Sumr felt a gentle shake and slowly opened her eyes. She seed to rember hitting her head on a rock before passing out.
Seeing that Sumr was conscious, Kenneth pulled her into a joyful hug.
"You’re finally awake," Kenneth asked with concern. "Do you feel dizzy or nauseous?"
Sumr furrowed her brow. The back of her head, where she’d been hit, still throbbed with a dull ache, but it wasn’t too serious. Propping herself up, she managed to sit up. More than anything, she wanted to know what had happened.
"I’m okay. How did I get here?" Sumr pressed a hand to her forehead, her face etched with exhaustion. She really was exhausted. She had already been terrified, her mind unable to bear any more pressure. And then, soone had sprung a trap on her. Overwheld with despair and not knowing what to do, she had simply lost consciousness.
Her last mory was of a pair of red high heels and the faint rose tattoo on the wearer’s ankle.
’Who could that have been?’
Kenneth grabbed the pillow and propped it up behind Sumr. "Yvonne. It was her. Didn’t you two argue at school today? I found you in her club room. Don’t ever believe in that sisterly bond crap again. For being so heartless to you, I’ll make her pay tenfold!" A malicious look crossed Kenneth’s face. ’Anyone who dares touch what’s mine should be prepared to face the consequences.’
Sumr tried her best to recall the scene. The person had clearly been lying in wait. And judging by her build, it wasn’t Yvonne. The woman was taller than Yvonne.
"No, it wasn’t her." Sumr grabbed Kenneth’s arm, her voice laced with fear. "I saw her silhouette before I passed out, but I couldn’t see her clearly. But I’m sure it wasn’t Yvonne!" A deep fear enveloped her. It was impossible to defend against a hidden enemy. She was out in the open, a potential target at any mont, and completely powerless to fight back. That was the most terrifying part.
Kenneth’s brows furrowed, his expression turning grim as he looked at Sumr with concern.
"Kenneth, don’t look like that," Sumr said with a wry smile. ’Maybe that person was just passing by. Maybe the trap was just a prank.’ But what bothered her was the question of who had rescued her. She had no mory of that at all.
"Sumr, I’m getting you a couple of bodyguards." The serious look in Kenneth’s eyes told her he wasn’t joking.
Sumr laughed, covering her mouth. "Are you kidding ? I’m perfectly fine. Why would I need bodyguards? Besides, it was probably just a little accident. What would anyone get out of hurting ? I’m not rich, and I’m no great beauty."
The light in Kenneth’s eyes dimd. ’I knew she’d refuse,’ he thought. ’She just wants to live a normal life without all the fuss.’
’The money part didn’t matter. He was afraid so of his enemies would see her as his weakness and target her. It wasn’t an impossible scenario.’
Kenneth’s phone rang. It was Ethan.
"Ethan, what’s the situation?" Kenneth answered anxiously, thinking, ’He must have found a lead.’
"Bro, I found out this is definitely related to Yvonne, but it seems like she wasn’t the only one involved!" Ethan said, his voice full of worry. "I questioned everyone in the club and finally found a small lead, but I don’t totally get it. I need you to co over and sort it out."
Kenneth thought for a mont before speaking. "Wait for at Aurelian University. I’m on my way."
"Okay, got it." Ethan hung up and looked out at the quiet campus. For so reason, an oppressive feeling began to close in on him, just like that ti...
From behind a tree, a woman in red high heels squinted, silently observing his every move. A light breeze stirred her waist-length hair as a strange smile crept across her face.
"Sumr, I’ll have my mom co stay with you. I have to go take care of sothing, so you just rest here." Kenneth squeezed her hand, reluctant to leave. But to find out who hurt her and ensure her safety, he had to investigate and unmask the person behind it all.
Her heart ached seeing him so worried. He rarely smiled lately; his brow was always furrowed, his expression cold and grim. Reaching out, she caressed his handso face. "Go on. Don’t worry about , I’ll be fine. You be careful, too."
Sumr watched reluctantly as Kenneth left the room. Then she closed her eyes. Too much had happened recently, and she couldn’t quite process it all. The mory of a callous woman sneering and flicking a cigarette at her sent a wave of terror through her. She hugged her knees to her chest, burrowing deep under the covers...
Perhaps because she was so exhausted, Sumr drifted off to sleep before she knew it...
「Aurelian University」
In the club room, Kenneth and Ethan scrutinized everyone present. Yvonne trembled at the back of the group, her head bowed, all her previous ferocity gone.
Kenneth sat on a chair, crossing one leg over the other and eyeing them sideways. "So? Anyone who doesn’t want to die, step up and start talking."
A tall guy, so scared his legs could barely hold him up, scrambled to step forward. He didn’t dare et Kenneth’s gaze, his eyes darting around nervously. "...Yvonne... she doesn’t like that woman, so she... told us to scare her. The fake blood... in front of the ’Horror Research Lab’... we put that there, but..." The man lifted his head, trying to look sincere, but one sharp glare from Kenneth made his hands tremble.
"Keep talking," Kenneth said, clearly impatient, without even looking up.
Startled, the man hurried to continue. "But... we really didn’t set the trap. And we didn’t bring her here. We... we didn’t know there was soone in the locker, either. We honestly just wanted to scare her, not hurt her..."
BANG! Kenneth shot to his feet and kicked the chair to the ground. Planting one foot on it, he leaned slowly toward the man. "I never allow anyone to touch what’s mine on my turf. So, you’d better watch yourself." Then, Kenneth kicked the chair, sending it flying toward the man.
The chair slamd into the man and shattered into pieces, a testant to the deadly force behind the kick. Everyone else jumped in shock. Blood trickled from the man’s mouth. They didn’t know what to do. One by one, they turned to look at Yvonne. She was the culprit, yet here she was, hiding at the very back. ’The one who starts the trouble should take the bla,’ they all thought.
The others all stepped forward, pinning the bla on Yvonne. They claid she had ordered them to do it, that it had nothing to do with them. It was all Yvonne’s fault.
Yvonne was dumbfounded. ’If they hadn’t been the ones going on about how hot Sumr’s body was, I never would have co up with this plan. The idea was for Sumr to get a scare, then they could grab her and have their way with her. But when they went to find her, she was gone. They just assud she never passed by the little cabin and let the matter drop. And now they were pinning it all on ?’
’How ridiculous. They were all supposed to be such loyal friends. Is this how you help a friend when it really counts?’
When Sumr woke again, she saw that her IV had already been removed. Propping herself up, she looked out the window and was surprised to see a familiar figure. Sumr got out of bed, threw on a coat, and went downstairs.
The lawn was a beautiful carpet of green. A gentle breeze stirred, making the willow branches dance.
A lone figure sat on a park bench, leaning back wearily with his eyes closed.
Sumr walked over and sat down on the bench next to him. The man started, opening his eyes to look at her. "Sister-in-law? What are you doing here?" Dominic Thorne didn’t seem too surprised, nor did he react dramatically. He was simply too tired—not a physical exhaustion, but a wound deep in his heart that ached at the slightest touch.
"I should be asking you that. Where have you been fooling around for the past few days? Did you wear yourself out so much you ended up in the hospital?" Sumr said, her eyes wide as she pointed a finger at Dominic Thorne’s chin.
Her words made Dominic Thorne chuckle. "This young master is in peak physical condition. How could sothing so trivial land in the hospital?"
"Then you must’ve gotten into a fight." Sumr grabbed his arm and pushed up his sleeve, looking for injuries, but found nothing.
"Can’t you wish well for once? Who would dare to lay a hand on ? The boss would lead an army to wipe them out," Dominic said with a smug look. Sumr, however, wasn’t pleased by his words.
"And what if I asked Kenneth to wipe *you* out? Who do you think he’d choose?" Sumr arched an eyebrow, tilting her head up provocatively.
Dominic waved his hands. "I surrender! You win!"
Sumr laughed. Seeing how dispirited Dominic seed, she figured he must have already heard that lody Donovan had a new boyfriend.
"So you heard? About her," Sumr asked casually, glancing at him.
Dominic blinked, then averted his gaze. "Yeah..." Sumr really didn’t get it. Dominic was obviously upset about it, so why didn’t he just go after what he wanted?
"What are you planning to do?"
"Nothing. Just let things be." A hint of sadness colored Dominic’s lancholic eyes as he laced his fingers between his knees.
"You have to fight for your own happiness. If you ever change your mind, I can help," Sumr said, patting Dominic’s shoulder and offering so earnest, if perhaps unsolicited, advice.
"Alright, alright, I get it. So what are you in the hospital for, anyway? Don’t tell you ca just to see ?" Dominic forced a smile. ’Pessimism is contagious,’ he thought, ’and the world keeps spinning no matter who’s missing.’
"I hit my head, but it’s nothing serious," Sumr said nonchalantly. "Kenneth went to investigate. It seems like it’s more complicated than we thought."
"You can’t take this lightly," Dominic frowned. "The boss has a lot of enemies in our circles. They might not dare to go after him directly, but that doesn’t an they won’t go after you, soone close to him." ’Things like this had happened before, but no one had ever been able to get to Kenneth. With Sumr in the picture, however, it was a different story.’
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