Meanwhile, the little boy was walking aimlessly, completely unaware of where he was going.
"Ha… which way is the hospital?" he muttered to himself, frowning deeply. "I should've brought Uncle Mark with me."
Leo puffed his cheeks in frustration as he looked around the unfamiliar street. Every building looked the same to him, and none of them seemed like the hospital he was searching for.
Deep down, he knew he had made a huge mistake.
Sneaking out of the house without telling anyone had seemed like a brilliant idea earlier. But now that he was alone, wandering around the city with no clue where to go, the excitement had slowly turned into worry.
Leo had no idea how long he had been walking. His tiny legs were beginning to ache, and his stomach rumbled softly.
"I'm tired…" he sighed.
His eyes wandered around the street, searching for somewhere to sit. Suddenly, they sparkled when he spotted a small bench near the sidewalk.
"Hah! Perfect!"
"I'll rest for some time while enjoying my banana smoothie… then I'll hail a cab," he declared proudly, as if he were a very responsible grown-up.
Clutching his smoothie bottle, Leo sprinted toward the bench with his short little steps. When he reached it, he tried to climb up.
It took him two tries.
And a very clumsy jump.
But finally, with great effort, he managed to hoist himself onto the bench.
"Success!" he whispered proudly.
His legs dangled in the air, swinging happily back and forth. Leo opened the smoothie bottle and took a long, satisfied sip.
"Mmm… banana smoothie is the best," he mumbled.
As he drank, his small face scrunched up in annoyance.
If his father had just listened to him earlier, none of this would have happened.
'If Dad had agreed to my wish, I wouldn't have had to come here alone,' Leo thought stubbornly, kicking his legs a little harder.
'Adults never listen properly.'
He took another sip of his smoothie, still silently complaining about his father in his head.
But just then, a black SUV suddenly stopped in front of the bench, leaving a sharp sound of the brakes that made Leo freeze.
His small hands tightened around the bottle as his wide eyes slowly lifted toward the vehicle.
The door opened.
Several men in black suits stepped out.
Leo's eyes widened in terror.
For a moment, his brain stopped working. But the second he saw the men looking straight at him, his survival instinct kicked in.
He jumped down from the bench in a hurry, nearly dropping his smoothie. His little feet hit the ground, ready to run.
'Run Leo run'
But before he could take even two steps, one of the men spoke in a cold, breathless voice.
"Finally… we found you."
Leo's heart thumped loudly in his chest as the men began walking toward him. Slowly. Deliberately. Ready to catch him. However, Leo was determined.
'1,2,3....RUN LEO'
***
"Damn… where did that child go?"
Raven muttered under her breath, irritation flickering across her face. Even she didn't understand why she was still looking for him. She could have simply walked away and minded her own business.
It would have been easier.
Yet the image of the lost little boy she had seen earlier refused to leave her mind. Something about the way he had looked around so helplessly had stirred a part of her she rarely acknowledged.
Humanity.
And now, after searching for so long, she still couldn't find him anywhere.
"Did he leave already?" Raven stopped walking, her sharp gaze scanning the street once again.
Every corner. Every bench. Every passerby.
Nothing.
Her brows knit together in annoyance as she turned, ready to leave. Until—
"Ah! Ugly uncle, leave me!" The faint cry reached her ears.
Raven froze. Her head snapped toward the direction of the sound, her sharp eyes narrowing instantly.
Her instincts flared. Without wasting a single second, she moved toward the voice, her steps swift and silent as the sound grew clearer with every passing second.
"Leave me! Ah— I'm not coming with you!"
Leo struggled desperately in the grip of two men. His tiny legs kicked wildly while his small fists punched whatever they could reach.
"Let go! I said let go!"
But his resistance only seemed to annoy them.
"We can't let you go," one of the bulky men said coldly as they tightened their hold on the child.
Leo squirmed harder, twisting his body with surprising strength for someone so small.
"I want my smoothie!" he cried angrily, his voice trembling between fear and stubbornness.
The men exchanged impatient glances.
"Stop struggling," another one snapped.
They tried to lift him properly, clearly intending to shove him into the black SUV parked beside them.
But just as one of them reached for the car door— a voice cut through the air.
Sharp yet calm and dangerously clear.
"It's rather indecent to take a child without his consent."
The men froze. Every single one of them.
Their heads turned toward the source of the voice.
A woman stood a few steps away, leaning lazily against the wall as if she had all the time in the world.
Her arms were crossed. Her posture relaxed. But her gaze was anything but cold and sharp slitting through them.
Watching them like predators being observed by something far more dangerous.
Raven tilted her head slightly, her expression unreadable.
"Don't you gentlemen know," she added slowly, her voice smooth yet edged with steel, "that kidnapping a child in broad daylight is considered extremely bad manners?"
The grip on Leo tightened slightly as the men exchanged wary glances.
None of them had noticed her approaching.
And that alone was enough to make them uneasy.
Raven pushed herself off the wall lazily, her crossed arms falling to her sides as she stepped forward.
"Now," she continued calmly, her eyes flicking toward the struggling boy before returning to the men, "how about you put the kid down… before this turns into a problem for all of you."
The men exchanged wary glances before one of them finally stepped forward.
"Miss, you should stay out of this," he said in a warning tone. "If you don't, we'll have to handle you as well."
For a brief second, silence hung in the air.
Then Raven chuckled.
The sound was soft at first… but it quickly grew into a quiet, almost hysterical laugh.
The men stared at her, completely dumbfounded.
In comparison to them, Raven looked anything but threatening. She was petite, almost fragile-looking, as if a strong gust of wind could knock her over. If anything, she looked like someone who needed proper meals rather than a fight.
And yet, that laugh sent an inexplicable chill crawling down their spines.
It didn't sound nervous.
It didn't sound scared.
It sounded amused.
Raven slowly lifted her head, her lips still curved in a faint smile.
"Handle me?" she repeated, as if tasting the words.
Her eyes darkened. "Try me," she said quietly. Then her voice dropped, turning cold and razor sharp. "...and see what happens."
Before the men could react—she moved in a flash, leaving every man shocked.