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Ryder was observing the man behind Maggie skeptically, wondering what he was doing here when he heard Maggie\'s words. And immediately after, his eyes snapped to hers.

"No way." He objected to it immediately, unlike Valerie and Preston who just stayed silent.

"I will not allow you to meet him. Do you understand?" Ryder held her by her shoulders and enunciated each word, forcing her to look at him in the eye. Even though his face looked serious and harsh, his hold on her was anything but it. He was as gentle as ever, treating her with utmost love and care. 

Months of separation had rendered him lovesick and muddled, and he had no idea what he was speaking. And even if he did, Ryder was sure that he would still not allow Maggie to meet Jared again. Though he had no idea how much Maggie had suffered under Jared\'s scrutiny, he did not wish for her to see him ever again. She was done suffering, and Ryder intended to keep her at least a mile away from Jared, hidden and secured, away from his reach.

"Ryder, please try to understand."

"No, Maggie. You try to understand. He is a criminal and you have suffered enough already. I will not allow you to suffer more. Please, listen to me this once." Though Ryder wanted to scold her and be stern with her, his heart was completely against it. So, all he could do was beg her to listen to him.

But Maggie was having none of it, and not wanting to argue with Ryder, she directed her gaze towards Valerie who was just staring at her, lost in thoughts. Though she was filled with warmth on seeing Ryder\'s concern for her, she still had work to do, work only she could do.

"What do you say, Deputy? I need to meet him. Please." Maggie pleaded with her to allow her to meet him and for once, Valerie did not know what to do. Though she did not understand Maggie\'s objective behind her actions, she trusted her. And on the other side, just like Ryder, she too did not have any intentions to allow them to meet. She was now in a dilemma and she looked around, only to find Ian staring at her.

Valerie raised her brows, asking him to help her silently, and Ian\'s stance softened on seeing her. He smiled at her in assurance, not knowing why he even decided to help her.

"Excuse me, Sir." He spoke, interrupting them and gaining all their attention on him. "I know why you are unwilling to allow Maggie to have her way, but I suggest you oblige with her request this time. She might be the only one to get any information out of Jared."

"Who are you?" Ryder did not even show him any respect, directing all his fury at the man who had followed Maggie inside the room. Though he did not know who he was, he considered him to be a rival in love, one he wanted to kill and bury to keep his Maggie with him forever.

"Ryder, calm down. He is my rescuer. He and his friends saved me from Jared. I am staying with them right now." Her words not only stunned Ryder, even Valerie and Preston too could not stop themselves from gaping at the man who did not have any expression on his face.

All of a sudden, Valerie started to see Ian in a new light, and a feeling of assurance rose in her heart which she could not discern completely.

"Did he save you?" Ryder was flabbergasted by the revelation. 

"Yes, he did. I will tell you the details later. I need to meet Jared before it gets too late. We still need to find out what his other target locations are."

"What do you mean by other? Did you find any target location then?" Preston did not miss the meaning behind her words and he asked her about it immediately.

"Yes, we found one of the locations and Jared\'s men have been subdued by now. Ian will give you more details about it. Val, please. Let me meet Jared and if it assures you more, you can join me, Ryder."

Since Ian had suggested her to go with Maggie\'s wishes, Valerie had no choice but to do so, Unknowingly, she had started to trust Ian even though it had only been a few hours since she had met him. The man seemed more reliable and upright, and Valerie had no idea why she found herself attracted to him.

"Maggie, Ryder and Preston will accompany you. And Ryder," Valerie faced him when she saw him ready to argue with her about it. "Please. This once." A silent conversation ensued between them, and eventually, Ryder relented.

"Fine. But only this once." He glared at Maggie, who just smiled at him in response.

"Thanks, Val. Now, will you two lead to the cell where Jared is being held?" Maggie turned serious at once, and Preston and Ryder got to work immediately, leaving Valerie with Ian.

An awkward silence filled the room after the three people departed but it all dissolved when Valerie took the initiative to speak first.

"Thank you for saving Maggie."

"Not at all, Deputy. She is a friend of a friend, and to be honest, it was he who saved her." Ian smiled at her in return.

Though she wanted to ask him more, she knew that it was not the time. So, she concentrated on the issue at hand. "Is it true to you have located one of the target places?"

"Yes, we did. It was at the basketball stadium."

Valerie was not stunned by the revelation for they had considered the stadium to be one of the possible locations after all it was not every day that a tournament was played and many important and powerful people attended it.

"But how did you know about it?" Valerie narrowed her eyes as she waited for Ian to answer.

"You do know what kind of security services we offer. Right?" Ian gave her a look which Valerie could not understand. But she understood what his words meant and she nodded at him immediately. It was not a hidden fact that Noah and his friends had top notch security with them and sometimes, many important fraternities approached them for their services.

"In this field, our men have met all kinds of people, and one among them is Jared\'s gang. They had gone to view the match when they noticed Jared\'s men, and they immediately called Noah, sensing their suspicious activities."

"Where are they now?"

"Safe and sound. Our men have subdued them and they are being held captive in our training base. We did not know where to send them and thought of speaking to you first." 

"What about the virus?" Valerie could not stop herself from dreading the worst even though Ian had a peaceful expression on his face.

"Completely intact and confiscated. You have nothing to worry about, Deputy. Our men have taken care of this matter.. All we need to find out is the other locations Jared is about to target before it becomes too late."