L*ck Me If You Can-Chapter 123

“No, we can’t... um, my phone... I didn’t bring it, did I?”

He instinctively patted his pockets as he asked, and Ashley glanced sideways at him with a furrowed brow.

“You’re seriously worried about a guy like that right now?”

Ashley sounded like he was about to explode, and Koi answered with a sigh.

“Of course I am... if my dad ends up dead...”

Then Ashley would have committed murder. Assault and murder were entirely different things. If it came to a trial, even if Ashley’s father was a rich and successful lawyer with his own firm, it wouldn’t be easy. Koi couldn’t stay calm at the thought of Ashley going to prison.

“Ash, you have your phone, right? Let me borrow it. Hurry, I need to call 911.”

“Forget it. I don’t care if that bastard dies.”

“Ash.”

Unable to hold it in anymore, Koi spoke honestly.

“If you become a murderer, what am I supposed to do? Going to Mexico won’t fix everything...”

This time, there was no response. Ashley seemed to be thinking for a moment, then sighed. He shifted his grip on the wheel and pulled his phone out of his pocket, tossing it lightly to Koi.

Catching it with both hands, Koi hurriedly punched in the numbers and called 911.

“...Yes, yes. Um... I’m not really sure. He... he was drunk and fell... I think he’s seriously hurt, so... Yes. Yes.”

He mumbled his way through the call and finally hung up, letting out a deep breath. At the very least, his dad would be taken to a hospital. It was frustrating that he hadn’t checked his condition properly.

Still, as long as his dad didn’t die, there’d be grounds for leniency. Ashley had only used violence to save him.

Koi took another deep breath and looked at Ashley. He was still focused on driving. Maybe he’d calmed down a little? Koi hesitated, then carefully spoke.

“...Thanks. For letting me call.”

As soon as Koi expressed his gratitude, Ashley, who’d stayed silent until then, finally said,

“When you testify to the cops later, make sure you tell them I was the nicest kidnapper you’ve ever met.”

His tone was flat, but Koi laughed. The panic and confusion from earlier melted away just a bit, seeing Ashley joke like usual.

“This is actually my first time being kidnapped.”

When he casually pointed it out, Ashley replied right away.

“And I’m the nicest of your accomplices.”

“Accomplices? Who else?”

Could Bill or the others be in on it too?

Koi glanced nervously into the back seat, and Ashley said,

“Ashley Miller, Ash Miller, A.D. Miller...”

“What is that even supposed to mean.”

Koi burst into laughter, then winced from the pain in his face and quickly shut his mouth. Ashley immediately glanced over, but Koi waved a hand to signal he was okay and offered a small smile. Ashley’s expression chilled for a moment, but he went right back to joking.

“When you testify, make sure you say Ashley Miller was the kindest one.”

Realizing Ashley was talking nonsense just to make him feel better, Koi’s chest warmed.

“I’ll say Ashley Miller is the one I like the most too.”

“No, don’t.”

Unexpectedly, Ashley firmly rejected it. Koi blinked in surprise, and Ashley, still staring straight ahead, said,

“That’d be Stockholm syndrome. It wouldn’t help my case.”

Koi immediately objected with a pout.

“It’s not Stockholm syndrome! I really do like Ashley Miller!”

Ashley frowned slightly and muttered under his breath,

“...That’s a problem.”

“Why?”

What now? Koi asked nervously, and Ashley glanced meaningfully at the back seat before lowering his voice to a whisper.

“Ash Miller gets jealous.”

“Haha—ouch.”

Koi burst into laughter again, then groaned and clutched his face. Ashley dropped the jokes and asked seriously,

“You okay? Just hang on. If we see a pharmacy, we’ll stop.”

“N-no, don’t worry.”

Koi quickly shook his head.

“This is nothing. Really. I’ve had worse... Thanks, Ash. For saving me.”

He was grateful Ashley had come before it got even worse. When Koi finally expressed that gratitude, Ashley went quiet for a moment before murmuring like he was talking to himself.

“...I passed out like an idiot...”

“No, no, that’s not it!”

Koi quickly shook his head.

“You did everything you could. It’s not your fault your body wasn’t doing well... It’s okay, really. It just looks bad. It’s not serious.”

What really worried him was his dad. He hadn’t even gotten a proper look at how badly Ashley had beaten him. Hopefully the report wasn’t too late...

Koi started feeling anxious again, but there was no way to check now.

All he could do was pray his dad would be okay. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Ashley’s arm. On the inside of his arm, a mark from a recent injection. Koi remembered something he’d forgotten, and his face immediately paled.

“What’s wrong?”

Ashley noticed the change right away. Koi couldn’t take his eyes off his arm as he asked,

“Um... what about you? Are you okay? Did you... get all the pheromones out?”

“What? Oh...”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Ashley followed his gaze, then looked back at the road.

“It’s fine. It was just a shot, that’s all.”

He said it like it was no big deal, but the aftereffects were serious. He was already forcing down the nausea that had been rising from earlier, trying his best to sound indifferent.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”

If Koi noticed something was wrong, he’d get scared again. Right now, Ashley was the only one Koi could rely on. He had to be fine, no matter what.

But even with all that effort, Koi still looked worried. He opened and closed his mouth like he wanted to say something, stealing anxious glances toward Ashley. Finally, Ashley asked,

“What is it? If there’s something you want to say, just say it. It’s okay.”

He tried to sound light. Koi hesitated, then spoke.

“Um... your dad’s secretary said... you collapsed because you couldn’t control your pheromones...”

“I got a shot. I’m fine now.”

Ashley tried to brush it off again, but Koi didn’t let it go.

“I looked it up... There’s not a lot of info on extreme alphas, but about pheromones... I found a little...”

The way he kept trailing off gave Ashley a bad feeling. When he said nothing, Koi swallowed hard and finally spoke.

“About how extreme alphas release pheromones... I read that they, um, hold... parties.”

Ashley nearly shut his eyes. If he hadn’t been driving, he probably would’ve. He barely avoided reacting, but his grip on the steering wheel tightened.

When he didn’t respond, Koi finally blurted out what had been weighing on his heart.

“Um... do you go to those? I mean... to release your pheromones...”

“Koi.”

Ashley let out a bitter laugh and looked over at him.

“I’m still a minor. I can’t even drink. Why would I go to something like that?”

“R-really?”

Koi’s eyes went wide. Ashley scoffed.

“Obviously. Why would I lie? Besides, I have a boyfriend.”

That meaningful look he gave him made Koi’s skepticism fade a little. In its place, trust began to settle in. His expression slowly changed to one of relief, and Ashley relaxed too.

Thank God.

Ashley let out a breath. Koi’s timid nature had bought him time to fake calm and come up with answers.

He thought the crisis had passed. He was wrong.

Koi hesitated again and spoke once more.

“Um, then...”

“Yeah?”

Ashley answered absentmindedly—and got stabbed in the chest by the next question.

“How are you dealing with your pheromones building up? It’s not like... you’re sleeping with me...”

Ashley froze, completely speechless at the unexpected question.