The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 2154

"Dammit!"

Charlotte gripped the tangled mess of multicolored wires, unsure which one to cut first.

The seconds ticked away relentlessly.

Outside, the roar of approaching ships grew louder, and the violent chop of helicopter blades hovered directly above them.

Tansy knew the rescue had arrived.

"You'll pay for this. I will never let this go!"

Seeing the overwhelming forces descending, Salazar began his frantic retreat off the island.

"Bang—"

The explosive sounds of a fierce firefight erupted outside.

"How is it?"

Donald rushed into the cabin, dropping to his knees. He stared at the terrifyingly complex bomb, his voice trembling. "Can you disarm it?"

The cabin was suffocatingly tense.

Charlotte didn't answer, her fingers moving frantically as she pulled at the casing.

Without any proper tools, she had to rely entirely on her bare hands. The sharp edges sliced her fingers, and bright red blood began to seep through the cuts.

"Just give me a little more time. I can do it."

No one dared to breathe.

Donald poked his head out of the cabin and looked up.

A helicopter hovered right above them, dropping a rescue line.

The timer showed 2 minutes left.

Donald looked at Tansy, then down at Lottie.

"Lottie—"

Suddenly, Tansy grabbed Charlotte's bloodied hand and looked at Donald. "There's no time, Donald. Get Lottie out of here."

She had seen the rescue line.

Right now, anyone who could survive needed to leave.

If they wasted any more time, they would all die.

"Okay."

Donald didn't hesitate. He reached out and grabbed Charlotte's wrist. "The rope is down. I'll take you..."

"You want me to watch you two burn?"

Up in the helicopter.

Anthony was coordinating the assault against The Stygian Syndicate while frantically scanning the docks below through his binoculars for Lottie.

"Boss, Mrs. Blair and the others seem to be on the boat to the left," Hans called out, turning from the comms. "Our guys dropped the rescue line, but no one is hooking in."

"Boss..."

The radio crackled as another helicopter pilot reported in.

"There are three people in the cabin. Mrs. Blair, Donald, and an injured woman."

"The woman is strapped with a time bomb. Mrs. Blair is trying to disarm it."

As the report came through, Anthony's chopper maneuvered into a clear line of sight over the boat.

They dropped lower and lower.

Until—

Through his binoculars, Anthony could clearly see the flashing digits on the bomb. There was less than a minute left.

"Mrs. Blair!"

Hans's face drained of all color.

The boat was about to blow. Why weren't she and Donald leaving?!