Where Petals of Vengeance Bloom novel Chapter 507

“What do you mean by that?”

Claire arched an eyebrow. “Judging by your faces, you really have no idea who I am, do you?”

“Who you are doesn’t matter a damn to us,” the man in the passenger seat snapped. “We’re just here for a payday. As long as you cooperate, we won’t have to hurt you. But you’ll need to make sure you keep the two of us happy.”

“You sure about that?” Claire glanced at the man beside her, her tone almost amused. “I’m the daughter of the Tempest Group’s CEO. If you let me go right now and tell me who hired you, I’ll forget this ever happened. Otherwise, things will get very ugly for you.”

The driver slammed the brakes so hard that Claire lurched forward against her seatbelt. His eyes went wide with disbelief as he stared at her in the rearview mirror.

“You’re the Tempest heiress? The genius scientist?”

Claire nodded. “That’s me.”

The two kidnappers looked her up and down as if seeing her for the first time. Their pupils dilated with shock.

Kidnapping a regular person was one thing; they could probably get away with it if they were careful. But snatching a world-renowned scientist? That was a whole new level of trouble.

Just a few months ago, this same scientist had been kidnapped right here in Cresthaven. Every last one of the criminals involved had ended up behind bars. The mastermind? Sentenced to death.

And she hadn’t suffered so much as a scratch.

The two men trembled, fear overtaking their bravado.

“Y-You’re bluffing. We don’t buy it.”

“If you don’t believe me,” Claire said coolly, “hand me my phone. Call my parents or my brother and demand a ransom. See what happens.”

The man beside her frantically dug through her bag, retrieved her phone, and, after unlocking it, dialed Orion’s number without a moment’s hesitation.

The line barely rang once before it was picked up.

Orion’s voice came through, warm but with a hint of teasing.

“Claire, already missing your big brother? I told you to stay at the office a while longer, but you never listen. If you’re lonely, come back and I’ll keep you company.”

With every word, the kidnappers’ faces grew paler. They exchanged uneasy glances, their confidence draining away by the second.