The waitress looked utterly apologetic. "I have a skirt. Why don’t you come with me to the restroom first? I’ll buy you a new one to wear."

The burning sensation on her thigh was growing more intense. Chloe Reed got up and followed her to the restroom.

After tossing the soiled pants aside, she saw that a patch on her fair skin had indeed been scalded red.

"KNOCK KNOCK!"

There was a knock on the restroom door. The waitress came in holding a skirt and said, "Miss, you can wear this for now. I’ll be right back."

She felt incredibly guilty, especially after noticing that Chloe Reed’s clothes were all from designer brands.

Chloe Reed said, "Could you also buy some burn cream?"

The waitress’s face grew even paler. "Oh... okay. Yes."

Chloe Reed offered a small smile. "It’s not your fault. I don’t blame you. You should go."

The waitress looked like she was about to cry. She quickly turned and hurried away.

Chloe Reed grabbed some paper towels, wet them with cold water, and pressed them against the reddened area on her skin. The searing pain subsided significantly.

There was a mall nearby; the waitress could be back in as little as ten minutes.

She rinsed the compress several times, and the skin finally started to feel less irritated.

But ten minutes passed, and the waitress still hadn’t come back.

Chloe Reed’s brow furrowed. Just then, her phone rang. She pulled it out and saw it was a call from Daniel Hayes.

"Hello?"

Daniel Hayes’s anxious voice came through the phone. "Miss Reed, where are you?"

"I’m in the restroom at the coffee shop," Chloe Reed replied.

"Okay," Daniel Hayes said. "I’m coming to get you. I’ll wait for you at the entrance."

"Okay."

After Chloe Reed hung up, she immediately caught a whiff of a faint, sweet scent. It clashed with the restroom’s air freshener, which was why she noticed it right away.

She looked around. She was the only one in the restroom. ’Where is that scent coming from?’

Her reaction was sluggish for a good ten seconds before alarm bells went off. She immediately covered her nose and mouth and turned to head outside.

The men’s restroom was just opposite. A man stood at its entrance, wearing a hat and a mask, holding several lit sticks of incense.

The moment he saw her come out, the man immediately threw the incense sticks down, grabbed her, and started dragging her in the other direction.

He was heading toward a corridor with a window, an escape route to the outside.

Chloe Reed screamed, "Who are you?!"

Then, she felt her limbs begin to weaken as a strange sensation flooded her body.

Her struggles grew weaker and weaker.

"Damn it, they’re everywhere!"

Just then, she heard Daniel Hayes curse from behind her. Before Chloe Reed could even process what was happening, the man dragging her was sent sprawling to the ground with a single kick.

Daniel Hayes dislocated the man’s arm without hesitation, ripped off his hat and mask, and frowned. ’Not one of theirs?’

"I... I was wrong! Please, let me go! I... I’ll never do it again!"

The man’s face was pale and contorted in agony. He lay on the ground, unable to get up, and began to beg for mercy.

Chloe Reed leaned against the wall for support. Her body felt limp, and her vision was starting to blur. ’If Daniel Hayes hadn’t shown up, I would have really been kidnapped!’

"Tie him up first," Chloe Reed said, taking a deep breath. "Something’s not right with me. Ask him what he used and if there’s an antidote."

Daniel Hayes planted his foot on the man’s shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain. "It’s... it’s just a little aphrodisiac incense! You just have to wait for it to wear off... If you can’t, then... then find a man..."

Daniel Hayes punched the man in the head. "You filthy bastard! Who sent you?"