the way to the airport" Richard pointed to his driver, however, Eric didn’t respond and kept on driving.

Richard felt his behavior suspicious and quickly reached out.

"Eric, I said this is-" Richard’s words died when Eric took a sharp turn and restricted road.

Richard clashed with the car’s door, his head hitting badly on the window and he passed out.

Eric navigated the car through the rough road and soon reached the designated spot.

The man looked worried, however, when his eyes fell on the men who captivated his daughter, he cried in misery.

Wiping off his tears, Eric stepped out of the car and approached the men.

"I brought him, now please leave my daughter" Eric begged.

Four men in total waited for Eric on the spot, one of whom decided to check whether Eric was telling the truth.

Walking towards the car’s door, the man peeked through the window and saw Richard’s unconscious frame.

" He is here" the man informed the rest.

Once the man returned to his spot, another one walked toward Eric and played him a video that showed his daughter was safe back home.

"Now leave this place and never come back, or else it won’t take us to destroy your family" the man warned ending the video abruptly, and soon they hopped into the same car, that Eric drove and left the spot.

The driver fell on his knees regretting his doing. Richard trusted him but Eric betrayed him. If it wasn’t for his daughter and wife’s safety, he wouldn’t have deceived him.

As the car drove, the one sitting on the front turned and eyed Richard blankly. After a momentary glance, the man pulled out his phone and made a call to his boss.

"Richard is with us" he informed and carefully heard the further instructions as their car moved to one of their hideouts.

****

An entire day passed and Richard didn’t call. Ashley found his behavior absurd now that his phone was also switched off.

"This is the limit. How can Dad turn off his phone" Ashley snapped getting up from the couch.

Pacing back and forth inside the room, she once again called Richard, however, his phone was switched off.

"I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Should he be home by now, yet he isn’t" Ashley was now losing her patience.

Richard was supposed to catch a morning flight at 11:45 and land in country S by evening.

It was already eight past half and yet there was no call from Richard’s end.

"I should just go and check whether he reached home or not" Ashley affirmed and was about to leave her room when Tristan walked in startling Ashely and she halted.

"Ash, you need to see this" Tristan’s concerned-filled voice alarmed Ashley, and a deep frown of confusion marred on her face.

Ashley looked into the phone where she read a text sent by an anonymous person.

’Your father is in danger, please save him’

Ashley turned to Tristan and inquired," What is this, and who sent this message to you?"

"I don’t know. It just came randomly" Tristan answered.

"I don’t think we should trust any unknown person or message like this. I am sure Dad is fine and he must be home by now. We’ll just go and check" Ashley assured.

Tristan was contemplated however he agreed. There was something fishy about this message, so on his way to the Brown mansion, he informed the IT team to track the ID of the person who texted him the message.

As the couple left the house, they came across Gavin to seemed to be searching for them.

"Brother, sister-in-law, are you going somewhere?" Gavin asked watching the couple leave this late in the evening.

"We are heading to the Brown mansion. Is there anything you want to talk about?" Tristan inquired.

Gavin took a moment before he gave him a nod.

Meanwhile, Ashley received a text from Richard and quickly showed it to Tristan.

"Didn’t I tell you Dad is fine? See he says that his flight got delayed so he will be coming tomorrow" Tristan’s eyes squinted reading the text before his eyes moved to see relief washed over Ashley’s face.

There was something off with the text Richard sent. If his flight got delayed then should he be informed before?

Gavin who stood cluelessly inquired.

"Is everything okay? I mean you two seemed a little disturbed. Is it regarding Uncle Richard?" he asked.

Tristan averted his gaze toward Gavin and said," Let’s head to the study and you Ash, I think you should sleep"

Ashley sensed the troubled look on Tristan’s face, however, she didn’t argue and followed his words by returning to the room.

Tristan and Gavin headed to the study, secluded from everyone.

"I think they are planning on doing something?" Tristan said after disclosing about the message he received on his phone.

"Martin, he also seems to be doubtful about us. He followed Jenny to the dormitory the other night and I doubt, he saw me there"

Both the brothers gave each other an alarming look.

"Something is wrong and we have to be quick before it’s too late" Tristan warned sensing something unexpected.

Things around them started taking a new turn and they had to hold the rein of their lives before their enemies got hold of it.

"How is Jenny? Is she okay?" Tristan inquired.

"She is fine. I asked her to take a day off before I came up with a plan to catch Martin and make him spill everything.

"I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave Jenny alone. What if Martin tries to come after her?"

Chapter 542: Is it about the text

"I don’t think that would happen any time soon" Gavin confidently stated making Tristan arch his brow.

"And how are you so confident?" Tristan asked.

"I don’t think Martin would try to expose himself just like that, not now that he knows Jenny and I are together," Gavin said.

"But you can’t trust the people he is working for. Don’t you already know how dangerous they are?" Tristan reminded.

Gavin fell silent for a moment and bobbed his head in understanding.

"That’s why I want your men to monitor Jenny. I won’t be able to be with her all the time, so I request you to help me with this" Gavin requested.

"Okay, I will ask my men to protect Jenny, but you can’t let Martin roam freely for too long. We need to catch him to find the man behind all of this" Tristan pointed.

"Don’t worry brother, I am already on it. Martin will soon be under our captive" Gavin assured and soon left the study, while Tristan remained seated on the couch.

His eyes glanced at the cell phone resting on the table with his fingers patiently tapping on the armrest.

Tristan was waiting for his investigator to confirm his doubts regarding the message he got from an unknown number.

A few minutes passed and the phone suddenly rang with Tristan’s fingers stopping midway.

Darting his eyes towards the phone, Tristan answers the call.

"Did you find the person behind the message" Tristan spoke.

"Yes boss, the number belongs to a man named Eric Wilson. He is a driver by profession who likes touring people in the country P"

Tristan’s brows knitted hearing the details. For a moment he felt silent wondering why would someone from Country P try to contact him, but then something struck his mind and Tristan realized it was the same place where Richard went for his holidays.

"I want more details about him as quickly as possible. Find whom he toured for the last week and whom he met during that time. Find out about his family and relatives, find everything, and update me" Tristan instructed and hung the call.

Something was not right and Tristan could feel it.

The message had already caught his attention suspiciously but

’Who was the one to text Ashley?’

Tristan started racking his brain trying to connect the dots when a knock on the door but a brakes in his thoughts.

"Aren’t you coming to the room?" A familiar voice made Tristan look towards the person and the coldness in his eyes disappeared instantly.

The thoughts clouding his mind vanished and he shook his head before getting up from his seat.

"No, I was returning to the room," Tristan said with a smile before walking towards his wife.

After Tristan and Gavin excused themselves to study, Ashley patiently waited for Tristan’s arrival. Something about the change in his expressions earlier caught her attention and she couldn’t find herself at ease.

So when she saw Gavin leave the study, she decided to go and check on Tristan by herself.

"Are you stressed over the message you received?" Ashley asked remembering how his mood changed right after reading the text. So when he left right after they received a confirming message from Richard’s end, Ashley then decided to talk later about it.

Tristan pulled Ashley inside the study and closed the door behind her. He was contemplating whether he should tell Ashley about the person or not, as he still had no concrete proof to confirm that Richard was truly in danger.

So he decided to wait for a confirmation before breaking the news.

Holding her hands into his Tristan sighed, "Don’t you find it suspicious, I mean Uncle just texted you right after we received that anonymous text"

Ashley frowned hearing his words. Tristan sounded a little doubtful about the entire event. Yes even she was scared when Richard refused to answer her calls earlier but when he confirmed that his flight got delayed, she was back to being content.

However now when Tristan brought up this topic Ashley had no words in response.

Tristan noticed the contemplation on her face after he said those words and realized they ended up scaring her.

"Okay let’s not worry about it for now and wait for Uncle to return" Tristan changed the topic while caressing her arm.

Tristan hated seeing Ashley distressed so he decided to let this topic slide for a while.

Ashley bobbed her head in agreement and soon they left the study and returned to their room.

Meanwhile, somewhere inside the private plane, Richard was being deported back to Country S along with the kidnappers.

*****

Morning came and Bianca woke up next to Gabriel. After confessing their love she came to see the different side of Riel that caught her off guard.

Never did she think of him being so clingy that he hardly left her side and had been gluing to her like a bee.

Turning around Bianca faced the man sleeping next to her and smiled.

"I can’t believe this handsome-looking man is my boyfriend," Bianca said while tracing the contour of Riel’s face.

His pointed nose, sharp jawline, and thin lips made her go crazy over his beauty. Running her finger over his thick brows Bianca admired his long lashes.

"He has a face that can even shame Adonis" Bianca was swayed by how beautiful Riel was. No doubt he is a model and actor by profession knowing how many girls went crazy over his charm.

As she kept admiring the man before her, Gabriel slowly opened his eyes.

"Ah!" Bianca gasped and quickly covered her mouth in shock.

Gabriel smiled watching her flustered face as he propped up with his head resting on his palm.

"Keep going. I love the way you are flattering me" Gabriel grinned embarrassing the hell out of Bianca.

All this while she assumed him to be sleeping, however, it turned out that Gabriel was already awake and was listening to her.

Unable to stand his mischievous grin Bianca quickly hid her face by pulling over the duvet.

"..."

 

Chapter 543: Hear me out

Gabriel let out a defeated chuckle and pulled down the duvet from her face.

"Why are you hiding now? You weren’t shy while praising my beauty while I was asleep" Gabriel teased.

Bianca felt like digging a hole for herself. If only she knew Gabriel was faking his sleep she wouldn’t have shamelessly swooned over him.

With her face tainted pink in embarrassment, Bianca peeked from the duvet and pouted.

"Stop teasing me" she warned cutely only to watch him chuckle in amusement.

Bianca couldn’t fight him as his smile filled her heart with happiness washing away all her shyness and soon she found herself smiling along with him.

As the couple laughed their heart out, Gabriel pulled Bianca for a kiss. The urge to keep on kissing her endlessly drove him crazy.

Gabriel was once again aroused as their lips clasped each other slowly turning the slow kiss into a passionate one.

Bianca was slowly losing herself in the pool of pleasure when she shot opened her eyes and pushed Gabriel away.

Gabriel stopped kissing and pulled himself back with a deep frown of confusion lacing over his face.

"What happened?" he asked finding her behavior odd.

Bianca lowered her gaze in shyness and bit her lips before opening her mouth and whispering, "I need to pee" Her voice was as low as her pounding heart barely audible however the word ended up amusing Gabriel and he soon broke into a peel of laughter.

Bianca couldn’t look into his eyes as she was feeling flabbergasted by herself. ’Who in the world says something like that and that too in the middle of the kiss’ she thought while hiding her awkwardness.

When Gabriel didn’t stop smiling, Bianca gently pushed him and climbed down the bed while covering her body with the same duvet and sprinted into the bathroom.

Closing the door behind her, Bianca cupped her cheeks which were burning hot like a lump of coal. She didn’t realize how much of an impact Riel’s laughter left on her until she found herself getting wet down there.

"Oh god!! This man is like an addiction" she reminded herself before running toward the latrine.

Once Bianca was done refreshing, she stepped out of the bathroom only to realize that Gabriel was no longer inside the room.

Confused by his sudden departure, Bianca walked deeper into the room and scanned around. His clothes scattered on the floor were not to be seen which means he was seriously gone and that made Bianca sigh in sadness.

She was expecting them to continue what she left halfway, but now she had to wait until he returned.

Dropping the duvet off her body, Bianca started dressing up. She wore her garments and put on her top that reached above her knees and decided to step out when suddenly her phone buzzed.

After Gabriel returned Bianca her cellphone, she hardly used it. Gabriel inserted a new software that stopped anyone from tracking her location except for himself. However, he warned her to attend to any unknown calls.

Walking towards the bedside table she picked up her phone and unlocked it only to find a message from Martin.

A deep line formed between her brows as she pressed the text and opened the message quickly reading it.

’I know you are hiding somewhere Bianca, but if you want your friend alive then do as I say’

Bianca was taken aback reading the text message she received from Martin, however, what got her off guard was Jenny’s picture he sent right after the threatening words.

Her hand holding the phone trembled and a new kind of fear crept into her heart. Beads of sweat broke covering her forehead and her face slowly started to turn white.

’Jenny was held captive by him and the photo was the proof’

BUZZ...

Bianca jumped out of her trance as her phone buzzed again and this time it was a video that he sent.

Bianca tremblingly pressed the video and the view she saw broke her into tears.

There she was Jenny tied to the chair lying unconscious and then she heard a familiar voice that caught her breath.

’Did you see her? I am sure now your doubts are confirmed and you don’t take my words lightly

Bianca’s eyes well hearing his words and she covered her mouth and started crying.

’ Now hear me out

Martin said with a warning tone that silenced Bianca the next instance. Gulping the lump formed in her throat Bianca quietly heard him out.

*****

Gavin had just woken up and the first thing he did was to text Jenny a morning text.

Even when they were fake dating Jenny was quick to reply, however, an entire minute passed and there wasn’t any reply from her end.

’Huh, is she still sleeping’ Gavin wondered recalling how tired she sounded the last night when they had a video call.

A smile made its way on Gavin’s lips when Jenny said that she was already missing him and his hugs and that sweet request itself made him want to return to her side. However, he stopped when Jenny fell asleep while talking with him.

Now that he remembered her words, Gavin decided to wait for some time and let her sleep before he contacted her.

’She must be tired’ he murmured before climbing down the bed and headed into the bathroom to get refreshed.

By the time Gavin stepped out after taking a shower, his phone began to ring.

Assuming it to be Jenny, Gavin quickly dropped the towel in his hand and rushed to answer the call.

The smile on his face froze when he saw the caller’s name and he cleared his throat before answering the call.

"Hello, Uncle," Gavin said respectfully greeting Jenny’s father who called him early morning.

Gavin wasn’t expecting to receive a call from Jenny’s parents but now that they called, he decided to hear him out.

Marcus was hesitant to speak for a moment but when he noticed Gavin’s happy mood he asked,

"Gavin, I am sorry to disturb you, but is Jenny with you? We tried calling her but she isn’t answering. Mind if you ask her to call her mother? She is getting worried about no reason"

Blood drew from Gavin’s face as he heard Marcus and he quickly answered.

"Uncle Jenny is not with me," he said as a feeling of fear crept into his heart.

Chapter 544: Where is Jenny?

Gavin rushed to the dormitory to meet Jenny, however, he discovered that she wasn’t in her room.

After inquiring with the warden, he learned that she stepped out to bring some stuff however it’s been a while since she left, and hasn’t returned.

Gavin furrowed hearing her words and once again tried calling her and as usual, her phone was unreachable.

Fears started to crawl in his heart wondering where she must’ve gone. But then a thought crossed his mind and Gavin left the dormitory, driving straight to Martin’s apartment.

After suspecting Martin, Gavin acquired all the information about him, so it didn’t take him long to reach the place where he lived.

Martin was a bachelor and owned a condo. The moment Gavin reached there he found that the house was locked.

Gavin examined the place carefully when his eyes fell on his neighbor who just stepped out from his gates and stopped him.

"Excuse me, do you know where Doctor Martin is? " Gavin asked the old man.

"I don’t know, Martin didn’t seem to return home since last night." He said.

Gavin’s eyes darkened hearing his response and he quickly excused himself after thanking the neighbor.

Gavin had a feeling Jenny had gone missing and the person who abducted her was none other than Martin.

Hopping into his car, Gavin drove straight to the base. On his way, he called Gabriel and told him about the discovery.

Gabriel quickly reacted to his words and decided to join him at the base. However, on his way, Gabriel stopped right know front of Bianca’s room.

Taking a moment he decided to inform her about Jenny and also his leave.

Knock! Knock!!

Gabriel stood outside waiting for Bianca to open the door and when she did, he noticed something off about her reaction.

Her usually chirpy face looked distressed and that made Gabriel confused on whether he should inform her about Jenny’s abduction or not.

"Bianca, I’ll be heading out. There’s some emergency in the base so I need to go there" Gabriel said dropping the idea of disclosing the news for now. However, he did try giving her hints which she didn’t seem to pick.

Bianca was lost in her thoughts and failed to hear him. She was barely even looking at him which made him wonder why she was being like this.

"Ahem.. Did you hear me? " Gabriel asked snapping her out of her thoughts.

Bianca looked and met his curious eyes and then Martin’s words crossed his mind.

Forcing a smile Bianca tried to act.

"O-of course I did," She said moving her gaze all over his face.

’I am sorry Riel, I can’t tell you anything or else, Martin might... NO! I can’t’ Bianca stopped herself from disclosing the truth to Gabriel.

Gabriel found her reaction odd however he couldn’t bring himself to ask her as he was running late to meet Gavin.

Giving a kiss on her forehead Gabriel then left however he asked her to wait for him as they had a few things to discuss.

Bianca stood by the door and watched Gabriel leave the house.

Her eyes moved nervously wondering if she would escape this place without letting anyone know.

Bianca then looked for Janett everywhere and when she didn’t see her, Bianca quickly grabbed her phone and handbag and sneaked out of the house.

It was hard to manipulate the guards however she managed to fool them and left the mansion as soon as possible.

*****

By the time Jenny’s abduction news reached Tristan and the entire family, Ashley was again waiting for Richard’s call.

Today he was supposed to catch his flight and yet like yesterday he didn’t come to inform her about his departure.

It was a big day for Ashley and the entire family however these unexpected news washed away all their happiness.

"Did you talk with Gavin" Grace asked Tristan who just returned after having a call with his brother.

"Yes, they are trying to track both Martin’s and Jenny’s numbers," He said.

Grace gave him an understatement nod and he then turned towards Ashley who also seemed quite disturbed.

"Did uncle call you? " He asked sitting next to her and saw her shake her head in denial.

Tristan was still waiting for an update from his informer. Don’t know why he was having a very bad feeling that did not seem to ease.

"Do you think everything is okay?" Ashley said after a long pause.

She knew everyone around her was disturbed by Jenny’s news and she didn’t want to stress them by talking about Richard.

She was just waiting for his call but now the longer he took the more anxious she got.

"No, now he isn’t answering my calls" Ashley panicked wondering what was wrong with Richard.

Tristan was already thinking of postponing the event, however, the director refused as the invitation was already sent and everything was prepared.

What were they supposed to give them as an answer?

"Are you sure you can attend the event? " Tristan asked.

Ashley gave him a perplexed look. She was torn between her personal and professional life.

Her heart wanted her to step back and wait for her father’s response but she also knew her responsibility towards the team who worked so hard along with her.

She just couldn’t delay the event because of her problems.

"I think I can manage. I am sure Dad must be on the flight by now. So let’s hope to hear from him" Ashley suggested positively.

So many unexpected things were happening around her, and at some point she found herself thinking of only one person,

’Sandra... ’

’Maybe it was finally the time to meet her. ’ Ashley concluded.

****

Bianca reached the location where Martin and a few men were already waiting for her.

"I thought you’d betray me," Martin said approaching Bianca as he reached his hand to touch her, however, she flinched and took a step back.

"Where is Jenny? " She asked giving him a fierce glare.

Martin expected Bianca to behave like an obedient puppy but she turned out to be ruder than before.

Chapter 545: It was all a plan...

"Eager to meet your friend, huh?" Martin smirked.

Bianca didn’t give a damn to what he was trying to do. She only wanted to see whether Jenny was safe and he didn’t harm her.

"You asked me to come, now let Jenny go. She is innocent" Bianca said with a straight face.

She didn’t feel an ounce of empathy towards this man, who put her life in danger just because she refused him

Martin’s face darkened at her rudeness.

"So what if she is innocent, she is still your friend and also the one who tried to expose me. So.. there is no way I am letting you two go" Martin said with an evil glint in his eyes and motioned the two men with his eyes and they quickly grabbed Bianca by her arms.

Bianca startled finding herself being held by two bulky men. "Let me go... you can’t change your words. Martin, you agreed to let Jenny go once I agree to come. Now don’t back off" Bianca struggled in their grip while she reminded Martin about the words he said.

"And what made you think I would do that" Martin’s words paused Bianca and she watched him smile evilly.

"Y-you fooled me" Bianca realized it was a trap Martin set for her and that boiled her blood with rage even more.

"You bastard, how could you do that..." she cursed losing her cool the next second.

Bianca should’ve known a man like Martin can never be trusted. Someone who can put her life in trouble can do anything to mess with her life again.

The smile on Martin’s face faded and his eyes grim watching her curse him.

Unable to stand her offended words, Martin quickly stood before her and covered her mouth with a cloth until the drug reached into her nostrils and Bianca fainted.

"Take her inside and tie her next to her friend" Martin instructed the two men and they carried the unconscious Bianca inside the secluded building.

Martin then made a call to Lucas and informed him about everything.

"Good, now don’t let those girls leave until I reach there. Let me handle them on my own" he said and ended the call.

****

Gabriel and Gavin joined forces to find Jenny. They tried tracking Jenny through her phone and soon found the location.

Gabriel dived deeper and searched the location only to realize it was the parking slot of Fortis Plus Hospital.

"What is she doing inside the hospital’s parking lot? Jenny was supposed to be on leave today?" Gavin stated looking at the screen.

After Martin stalked Jenny that night, Gavin suggested she take a short break until he dealt with Martin himself. However, before Tristan’s men could take hold of her dormitory to guard her, she was gone.

"You think Martin summoned her somehow and then kidnapped her from there?" Gavin asked.

"This is the only possibility as you can see Jenny didn’t go anywhere and straight to the hospital and there was also a call she received from an unknown number before she left" Gabriel explained what he found so far.

"But why would she take such a big risk after attending an unknown call" Gavin pointed confusingly.

"Maybe Martin tricked her by saying it was an emergency and asked her to come. We can expect anything from him" Gabriel said.

Gavin fell silent hearing Gabriel explain the theory of how Martin might have abducted Jenny.

Meanwhile, Gabriel tried tracing Martin’s phone and to his surprise, Gabriel wasn’t able to track it.

A deep frown marred his face after he learned how the signals disappeared after a sudden amount of time.

"This man has someone backing him. How can he seal his tracking device? It’s hard to locate him after this specific spot" Gabriel snapped feeling frustrated.

They were finding it hard to find Jenny. Martin skillfully abducted the girl without leaving a trace behind.

A deafening silence between the two broke when Gabriel’s phone rang and he snapped out of his thoughts.

His eyes squinted watching the name on the screen and Gabriel quickly answered it.

Janett’s frantic voice came through the call as she informed Gabriel about Bianca’s absence from the mansion.

"Young master, we couldn’t find Miss Bianca in the house" Her words caused Gabriel to rise from his seat.

"What do you mean she isn’t inside the house? She was inside her room at the time I left" Gabriel stated.

He could feel his blood running dry as the feeling of fear crept into his heart. He could feel something was wrong with how fearfully Janet was talking.

"Check the CCTV footage around the house and the guard in remand. I will soon reach there" Gabriel said and ended the call.

Gavin who heard everything asked," What happened? Why do you look so distressed"

"Bianca, she went missing. My housekeeper is searching for her" Gabriel disclosed with a sullen look.

His heart was pounding inside his chest wondering where must have Bianca gone and why she hadn’t informed him or anyone inside the house.

Gabriel ran his hand over his hair and bit his lower lips with his mind running wild. It was then he remembered how strange Bianca looked when he met her earlier.

She didn’t seem to be herself and was quiet lost in her thoughts that she hardly paid attention to him.

"You think both these situations are somewhat connected" Gavin spoke after a long pause.

He seemed a little suspicious about something that clicked in his mind as soon as he heard about Bianca missing from Gabriel’s house.

Why would she leave when Gabriel forbade her to step out of the house without his permission?

Gabriel furrowed and turned to face Gavin.

"You think it was all a plan to get Bianca out of the house? That’s why Martin kidnapped Jenny just so he could use that as an excuse to get Bianca out of the hideout" Gabriel was quick to understand his doubts and connected the dots right away.

Gavin’s eyes gleamed meaningfully as he silently agreed with Gabriel’s sketch about all this kidnapping thing.