Love Beyond the Mask by Adelaide Sinclair

Chapter 570

It was late at night.

In Ryan's home, Ludwik's towering silhouette materialized in the living room. He stood against the backlight, his handsome profile appearing as cold and intimidating as a specter amidst the chaos. His fingers, buried in the pockets of his tailored trousers, crackled softly. Ryan, clutching a small box containing his daughter's severed finger, was sobbing uncontrollably. Suddenly, his cries came to an abrupt halt.

Parker, Ludwik's right-hand man, tilted his head and motioned for his subordinates to step back. He glanced at Ludwik and then walked toward Ryan, a smile playing at the corners of his eyes. "Ludwik is simply a man of his word. He has been more than fair, giving you two weeks' time. But Dr. Ryan, you chose to ignore his demands. You need to understand, it is your actions that have harmed your own daughter. Ludwik is not heartless."

"Ludwik, you monster!" Ryan screamed. His daughter's bloodied little finger had driven him to the edge of sanity.

"My little girl was already on a plane, about to leave Harmonia Country. She's only six years old. How could you be so cruel to a child?"

"And what about you, Dr. Ryan? What did you and Florence do to my son, Sammy? When you sided with her, did you ever think about retribution?"

Ludwik turned slightly, looking at his expensive wristwatch, his patience wearing thin. "You have ten minutes to tell me where Sammy is. One minute for each of your daughter's fingers. Though she's left with only nine now." "You'll never get away with this!" Ryan shouted, more terrified of Ludwik's inhumanity than the evidence of his illegal research that Florence held over him.

For the past two weeks, Ryan had been trying to move his family and secure a passport for his daughter. They were on the verge of escaping when Ludwik's men silently hijacked the plane and kidnapped his daughter.

After 24 hours of despair, Ryan finally succumbed and had no choice but to lie to Florence, claiming that the hospital where Sammy was hidden was compromised and that they needed to move him immediately. Florence, already planning to cut Ryan out, decided not to disclose Sammy's new location to him.

hellish voice snapped Ryan back to

Sammy was moved from the

disbelief was evident. "You're saying Sammy was at the

ever think to look there?" Ryan sneered, his eyes bloodshot. "With all your resources and power, Harmonia City is too vast. Florence took a gamble hiding your son in plain sight, where you'd least expect." Ludwik's eyes

- a place teeming with life and visibility - was

being taken now?" Ludwik demanded, pressing down on

shaking his head. "I don't know. Florence has cut me out. But... I slipped a tracker into Sammy's

over!" Ludwik frisked Ryan, quickly discovering the phone in his inner pocket. He hauled Ryan to his feet and

caution. Any rash move might prompt Florence's men to harm Sammy.

icon on Ryan's phone and dragged Ryan along. "You're coming with

Ms. Sheldon yet. Unlike

like trash and

the SUV tearing through the night like a beast breaking free. Ludwik's heart raced, his thoughts consumed by Sammy, the son he had never

because of this vendetta.

they approached a strategic location suggested by Ryan, Ludwik caught on to the implications of Ryan's intimate knowledge of

That's because you've been watching him at