MY PERFECT BODY GUARD 2 CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE RESCUE IN THE SHADOW

Richard lay in bed, his eyes snapping open at the insistent buzzing of his phone. With a sigh, he reached out with his left hand, fumbling for the device on the bedside table. As he unlocked the screen, his heart raced with anticipation.

Scanning the message, Richard's gaze darted up from the screen to the still form of Nina and Emmanuel, nestled together in peaceful slumber. He hesitated for a moment, torn between the urgency of the situation and the desire not to disturb their rest.

"Hey guys," Richard murmured, his voice low but urgent. "I just got the address for Linda and Franklin. We need to head there now."

Nina stirred slightly, her brow furrowing in confusion. "Richard, it's barely dawn. Can't this wait until daylight?" she mumbled, her voice muffled by the warmth of Emmanuel's embrace.

Emmanuel nodded in agreement, his grip tightening around Nina. "Yeah, let's not rush into anything. We'll be more effective once the sun's up," he suggested, his tone soothing yet firm.

"As far as we know, anything could happen at any moment," Richard insisted, his tone edged with urgency, though Nina and Emmanuel remained unmoved, drifting back into slumber.

"Just wanted to keep you guys in the loop," Richard added, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice. "But let's get some rest. We'll tackle this in the morning."

With that, Richard hurried to prepare the camera and tracker he planned to install at Linda's house. After a quick shower, he emerged from his room to find Nina and Emmanuel already geared up and ready to go.

"Wait, you're really leaving without us?" Nina exclaimed, surprised by Richard's sudden departure.

"How did you two get ready so quickly?" Richard asked, taken aback by their efficiency.

"We shared the bathroom," Emmanuel explained with a shrug.

"Gross. You two should just get married," Richard joked, attempting to lighten the mood.

Nina smirked. "Seems like someone's intimidated by relationships," she teased.

"Of course not," Richard protested, his cheeks flushing slightly. "I just... don't care."

With a shared chuckle, the trio set off into the predawn darkness, united in their mission to find Linda and Franklin before it was too late.

"So, where are we headed?" Nina asked, her curiosity piqued.

"We're heading to the villa on the outskirts of the city," Richard replied. "It's a small estate with lots of beaches."

Nina nodded, processing the information. "Okay, that's something," she remarked.

"Any plan at all?" Nina inquired, turning to Emmanuel.

"Well, we just sneak in without them knowing, plant it, and be on our way," Emmanuel suggested, his tone confident.

As they drove to the villa, a sense of eerie silence hung over the house, prompting Emma to comment, "Why is everywhere so quiet?"

"What do you expect? It's 6 AM. Do you expect to be hearing noises?" Nina whispered back, her voice tinged with exhaustion.

Emma nodded in understanding as Nina let out a tired sigh.

As they stealthily made their way inside, they noticed that the doors were left open, adding to the unsettling atmosphere. Moving from room to room, they stumbled upon what appeared to be the master bedroom.

"Wow, so this is the room where they do... you know, married people stuff," Nina teased, a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Gross, Nina, so gross," Richard retorted, his tone a mixture of amusement and disgust.

"Too bad Franklin got to experience it before you did," Emma chimed in, a teasing grin on his face as he playfully nudged Richard.

Rolling his eyes, Richard shook his head in exasperation. "You guys are the worst," he muttered as he exited the room, his mind preoccupied with the mystery of the empty house.

"Why isn't anyone in the house? Their bags are here, and even the wedding suits and gowns," Richard observed, his brows furrowed in concern.

As they headed outside, they encountered a man in a suit who seemed surprised to see them. Reacting out of fear, Richard raised a baton to strike the figure, only to stop abruptly when the man yelled, "Hey, Richard, it's me, Victor!"

"Victor? What are you doing here?" Richard asked, lowering the baton in relief. "I almost killed you," he added, his voice tinged with remorse.

"Well, thank goodness you didn't," Victor replied, his expression grateful.

"Do you know this guy?" Nina asked, eyeing Victor with suspicion.

"Yeah, he's a shareholder in Linda's company. He was one of the people who fought to get it back when Gloria tried to take it," Richard explained.

Turning back to Victor, Richard asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, who did you think sent you those locations?" Victor responded with a wry smile.

"Oh, but why did you send it?" Richard inquired, puzzled by Victor's involvement.

"I hate to admit it, but I think you were right about Franklin. He works for Gideon, and things are no longer looking good," Victor confessed, his tone heavy with regret.

"I don't understand what's going wrong here," Richard muttered, frustration evident in his voice.

"Linda happened to find out too. She called me to verify, which I did, and it was true, apparently," Victor explained solemnly.

"Oh my God, this is bad," Richard exclaimed, his agitation growing as he began to pace.

"I sent you the address to come pick her up, but it turned out she's no longer here," Victor continued, his words punctuated by a sense of urgency.

"You should have reached out sooner. You know Linda is a very curious person, and she likes finding answers. What if she confronted Franklin, and he had no choice but to subdue her?" Richard speculated, his mind racing with possibilities.

"Calm down, Richard, calm down," Emmanuel interjected, his voice steady and reassuring.

"We have to find her. Do you have any clues?" Emmanuel pressed, his voice tinged with urgency.

"Not really. And even if I did, my involvement ends here," Victor replied solemnly.

"What do you mean by that?" Richard asked, his tone incredulous.

"Linda asked me for help, but I refused because I know I would be killed," Victor explained.

"You refused after everything she's done for you? How could you?" Richard shouted, his frustration boiling over.

"Do you actually think I stand a chance against Gideon?" Victor fired back, his voice tinged with bitterness.

"No, you don't. But you should have at least helped Linda," Richard insisted, his tone filled with anger.

"That's the same as signing my own death warrant," Victor argued. "Have you ever considered that as a shareholder, once he's done with Linda, he 'll come for me?     

Of course he will."But you're so scared and selfish that you don't care. You only think of yourself," Richard accused, his voice laced with disappointment.

"That's why I called you here, for you to help her," Victor reiterated.

"You think I don't know what you did? You bet on us. If we succeeded in this fight, you had a story ready to come up with to receive more shares. You never cared about her," Richard accused bitterly.

With a scowl of frustration, Victor stormed out of the place, climbing into his car and driving away in anger, leaving Richard nina and Emmanuel to grapple with the weight of his accusations and the urgency of their mission to find Linda.

"We need to find Linda now," Richard declared, his voice firm with determination, as he stormed out of the villa and climbed into the car. Emmanuel and Nina joined him, and they drove off in search of their missing friend.

"First, we go home and ready our weapons," Richard stated, his tone resolute as they embarked on their mission to rescue Linda from the clutches of Gideon and Franklin.

As the Falcon men busied themselves preparing the car and the scene for Linda's execution, Franklin approached her while she was tied to a chair.

"This isn't how this is supposed to be. I'm sorry," Franklin said, his voice tinged with regret as Linda gazed at him, her expression unreadable, torn between pain and betrayal.

Gideon also approached Linda, bringing a seat to where she was restrained.

"I know this will be hard to take in, but it will be over soon. All the responsibility will fall away. Just hold on a little bit longer," Gideon said, his tone almost reassuring.

"If you wanted me dead, then why not just shoot me and get it over with?" Linda questioned, her voice filled with defiance. "Why craft an accident?"

"The Prime Tech Company is a global entity, and if I have to keep the market intact and in check, I have to give you a death that people won't question," Gideon explained calmly.

"If you die out of murder, employees might quit, maybe the majority. The stock will go down. But if the news and police say you died in an accident, it will be more reasonable to the people," he elaborated, his tone cold and calculating.

Paul approached Gideon and whispered to him, "Well, your execution is ready. Let's get it done and move forward."

Suddenly, the Falcons grabbed Linda and began to force her towards the waiting car. She struggled and cried as they tried to restrain her, but a resounding slap from one of the Falcons silenced her.

As they tied her to the seatbelt, an arrow struck one of the men in the shoulder, causing him to slump and groan in pain. The sudden action drew attention to the source of the arrow, revealing Richard.

"Get your hands away from her," Richard demanded, his voice firm and resolute as he stepped forward to confront the assailants.

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