Female Novel
Chapter 1517
Maja's heart skipped a beat as she sat motionless on the wooden bench of the boat, her eyes staring
blankly into the distance.
When Beck boarded the vessel, the first thing he noticed was her faraway gaze.
He immediately walked over and gave her shoulder a gentle pat.
"The sea's chilly, and dawn's breaking soon. You should change out of those wet clothes," he said with
a touch of concern.
Maja almost shook her head in refusal, but the first light of dawn was already spreading across the
horizon, followed by a shout that jolted everyone to attention.
"Over here!"
She quickly stood up and made her way towards the commotion.
It wasn't so much that they had found Ian, but rather his jacket, aimlessly drifting on the water's
surface.
From her vantage point, Maja could see the island's sky, where smoke slowly ascended, hinting at the
horrific battle that had raged the night before.
She withdrew her gaze, ready to plunge into the sea, but Beck stopped her.
"There are plenty of people searching down there. If Ian's in the water, he'll be found."
Without a word, Maja grabbed a pair of binoculars and began scouring the sea.
Helicopters buzzed overhead as part of the massive search effort. With such a large-scale operation,
even if Ian had drifted far, he should have been found by now.novelbin
Maja's brow furrowed as she peered into the deep, vast ocean. Could he have sunk to the bottom?
Ignoring Beck's protests, she insisted on launching a lifeboat to search for Ian herself.
Beck couldn't stop her, so he simply spoke into his walkie-talkie, asking the chopper pilots to keep an
eye on her position.
As Maja rowed and scanned the area with her binoculars, she searched for any blind spots that others
might have missed.
Her gaze landed on a cluster of trees in the distance, and without hesitation, she rowed towards them.
When she finally saw the person sprawled among the branches, her heart felt as though it had been
torn to shreds.
Ian lay on the central tree, obscured by its girth and the leaves floating around, making him invisible
from the air and the sea unless someone came close enough to take a careful look.
Maja signaled to the helicopter above and then plunged into the water with a splash, determined to
bring Ian back.
But his arm was caught on something, blood diluting in the seawater, the wound sickeningly pale from
being soaked.
Her heart ached terribly as she steeled herself and yanked the object from his arm.
Ian was unconscious and his body was ice-cold.
With great difficulty, Maja dragged him onto the lifeboat and rowed towards the larger ship.
Once aboard, the helicopter swiftly landed, and a team rushed Ian to a major hospital.
Maja had barely reached the hospital corridor when she passed out.
When she came to, two days had passed, and she could hear Beck speaking somewhere close by.
Beck was asking someone, "So, has the island been thoroughly searched?"
"In two days, we've covered it. The island was devastated by the blast. The explosives were buried
there long ago, likely by others wanting to wipe out everyone. Less than twenty locals survived. We
also discovered a self-destruct mechanism in a hidden tunnel. If activated, the island would have been
reduced to ruins and sunk silently into the sea."
Beck raised an eyebrow. If someone wanted the island gone, why not just trigger the self-destruct
instead of going through the trouble of detonating bombs?
"Mr. Sanders, we also found a peculiar underground chamber with a woman inside. Several groups
tried to approach her during the search but were stopped. We wanted to bring her back, but she won't
leave the chamber. She faces the wall, her eyes wrapped in white bandages—probably blind, possibly
someone of significance."
"Why can't she leave the chamber?"
"Anytime we get near the only door, we're hit by an electric shock. We need the chamber's blueprints to
unravel its secrets."
Before Beck could respond, he noticed Maja waking up.
He waved the informant away and turned to her.
"Maja, you're awake."
"How's Ian?"
"He's still under observation."
He approached her, his eyes and brow etched with exhaustion.
Everyone was worn out, especially since receiving Ian's emergency signal from the island. Beck had
felt overwhelmed and immediately called Dylan, who was wandering abroad, to come back. His brother
contacted Abner without delay.
Abner was a notorious smuggler from Windhelm, known for his seafaring expertise. When it came to
naval combat, no one was more skilled than the Olson family.