Star Actress 224

 

Chapter 224 

“Hey!” 

Emily’s timing was spot on. Just as Eli was about to hang up, tormented by his inner 

turmoil, she answered the call. 

“Emily, you…” 

Eli’s voice was sharp with fury. 

But Emily wasn’t here to take any nonsense. She cut him off, reminding him, “You better 

watch your mouth. If I’m pissed off, I might not agree to anything.” 

Eli nearly choked on his anger, swallowing the curse words he wanted to hurl at her. 

He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself down, and finally spoke, “I agreed to 

give you that twenty percent of the shares, but can you guarantee you’ll save Hayden? 

How can I trust you?” 

Eli’s tone was heavy with distrust. 

“If you don’t trust me, then there’s nothing more to discuss!” 

Emily could actually guarantee it. If she couldn’t save Hayden, she wouldn’t want to live. 

She had foolishly said this in her past life because she didn’t love herself. That’s probably 

why others treated her so poorly. 

This time, they were the ones begging her. Why should she say such things? 

“You!” Eli was still fuming, but it seemed he had no other options. He thought for a moment and said, “Since you’re not being reasonable, let’s do it by the book. We transfer the shares, you save him. It’s a deal, and we need a contract!” 

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“No problem, but twenty percent of the shares isn’t enough.” 

“What do you mean? Raising the price? Emily, even if you’re dealing with a stranger, you shouldn’t kick someone when they’re down. And this is Hayden we’re talking about!” 

Eli couldn’t believe Emily would push her luck. 

Emily chuckled, “I’d rather it be a stranger! Enough talking. With all the online chaos, do you really think the kidnappers aren’t watching? The rescue will be harder; naturally the 

price goes up. Think carefully, there are only a few hours left. If you wait any longer, you 

might only see Hayden’s body parts.” 

“How much more? And if you say there are only a few hours left, even if we rush to 

Zephyria now, we won’t make it. How will you save him? I almost believed your 

nonsense!” 

Eli regretted trusting someone as cold-hearted as Emily. She might be stalling on purpose, 

hoping Hayden would die. 

Eli seemed to forget that the delay was actually Bianca’s fault, who had confidently 

promised to save Hayden. 

“Just because you can’t do it doesn’t mean others can’t. That’s not your concern. 

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be me doing the rescue. Once the contract is signed, saving him is 

my responsibility.” 

“Fine, I’ll trust you one more time. Where do we sign the contract?” 

Eli gritted his teeth and chose to believe Emily. 

Emily checked the map and sent Eli the location of a restaurant near the Smith Villa 

before hanging up. 

Since she decided to save him, she called Knox right after hanging up. 

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“I’m set to rescue him. Please do something to buy me some time.” 

Knox saw Emily’s online moves and knew she planned to force the Johnson family to 

compromise and then save Hayden. 

So he was ready. As soon as Emily So he was ready. As soon as Emily called, he would start negotiating. 

Now that she had called, he immediately responded, “I’ll negotiate right away. I’ll get back 

to you within an hour.” 

“Thanks!” 

After hanging up, Emily took out her laptop. 

She logged onto the dark web and used her SQ identity to post a task: one million dollars 

for a mercenary to rescue someone from Orville’s territory. 

The price wasn’t high, but SQ was a big deal. 

he high 

Soon, someone messaged Emily. 

Emily wasn’t willing to work with just anyone. She easily figured out their identities and 

the tasks they had done, determining their reliability. 

Quickly, she selected five people to meet in Zephyria. 

She wasn’t being arrogant in only calling a few people. Too many would expose the target 

and complicate actions and commands. 

Plus, she had other helpers. 

In her past life, an important figure was kidnapped while inspecting a project in Zephyria. 

That person represented the government. 

Emily knew the location of their base and roughly where they were held, which was 

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advantageous for the officials taking action, reducing casualties. 

So, before leaving, she contacted the authorities to assist in the rescue. 

The kidnappers held not only Hayden but also many of their citizens. They all needed 

rescuing. 

After arranging everything, Emily spoke to Daniel. 

“I’m heading out for a bit. It won’t take long.” 

Emily didn’t mention meeting Eli. 

Daniel knew about the online situation. Although public opinion favored Emily, there 

were still extremists, so he was worried. “I’ll go with you. It’s not safe.” 

Emily knew his concerns. She explained, “Don’t worry, it’s nearby. No one will quickly find 

1. The person I’m meeting is more afraid of being seen.” 

The Johnson family’s reputation was bad; people might have more malice towards them 

than her. 

“I’ll have York drive you. He can protect you.” 

Daniel wanted to go himself, but his condition, as Emily had warned, shouldn’t be 

strained to avoid spreading toxins. If Emily faced danger, he couldn’t handle the bad guys. 

“Alright.” 

Emily didn’t refuse. 

With York protecting her, he waited downstairs when she met Eli, missing the chance to 

report to Daniel. 

By the time Daniel found out, Emily had already left. 

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Emily and Eli met, both disgusted with each other. 

Eli tried to negotiate, but Emily shut him down. “You can keep wasting time here if you want Hayden dead. You should know that no matter who you find to save Hayden, the cost won’t be less than what I’m asking. You’re actually getting a bargain.” 

If Eli had a cheaper and effective method, he wouldn’t have bowed to Emily. 

“Fine, I’ll sign. Can you tell me how you’ll save him?” 

Eli signed and handed the contract to Emily, still curious. 

Emily didn’t look up while signing. Once she finished and the contract was effective, she 

said, “Even if you ask, I won’t tell you. If I were you, I’d wait for the results. I’m leaving.” 

There were three copies. Emily took one, a lawyer witnessed one, and Eli kept one. 

She took the contract and stood up to leave. 

Eli called after her, “You need to give a specific time.” 

Emily remembered Knox buying her a week and replied, “Within a week.” 

“You must ensure Hayden returns unharmed.” 

Emily felt a chill. 

He didn’t consider that she could be in danger, only demanding Hayden be unharmed. 

For a moment, she wanted to throw the contract at him, even give up the Johnson Group’s 

twenty percent shares. 

It was her efforts that revived the Johnson Group and took it to new heights, but Aiden 

and Bianca got the credit. 

This was rightfully hers. Why should she give it up? 

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“Not dying is the only promise I can make.” 

With that, she ignored Eli’s face and quickly left the restaurant.