But her car remained stubborn and unresponsive, and she made several attempts to start it. Meanwhile, Derek's car was almost upon her.

Finally, the engine roared to life. Nicole gripped the steering wheel tightly, veering to one side to avoid Derek's imminent collision.

In terms of speed, her old manual car didn't hold a candle to Derek's vehicle. For now, her only choice was to evade him and run.

Even as she swerved, Derek's silver sedan slammed hard into the left rear of her car, causing a loud boom.

The impact forced her trunk open, but Nicole was too busy to worry about that. She floored the accelerator, speeding away in the opposite direction of the silver sedan. This maneuver bought her some time as Derek turned around to chase her.

Just as Nicole anticipated, the silver sedan had also suffered damage from the crash and stalled several feet away from her.

However, Derek managed to quickly restart the car.

Just then, Derek's phone screen lit up with an unknown number. When he picked up the call, Alec's voice came through. “Have you taken care of it?"

Derek's reply came through heavy breaths, his nose bleeding uncontrollably from the impact. "Not yet successful," he managed to say.

"You can't handle one sickly woman?" Alec's voice was laden with impatience.

“Her driving isn't bad, actually better than mine. It's the first time I've ever hit anyone. I just couldn't manage it well."

"Do it quickly," Alec commanded, detached and cold.

Shivering, Derek pleaded, "Can I quit? Find someone else, please. I can leave tonight and promise never to return. Isn't that enough?"

Derek no longer wanted to be involved in this. He yearned only to escape quietly. Switching materials was one thing, but committing murder was something he couldn't fathom.

Initially, Derek had accepted money from Alec, agreeing to have Leighton move the blood samples with the understanding that he would flee the country once the job was finished.

Yet, Derek and Leighton had been involved before, and he had planned one last rendezvous before his departure, which delayed him. He intended to slip away the next day by routes that would leave no trace.

Yet, when the situation escalated when Nicole confronted him, Derek called Alec in a panic, not anticipating that Alec would demand outright murder against Nicole.

However, Nicole was a living person. Derek couldn't bring himself to kill her.

"You can quit, sure," Alec responded dismissively.

Derek's relief washed over him. "Thank you! You're such a good man. I'll keep my mouth shut, I promise..."