18 To Get the Upper Hand

Marcellus refuses to let his time and effort be wasted like this.

Anyone would feel honored to have even a bit of his attention, but for some reason, this one in particular was not giving him a damn at all. He was left behind without having any idea of what happened.

Going by what he saw earlier, this was done intentionally - but as for why exactly, he sure wanted to know.

'Seems like you're really underestimating me, Ms. Agreste. You can't be doing something like this when you're the one who has gotten yourself in this situation in the first place...' Marcellus thought before smirking to himself.

'You ought to know who I really am and what I am capable of. Your classes may have already been dismissed, but perhaps, I can teach you another lesson.'

With that, he pulls out his phone and dials a number. The call has been answered not even a second later - the person at the other end of the line talking with a polite tone. He gives out his order with a mischievous smirk, already getting amused by what is about to happen.

"Hey, there. I want you to get this girl for me. And make it as fast as possible."

---

It had already been almost half an hour since Winter made her retreat.

Strangely enough, Marcellus did not chase after her. She thought for sure that he would at least put an effort, but considering that he could be prideful and obnoxious at times, she realized that it made sense that he did not. Then again, that is the encapsulation of his perspectives -

That is, to never chase after someone, and to have them chase him instead.

'Yeah, he is that stuck-up and overweening. Totally not my type of guy.'

At the moment, Winter is walking down the side of the road, no longer sure where to head to.

That is until an attention-catching, sumptuous-looking car pulled up beside her. Still a little exhausted from all the running that she did, she failed to put much thought to it, and consequently, she did not see what was coming.

Only when these tall figures in black-and-white uniforms stood before her did she realize that she was still not out of the radar like what she presumed, after all.

'So, now, he called for back-ups, huh?' Winter deadpanned in silence, already having an idea where this situation was going.

When one of them walked closer, she only remained still and silent. That is when they disclose their purpose at last.

"Little miss, I'm afraid you have to come with us - whether you want to or not."

And as she expected, she got kidnapped.

There is no doubt about it - these people are that man's bodyguards. She already saw their faces in the past, and she even recalled the names of some of them. Even though they do appear intimidating with their tower-like builds and forbidding presence, she knows that they will not harm her in any way.

So, they could pretend to be fearsome and daunting all they want, but Winter would not give them the reaction they probably wanted to get from her.

'That man... He even made these people go all through the trouble of taking me when he could just do it himself...' she thought as she was led inside the passenger's seat of the vehicle.

'What is he trying to achieve here now?'

It was quite impressive how they handled the abduction without catching attention and earning suspicions from the onlookers, though that must also be because she helped them abduct her by not resisting or making a scene - she cooperated well.

But because she was making their job a lot easier than it should have been, she kind of thought that it would not be fair for her to stay so obedient and submissive. She should make another impression at the very least. That way, she could show as early as now that she was no pushover.

Winter knows that Marcellus is trying to accomplish something here, but she is not about to give him the satisfaction of having the upper hand.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, but..." Winter called out from her seat, grabbing the attention of her captors.

"Can we make a detour?"