Chapter 528. It Was All a Lie

The vehicles stopped at the foot of the mountain. Everyone but the drivers got out and began the uphill hike.

Caitlin and her team arrived at the designated location just as Samir and his men showed up from the other side.

With less than a hundred meters between them, both sides could clearly size each other up, noting how many people had come.

Pierrick scanned the group across the clearing and immediately spotted Caitlin, Sebastian, and Zinnia standing at the front.

“They brought a lot of people,” he muttered to Samir.

“Cut the chatter,” Samir replied calmly. “It’s time to negotiate.”

Pierrick nodded, then raised his voice. “We brought the hostages! Did you bring what we asked for?”

Caitlin turned to signal James, who stepped forward holding a secure case.

“The *Yun’s Aromatic Codex* is right here,” Caitlin said. “As agreed—hostages for the book. One for one.”

Pierrick raised a new demand. “We need to verify that the *Codex* is