Chapter 23

The nightclub was dimly lit, filled with couples clinging to each other in a haze of passion. He scanned every booth carefully, but Annabelle was nowhere in sight. Just as anxiety began to gnaw at him, the sharp sound of a glass bottle shattering pierced through the music, followed by raised voices loud enough to drown out the pulsing bass. Samuel turned instinctively. Just as he was about to continue searching for her, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure. He froze for a heartbeat, and before his mind could catch up, he was already running toward her. Annabelle stood at the center of a group causing trouble, arguing fiercely with a foreign man. Beside her was a crying little girl. Samuel reached her quickly, grabbed her arm, and shielded her behind himself. Then, he calmly tried to reason with the man. However, the man was clearly enraged and refused to listen. Samuel quickly told Annabelle to leave while he handled the situation. Without hesitation, Annabelle took the lit