Suddenly, the car came to a sharp break, causing Ariana to nearly crash into the front seat. Fortunately, Holden quickly pulled her into his arms to protect her.

“Mr. Fredrick, there's a car blocking our path," the driver informed Holden, frowning.

Holden looked ahead and noticed several black cars parked side by side blocking the road. A car door opened, and two bodyguards emerged, dragging Adrian out of the car with his hands tied.

"That's Adrian!" Ariana gasped, her worst fears had come true—something had indeed happened to Adrian.

She turned to Holden and urgently said, "We have to save him."

Before Holden could reply, the door of the black car in the middle swung open. A tall figure got out from the passenger side-it was none other than Bennett.

He stretched his neck and methodically cracked his knuckles, all while sporting a sinister smirk.

Ariana was all too familiar with that smirk on Bennett's face; it never preceded anything good.

Tension gripped Ariana. She knew they wouldn't be allowed to leave without a confrontation. Bennett undoubtedly had a plan for them.

Yet, Ariana was more concerned about Adrian's safety than anything else.

The distance between their car and where Adrian was made it difficult for Ariana to assess Adrian's condition. She could only hope that Bennett hadn't yet harmed him.

Her heart sank as she watched Bennett walk over to Adrian and deliver a brutal kick to his abdomen.

The force of the kick doubled Adrian over in agony, yet he remained silent. He looked up and fixed a fierce glare on Bennett.

After a brief pause, Bennett erupted in laughter and mocked, "Ah, those eyes! You look just like my favorite wild dog."

Before Adrian could respond, Bennett delivered another forceful kick to his abdomen, even stronger than the previous one. Even Bennett's subordinates couldn't help but frown at the sight.

Bennett continued to kick Adrian, laughing with each blow as if he was enjoying the cruelty.

Adrian kept silent throughout, his cold, rebellious stare a silent protest against Bennett's brutality.

"Ariana, aren't you going to step out of the car?" Bennett taunted while continuing his assault, looking towards the road where Ariana's car was. "Good. It seems you don't care much for your friend. Well, if that's the case, I might just shoot him!"

When Ariana saw this, she wanted to get out of the car immediately.

However, she was stopped by Holden.