BOUND BY REVENGE

Sacrifice Under Threat

Alden had just learned that Anna had been kidnapped by Finley and forced to marry him. By the time he arrived from Brazil, confusion and panic clouded his mind. Now, he just wanted to find his sister's whereabouts. His car sped through the streets to the house at the address Finley had sent him, his mind full of anxiety. Every second was precious, every second that passed only made him more anxious.

"Where are you, Anna?" he thought repeatedly. He couldn't imagine what might have happened to Anna. Every image of Anna struggling against this situation only added to the pain inside his chest. Alden felt as if the whole world was collapsing around him.

He deeply regretted leaving Anna yesterday, but circumstances also made it impossible to take Anna with him to Brazil. Here he had placed many bodyguards to guard Anna.

By the time he arrived at the house where Anna was reportedly being kept, Alden's hopes had faded instantly. The house looked deserted and there was no sign of Anna. He and his men wandered around, looking for any opening where Anna might be, but found nothing.

"Anna!" he called out.

"Anna, where are you? I'm here," he shouted again with a worried look on his face for not finding his sister at all.

Alden went to his confidant. "How is it?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, sir, I didn't find Miss Anna anywhere," he replied, hanging his head in guilt.

"No! This can't be!" he shouted, grabbing his hair angrily. A sense of anxiety seeped into her.

Suddenly, his cell phone vibrated. Alden grabbed his phone quickly, hoping for some good news. However, when he saw the sender, his heart shook with hatred. "Finley," he muttered angrily.

With trembling hands, he opened the message. Images appeared on the screen, depicting the moments that angered him. A photo of the wedding between Finley and Anna, as well as a photo of the marriage certificate, corroborates that the marriage had taken place. Plus a photo of Anna looking tired, lying on a bed. In the message, Finley wrote sarcastically. [Welcome to my new life. Anna is already mine and nothing can change that...] Tonight, she cried because of the pain I inflicted. I hope you're ready to accept this defeat, Alden."]

Every word in that message was like a knife to Alden's heart. Anger and sadness burned within him.

"Bastard!" he shouted. All the despair and anger blended into one. He could not let Anna be hurt and let Finley win. He would take Anna home and avenge what his enemy had done.

Alden headed straight for Finley's mansion with anger mounting, not even caring if he would die at Finley's hands for entering the man's territory. In his mind, he knew if he had to deal directly with Finley.

When they arrived in front of the mansion, the atmosphere around was tense, Finley's men were gathered, ready with their weapons.

Cautiously, Alden got out of his car, feeling the enveloping tension. All of Finley's men were staring at him, some of them pointing their weapons. Alden didn't care, he just wanted to save Anna.

He stepped inside, feeling his heart racing. The atmosphere inside the mansion was very tense. Alden immediately saw Finley waiting in the living room, his smile sinister and disgusting. It seemed like the man knew that Alden would come to see him.

"Welcome to my mansion, Alden," Finley said with his hands in front of his chest and one foot on top of the other. "It was quick of you to come when it comes to your family," Finley said then lowered his hand in an arrogant manner and his voice was full of mockery.

Alden hissed with an angry face. "Where's Anna? Let her go now! Don't ever hurt her, Finley!" he said with a sharp glare.

"She's sleeping. It looks like she was exhausted earlier from screaming so much in pain," Finley replied casually while raising one eyebrow.

Before Alden could reply, the atmosphere became even more tense. Finley's men began pointing their weapons and Alden felt fear creep up on him. "Let Anna go, Finley! Don't bring her into our problems!" he shouted, his voice full of stress.

Finley raised a hand, asking all of his men to lower their weapons.

"You know what, Alden? There's no point if you want to make a scene here. If you dare to make a scene, then I won't hesitate to kill Anna right now. What if I ask Lexi to directly throw Anna's body from above? Isn't she still in the room, sleeping peacefully?" he threatened Alden with a calm voice, but full of malicious intent.

Alden held his breath. The threat left him flabbergasted. He knew that rash action would only make things worse. He tried to contain his anger, but a sense of pain and helplessness kept creeping into his heart.

"It feels so unfair if she doesn't feel what Feya feels. So, I'm doing this all for Feya's sake, to make her happy," he said, still sitting calmly, but playing on Alden's feelings.

"I've repeatedly told you that I never killed Feya, Finley! Do you still not believe me? Don't you have any proof of that?" Alden said with a sick feeling when he said that.

Finley immediately stood up with a face full of emotion. "Shut up, you bastard! I know who you are, Alden. We live in a dark business and I know how to eliminate evidence very neatly. So, don't ever fool me, Alden!" he said in a high tone and pointed his index finger.

Alden let out a rude sigh and looked away. "You're crazy, Finley! If you have a problem with me, get back to me, Anna doesn't deserve this kind of treatment!" he exclaimed in a trembling voice.

Finley only laughed sarcastically, watching Alden's reaction with satisfaction. "She is mine now, Alden. And, you have no right to interfere with my happiness," he said, the satisfied smile never leaving his face.

Alden felt as if he was trapped in darkness. He had to find a way to save Anna and stop Finley. "I will find a way to save her," he said silently, his eyes blazing with determination.

Finley only chuckled, glancing up. He nodded to his trusted assistant, Lexi, giving a signal that only they understood. Not long after, footsteps sounded from the stairs, and Anna appeared as Lexi grasped Anna's arm tightly. Anna looked weak and her face conveyed a deep fear. Even Alden could see that Anna's lips looked wounded.

"Anna!" Alden exclaimed, trying to get closer.

However, before he could move, Finley slammed into Alden's face with a hard punch that knocked him down. Blood began to flow from the corner of Alden's lips, but he showed no signs of letting up.

Anna squealed, "Finley, stop! Don't hurt Alden!" she pleaded.

Finley glanced at Anna with a triumphant smile. "Oh, my dear, this is part of our deal, isn't it? You obey, then Alden will live," he said as he looked at the staggering Alden, still trying to stand. "But, looks like he needs to learn more about the risks of interfering with our lives," Finley said with a laugh.

"What did Finley do to you, Anna? Did he hit you to cut your lip like that?" asked Alden with a worried face and tried to stand up to get closer to Anna.

Seeing that, Finley hit Alden again and harder this time. Every time Alden tried to get up, Finley kicked him, as if enjoying the pain on the face of his enemy. Anna felt her tears start to fall, but she held them back, trying to appear strong.

"Finley, please, enough!" cried Anna, pleading in a trembling voice. She glanced at Alden who was lying on the floor, looking at her with a pained gaze. "Alden, I'm fine here and Finley never hit me. Now go home and rest. I really am fine. There's nothing for you to worry about." Anna said as she nodded her head and tried to smile widely, to make Alden believe her.

Alden, who was bleeding and in pain, managed to stand up. He tried to look at Anna. "No, Anna. I won't leave you here, let alone with an asshole like He. You don't deserve this," he said, taking another step towards Anna.

However, before Alden could speak further, Finley kicked Alden in the chest again, making it difficult for him to breathe. "Look, Anna, he can't even protect himself, let alone you," he said mockingly.

It wasn't that Alden couldn't fight back, it was just that he couldn't possibly risk Anna's life, especially now that Anna was standing flanked by Finley and Lexi, who was also known to be quite ruthless.

Anna tried to get closer, but Lexi pulled her back with a firm grip. "Don't ever go near his if you don't want him to die right this second!" Finley said emphatically with an intimidating look.

In her helplessness, Anna felt how much her life and Alden's safety were completely in Finley's hands. She knew that if she tried to fight back or run, Alden would continue to be the target of Finley's wrath.

"I will do whatever you want, Finley. But, please, let Alden leave safely," she pleaded in a trembling voice.

Finley looked satisfied. "You finally understand." He said as he moved his forefinger to signal his men and they released Alden roughly, letting his body fall back to the floor. Leo and Alden's other men, meanwhile, could only watch as their boss was treated like that without being able to help due to the impossible circumstances.

Finley stepped closer to Anna, wiping away the tears that fell on her cheeks as he said softly, "Don't ever forget that you're here for me, Anna. If you ever break our rules, Alden is the first person I'll make suffer," he said threateningly to the woman who had become his wife.

Anna bit her lip, holding back the tears that were welling up. "I-I understand," she replied.

Alden, who was still lying on the floor, felt more than just physical pain. Seeing his sister who had to sacrifice herself for his safety, made him angry and devastated. In his heart, Alden swore this wasn't over yet.