Silence

"Zzz, zzz, zzz," Just as all the viewers thought the movie had ended, and Paul had been buried alive, aligning with the film's title, the vibration of a phone suddenly brought renewed hope to everyone. However, this intense anticipation was quickly suppressed, fearing any noise might cause them to miss the upcoming twist.

Chanel always complained about how Hollywood movie protagonists never die, like indestructible cockroaches, which she found annoying; but at this moment, she hoped more than ever that this movie would follow that cliché and let Paul live. Her hands clenched into fists so tightly that her muscles began to ache.

On the other end of the call was the kidnapper. The army had killed a different group of people, reigniting Paul's hope.

However, the kidnapper demanded that Paul record a video cutting off his finger, or they wouldn't relent—they knew Paul's address, where Linda and Sean lived. Paul's heart froze, and a light more dazzling than hope flashed in his eyes as he nervously threatened the kidnapper, thinking they were just bluffing. But he didn't dare to take the risk.

The sand was pouring in faster and faster, quickly burying Paul's body. He immediately called Linda, warning them to leave quickly, as staying at home would be dangerous. The coffin lid above him was full of holes, and sand was flowing in like a river, rapidly covering him.

Paul then called Dan, but it was a recording, so he quickly told Dan that the kidnappers were still alive—time was running out, as the kidnapper had only given him five minutes to record the video.

Chanel couldn't bear to watch and turned away. She knew Paul would do it. The inner torment and agony were tearing her apart. Watching Tessa peeking through her fingers, Chanel forced herself to look back at the screen, and then she saw—

Paul bit down on a cloth and cut off his left pinky finger with all his might. But the bone was too hard, and he couldn't cut through it. He had to saw back and forth, trying to break the bone with the knife. The excruciating pain exploded in his muffled screams, and Chanel could see Paul's pupils dilating, his face blurred with sweat as he nearly lost consciousness from the pain.

Chanel couldn't hold back any longer, and hot tears streamed down her face. Her stomach churned, threatening to bring up her lunch. The extreme fear and tension left her in a daze, her thoughts completely out of control.

After sending the video, Paul fell into a semi-conscious state. His eyes remained open but unfocused, staring blankly at the falling sand that was slowly burying his head. He seemed to see the air dissipating, but he showed no reaction, lying lifelessly as time and space lost all meaning.

The phone vibrated again, but Paul didn't respond, simply waiting for death. Hope had been rekindled and extinguished so many times that it had drained all his strength. Even Chanel, Gavin, and Bradley were frozen, their mouths agape as they watched life fade from Paul's eyes, the world seemingly collapsing in a shock so profound that words lost their color and emotions their vitality.

"Move aside, quickly! Quickly!" Voices called out, getting closer. The entire coffin began to shake, and then light pierced the darkness, driving away the deathly pallor from Paul's face. "I see him! Quick! Step back, everyone, step back!"

He was saved, the hostage was saved, Paul was saved. "Talk to me, Paul! Talk to me!" Dan's voice came from above.

Chanel covered her mouth with her hand, but even so, a sob escaped. He was saved, he was finally saved. The relief of surviving such a disaster shattered all her defenses, and tears poured down her face. If she hadn't covered her mouth, she would have burst into loud sobs.

"Whoosh." A noise, and the light receded, the screen returning to Paul's face, his eyes still numb and vacant. Chanel's sobbing abruptly stopped.

Was it all an illusion?

The thought hit Gavin like a comet crashing into the earth, leaving him completely stunned, his breath forgotten, his eyes filled with confusion and disbelief. Who could tell him this wasn't real? That this wasn't happening? Paul was supposed to be saved!

Paul answered the phone, and on the other end was Dan, his voice urgent. "Paul, we're coming to get you, do you hear me? We know where you are now!"

"You're coming?" Paul was a bit dazed.

"Yes, Paul." In the background of Dan's call, there were sounds of tires skidding and engines roaring. "We're almost there!"

Gavin couldn't help but stand up in excitement, but then he sat back down, fists clenched. The fear that had wrapped around him seemed to be torn to shreds, and cold blood began to race through his veins again, the joy of relief overwhelming him.

"The coalition just captured a Shia insurgent outside Baghdad. He said he knows where an American is buried alive. If we release him, he'll take us there."

Dan's explanation brought Paul back to his senses. He began to look around, trying to find a gap in the sand that filled the coffin, as if he could escape any moment. "You're coming for me?" Paul's voice was hoarse and dry, as if emerging from deep underground, but his eyes were slowly regaining their sparkle.

"We're almost there." Dan said confidently.

"You... you must hurry, hurry…" Paul's eyes glimmered with a thin layer of light, like a sheen of water or a sign of life. "You... you... sand... sand…"

"You just need to wait three more minutes, just three minutes, and we'll be there! I promise!" Dan kept encouraging Paul, making Paul's voice tremble with hope. "Okay, okay, I believe you!"

"Three minutes, just three minutes!" Dan repeated, but Paul saw another call coming in and had to hang up on Dan. He answered, "Linda! Linda!" Paul became lively again, as if he had crossed back from the gates of death, his words bursting with vitality.

Chanel was already sobbing uncontrollably. She never knew she could be so moved by a Hollywood-style happy ending; she never knew she could be so thrilled by such a cliché ending. But at this moment, as Paul called out his wife's name full of life, she was genuinely touched, tears streaming down her face.

"Paul, what did they do to you? Please tell me you're okay. I just saw the news, I left my phone at home." Linda's voice was choked with tears, trembling with emotion.

"They know where I am. They're coming for me. The Americans are coming for me." Paul was crying with joy, smiling again despite the sand covering his chest, leaving only his face above it for breathing. "I'll be okay, I'll be okay!"

"Thank God! Thank God!" Linda was sobbing on the other end, her words drowned in tears.

"They're coming, they're on their way. Everything will be fine, everything will be fine." Paul kept repeating, his eyes shining brightly as if he could escape the next moment. "I love you, I love you so much. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come here. I should've listened to you." His voice, filled with regret and excitement, was thick with emotion, tears welling up again.

"Honey, I don't care, I just want you to come home. Come home soon!" Linda called out passionately.

"I'll come home." Paul said, "I promise, I promise!" Then Dan called again, and Paul had to switch the call. Linda's urgent voice came through, "I love you, I love you so much, honey. Promise me again? Promise me!"

"I promise!" Paul's voice choked up, his breath stopping for a split second, as if it were a millennium, then he answered Dan's call. On the other end, the sound of shovels was audible. Dan's excited voice said, "We're here, we're here, right here. Paul, hold on, hold on!"

The entire coffin was filled with sand, leaving just a thin gap. Paul's face was buried. "You have to hurry, the sand is full."

"Paul, hold on, we're right above you." Dan continued to encourage Paul. "Almost there, almost there! We see the coffin, we see it!"

"Hurry, hurry!" Paul was struggling to hold on, the flashlight's beam slowly being buried. Paul pressed against the coffin lid, his voice increasingly desperate, increasingly weak. "Open it, open it, quick." He could almost touch the light of life, while the darkness of death chased him closely. Just one step, one step, and he could escape. "Hurry! Hurry! God! God!"

"Oh my God." Dan's voice was filled with despair… Silence, long silence, so long it felt icy. "I'm sorry, Paul. It's Mark White. He led us to where Mark White was buried. I'm sorry, really sorry."

The sand completely covered the flashlight, the last bit of light vanishing. Then the coffin was entirely filled. Paul was gone. The screen turned black again.

Gavin was stunned, Chanel was stunned, Tessa was stunned, everyone in the theater was stunned. It all happened too suddenly. They were lifted high, then thrown down hard, all their hopes shattered into countless pieces, leaving them dazed, their minds ceasing to function, their souls frozen.

Gavin felt suffocated, the cold fear consuming his brain.

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200 powerstones - 1 bonus chapter