"Click." In the darkness, the handcuffs on the girl's back unlocked as I turned the key.

Rubbing her swollen wrists, Xiaodie looked at me curiously and whispered, "How did you get the key?"

"The fat guy gave it when he pushed me here earlier."

I scanned the area, mapping the layout roughly, then stuffed the handcuffs into my school uniform pocket.

"They have a mole on our side; we have one on theirs too. That fat guy’s probably ours."

His fake threat about killing us tomorrow was likely a warning to escape tonight. Honestly, that guy was professional.

Bathed in moonlight, I made out a huge abandoned factory. Xiaodie and I were on the first floor, surrounded by sand and rust smells. Stone walls, four to five meters high, boxed us in. Only small gaps showed at the main gate’s top and the right wall ten meters away. I spotted stairs to the second floor but couldn’t tell if the door was shut.

"What now?" Xiaodie asked anxiously. "People outside—all armed. We..."

"No. We can’t use the main gate."

Moonlight streamed through the gaps as I planned an escape.

Climb up? Even if no guards waited below, scaling that height without tools was doubtful. Any noise would alert them instantly.

I had to rely on myself. Huang Yingdie was just a normal 16-year-old girl. Her not freezing in fear was impressive; I couldn’t expect more.

"Hey? Lao Liu, why are those girls quiet?"

"Dunno. I’ll check."

Their voices tightened my chest. Damn! I’d forgotten them!

"Yi Yao..." The girl beside me grabbed my hand—intentional or not—and I felt her small body trembling.

"Follow me." Keys rattled at the gate. Panicked, I yanked Huang Yingdie’s hand and sprinted to the nearest rickety bed.

"Clatter..." The gate swung open.

"Get in!" I urged. Huang Yingdie crawled under the bed. I squeezed in just before the searchlight swept past.

"Move over. We’ll be spotted." The bed was tiny; half my body stuck out. I had to tell her to scoot deeper.

"No room..." She glanced back. "Don’t push..."

"Huh?" A voice came from our old spot. They’d noticed we vanished.

"Lao San! Emergency! The girls escaped!"

"What?!" Footsteps of three men approached from the door.

"Search thoroughly! The door was locked—they’re still inside!" Three flashlight beams cut through the window.

No choice. Under the bed, I wrapped my arms around the girl and squeezed inward.

"You!" I held her so tight our chests pressed together. I felt the softness under her clothes and her rapid breaths.

Seriously, were her breasts smaller than Yi Yao’s? As the mayor’s daughter, was she malnourished?

"Do you want to die?" Huang Yingdie glared, face flushed.

"Stop worrying about that now! Do you want to die?" Her faint scent and our closeness made me dizzy. My body stirred oddly, but I snapped back. "Listen. Hiding won’t last. I’ll track them by flashlights. When they spread out, I’ll rush out, take down one guy. You follow up."

Xiaodie covered her mouth. "Don’t be stupid... They have guns..."

"Should we wait to be caught?" I said firmly. "Our only edge is we’re hidden. A surprise attack is our only shot."

"But you..." Huang Yingdie still looked uneasy. "Can you really win? What if you’re shot? Captured?"

"I have to try anyway." The searchlight outside sped up.

"You can hide or gamble your life on their mercy. I won’t. Brothers in Shangjing City await my news. Running now means I control my fate."

Yes. Do it even if I can’t. Fresh out of college, clueless, I’d interviewed endlessly. No job meant no food money. No family, no friends to help. Debt interest climbed daily. Unanswerable interview questions? Unfamiliar work tasks? Move to the next company. Rejected? Try again. Until hired. Learn the unknown. Fail, get fired. That’s how I clawed my way up. Often, no time to hesitate. School or work, time drags you forward.

"I’m going. You handle it." The three men spread to corners. I released Huang Yingdie, rolled out, and sprinted toward the shortest guy—he looked easiest.

Relief: my light steps or his dullness meant he didn’t notice me until I was close, flashlight beam facing away.

I leaped, twisted midair, and slammed a spinning kick into his head.

"Thud!" A solid hit to his temple. He dropped without a sound.

"Who’s there!" The other two searchlights swung toward me.

I pushed my body to the limit, dashing behind cover. I watched the lights and the knocked-out man.

Weird. He hadn’t held a gun?

"Little girl, come out! You can’t win!" Two shadows on the wall showed the men slowly advancing.

Which first? As I scanned for a weapon, a ghostly figure darted from the bed—Huang Yingdie mimicked my move, sprinting to kick one man’s head.

But the alert guy blocked it. The kick did little; she stumbled from recoil, nearly falling.

Stupid girl! I snatched a stone, charged out, ready to dodge bullets, and hurled it at his face.

Miss. He dodged nimbly.

Damn. Exposed, I walked to Huang Yingdie, helped her up, and braced for death.

"Haha! Been ages since I warmed up. You two’ll make fine snacks." Strangely, no shots came. One stripped his shirt, flexing muscles at me. "Come on. Both at once or one by one?"

"Um..." I ventured carefully. "You don’t have guns?"

"Guns?" The muscular man looked baffled. "What guns? If we could afford guns, would we be... kidnapping girls?"

I slowly turned to Huang Yingdie. She mirrored my stunned look.

"You should’ve said no guns earlier." Almost together, we dropped into taekwondo stances.

He chuckled. "So you’re both attacking?"

"I’ll handle you alone." I stepped forward, unleashing three lightning-fast kicks to his head. As he blocked, I spun and drove a front kick into his jaw.

"Crunch!" Bone cracked sickeningly. The 1.8-meter giant flew three meters back.

To avoid cliché villain survival, I stomped his groin.

Turning to the next guy, I saw Huang Yingdie had already floored him.

"Phew... Narrow escape." I wiped dust off my face, sighing inwardly.

Huang Yingdie approached, still in fighting stance.

"What now?" I stared, puzzled. This girl, trembling in my arms minutes ago, now wore a cold, expressionless queen’s face.

"Nothing. Just settling our afternoon business." She unclenched her fists, shifting to half-defense, one hand guarding her head.

"Come on."