Winner Takes All

It was late in the night and everyone was surprised with Jack's decision but no one objected to it, inclusive of Amber. They all knew that even if they disagreed and wanted to object, Jack would not change his mind once he made the decision.

It was late in the night and the corridor was dead quiet.

Jack sat on the wheelchair and the bandages on his left shoulder had been newly changed. The bandages on the mysterious man had also been changed. They had all prepared for the dangers that lurked ahead in the morning. Mr. Ward and Brent were no different.

Four of them sat along the corridor and neither said a word. Mr. Ward and Brent would occasionally glance around cautiously.

"You are rather bold. You very well know that all the killers are here for you and yet you placed yourself as the third in the protection priority. Are you tired of living?" The mysterious man joked. On hearing, both Mr. Ward and Brent looked towards Jack.

Jack rubbed his nose and said, "Of course I know but I am a man and Amber is my wife. Her parents are also my parents now. Regardless of how desperate I am, I would not hide behind them in the face of danger."

He smiled and continued, "My wife, parents, and buddies are all those I need to protect. Otherwise, why would I do so much to attain the crown of the Hughes family?"

"You'll be too burdened if you shoulder too many responsibilities." The mysterious man said solemnly.

Jack smiled with determination, "It is with these responsibilities that will drive me further. So what if I am burdened? Aren't all men?"

The mysterious man smiled and shook his head without saying another word. While Mr. Ward and Brent exchanged looks and noticed the mysterious man's acceptance of Jack's decision.

Inside the patient's room, Amber held onto Daisy's hand and said, "Daisy, I know that I cannot convince Jack but if anything happens on our way to the airport, I want you to protect him first and not me... nor my parents." Amber paused after she spoke and looked guiltily at Steve and Rosie.

As a woman, she must have endured intense heartache to say something like that in front of her parents.

Steve smiled and said, "Silly girl, why are you considering your parents in this situation? Jack was too brash in his decision. He is the target of all the assassination attempts. He should be the one that everyone protects. Your parents support your decision!"

"Yes, I also support your decision." Rosie smiled.

"Thanks, Dad and mom." Amber thanked her parents again.

The three of them looked towards Daisy and she hesitated for a moment before nodding.

This night, Jack, Brent, and Mr. Ward took turns to keep watch. It was the mysterious man who remained outside the patient's room for the entire night. Although they all assessed that it was the most dangerous during the trip to the airport but they did not let their guard down for the rest of the night.

Any killers worth their salt would choose the most opportune time to strike. This could happen at any moment.

Time slowly passed.

At daybreak, the mysterious man patted Jack's shoulder and said, "Take care on the road. I'll be watching over you in the background." His tone was solemn. Even the mysterious took the dangers ahead seriously and did not let his guard down.

Jack looked at the mysterious as he left and then shifted his gaze outside towards the brightening day. He stretched and then said with a sigh, "Let's hope that we can go home safely." Then Jack could not help but chuckle.

Could they really be safe on the roads?

Then Jack's smile froze and his hairs stood on ends as he was suddenly hit with the reality of the dangers that were waiting for them.

He turned and then his pupils constricted. His sight sharpened immensely as he looked along the corridor and out of the window towards a building across the road from the hospital. It was getting brighter and he could see that on a floor at that building, which was on the same level as he was, had a window which was slightly opened. Then, he noticed that something stuck out from the window. Immediately Jack tensed up and realized that it could be a sniper.

Almost immediately, Jack leaned back and fell backward in his wheelchair onto the ground. At the same moment, the window at the end of the corridor shattered and a bullet flew towards him and barely missed.

Smash! The bullet continued and shattered the window on the other end of the corridor.

Jack maneuvered the wheelchair and then rolled to the side.

Bang! Another bullet struck the floor not far from him and shattered the floor tiles.

"Master!" Brent and Mr. Ward rushed out of the room.

"Careful! Sniper!" Jack warned.

Brent turned and pushed Mr. Ward back into the room. Brent then rolled towards the front of Jack to cover him and then pulled him towards the patient room.

The series of actions took no more than a second but the sniper was very fast and another bullet landed next to Jack's feet just before he ducked into the patient's room. "Phew... that was close!" Jack remarked when he was safely in the room.

If he had been any slower, the initial shot would have taken his life.Text © by N0ve/lDrama.Org.

"I'll go and capture him!" Brent was about to leave when smack! Jack grabbed Brent and said, "Let the people from the local Hughes office and the South Maine people handle it."

Brent immediately calmed down and did not hesitate. He and Mr. Ward immediately contacted the men from the Hughes local office and Cheer to neutralize the shooter.

It was quiet inside the room. After the calls were made, Jack and the other two did not dare to leave the patient's room. They were definitely safe from the sniper's bullets as long as they stayed inside the room Once they step into the corridor, they would be in the killing zone of the sniper.

"They should be able to deal with the shooter very quickly." Mr. Ward said and continued, "We can leave after they deal with the shooter. These killers can really pick a good time to strike. Dawn was the time when everyone was the most tired with the slowest reactions."

Then.

"Argh!" Amber started to scream inside the adjacent room. The sudden scream pierced straight into Jack, Mr. Ward, and Brent's senses.

Everyone was terrified. Was that a diversionary tactic?!

"Amber!" Jack rushed out of the room and just as he opened the door.

Bang!

Bang!

A bullet barely missed Jack and hit the door frame while the second bang was due to Brent pulling Jack back and slamming the door.

"Release me! Quickly release me. Amber is in danger!" Jack's eyes were red and was like a wild beast as he tried to struggle free from Brent's grasp.

At the same time, there were sounds of fighting within Amber's room.

"Calm down Master. Daisy can handle it for a moment!" Mr. Ward helped Brent to hold Jack back and continued, "Missus isn't the target and neither are the rest of them in that room. You are their target. If you were to rush out now, you will be exposed and killed!"