Heartstrings on Fire novel Chapter 1166

Agnes declared with fierce resolve, "If you don't let him go, I'm not eating a bite. My brother's favorite hobby is playing the tough guy, right? Well, he might as well take me out. Once I'm gone, he loses his leverage over us. He wouldn't just stand by and watch me starve, would he?"

A flicker of something passed across Herbert's face, a subtle shift that Agnes caught immediately. She had hit the nail on the head. Kearney, that cunning fox, was definitely planning to use her to his advantage. He wasn't about to let her die that easily. Right now, Agnes was out of moves. Except for one – using herself as a bargaining chip.

Noticing Herbert's hesitation, Agnes pressed on, "He's already in bad shape. You really think he's going to make a run for it?" Herbert glanced at Jarvis, who was barely hanging on inside the cage, and finally, he moved, unlocking the cage with a key. "Miss Septima, you really should eat. Your life is too precious to be wasted like this. Don't make things difficult for us," Herbert said before leaving them alone.

Agnes rushed to check on Jarvis's injuries. Jarvis was a mess, covered in wounds that made Agnes's heart tremble with fear and anger. All she could do was fetch some warm water to clean the blood off his face, which seemed to bring him a bit of relief. "Don't worry, Ms. Pritchard, I'll be okay. It's mostly superficial," Jarvis managed to say, his voice weak but determined. Hearing him speak, even just a little, offered Agnes a sliver of comfort. She gave Jarvis some water to drink and persuaded Herbert to hand over some antibiotics.

Despite being battered, Jarvis was on the mend, fortunately not seriously injured. Jarvis shared that he had been ambushed by a group of thugs at the bookstore, overwhelmed and captured. "And so, it all comes back to Kearney. He's the mastermind behind everything," Agnes concluded, sharing the whole story with Jarvis. "I never saw it coming. He had us all fooled, even your godfather," Jarvis remarked with a hint of admiration and regret.

Agnes felt a pang of guilt, "I had my suspicions, but I kept talking myself out of it, waiting for concrete evidence before accusing anyone. That's why we're in this mess." "Did you know your phone was bugged?" she added, changing the subject. Jarvis gave a wry smile, "Looks like I walked right into their trap, thinking I was off the radar after leaving the force. I let my guard down..."

Agnes sighed heavily, "I dragged you into this." "Don't say that, Ms. Pritchard. You're the bravest, most righteous woman I've met. Without digging for the truth, who knows how many more would suffer?" "But what good does knowing the truth do now? We're trapped here, in the dark, with no clue about Kearney's plans."

Agnes was genuinely worried, especially as time ticked away without any sign of rescue. She estimated they had been in the basement for two days. Jared must be out of his mind with worry by now, and her godfather too. What scared Agnes the most was the thought of Kearney using her as bait to lure Reggie into a trap. Her heart couldn't settle, dangling in suspense. Finally, she and Jarvis agreed: they had to escape. At the very least, they needed to find out what was happening above ground.