“This place is prone to sinkholes, especially on rainy days. C’mon, let’s leave first!” Tabitha urged.
As though on cue, lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. Everyone couldn’t care less about anything else and immediately scurried toward the tents.
“I think that area just collapsed!” Tabitha’s boyfriend suddenly exclaimed.
Everyone glanced back as one and sure enough, a large area of the ground had sunken in.
“This place used to be a mine. Some spots were dug to a depth of approximately ten meters and no one has been managing this area in years. On rainy days, accidents are prone to happen,” Tabitha’s boyfriend explained.
Tabitha gasped in terror. “I saw many tea trees on the mountain. Isn’t it dangerous for the tea farmers there? They could lose their lives!”
Laurel spoke up right then, aiming her words at Anthony. “Mr. Featherstone, where did you guys go off to? If we weren’t looking for you guys, Sienna would never have been in danger and we wouldn’t have gotten caught in the downpour either.”
At that, everyone turned their attention to Anthony. He cast a fleeting gaze at them, but remained otherwise calm. In a polite and sophisticated manner, he expressed his regret. “What happened today was an oversight on my part. To show my sincere apology, I’ll treat everyone to a meal tomorrow.”
Laurel pursed her lips. “We’re not blaming you. It’s not exactly your fault, anyway.”
While I was trapped in the pit, my entire body was pumping with adrenaline, but now that I escaped from that precarious situation, exhaustion hit me like a ton of bricks.
As I listened to their conversation, my knees suddenly gave out beneath me.
Anthony’s quick reflexes kicked in and he caught me before I hit the ground, smoothly pulling me into his arms.
“Sienna, what’s wrong? Are you hurt? Let me take a look at you.” Anxiously, Nora squatted beside me to inspect my body for injuries.
However, Anthony blocked her and contradicted in an authoritative voice, “She’s not injured. She’s just tired after the stress her body was put through. All she needs is a good rest.”
I held Nora’s hand and nodded reassuringly at her. Then, I tried to get to my feet, but Anthony hugged me close to his body and scooped me up. Both our clothes were wet, but thankfully, the weather wasn’t too cold.
At such close proximity, I could feel his body temperature radiating and also the rhythm of his heartbeat.
Embarrassed, my face flushed a crimson red.
Finally, I was back in the tent after being subjected to the harrowing ordeal in the pit. Worried that I would catch a cold, Nora gave me the clothes she had brought that day and told me get changed inside the tent.
She squeezed into the tiny space because she was worried I wouldn’t be able to change my clothes due to some unseen injuries.
Noticing how she was blatantly staring at me, I cleared my throat awkwardly. “You really don’t need to watch me like that. I’m fine. Really. Perfectly intact!”
She nodded, but her eyes remained trained on me as she sighed. “Thank God Laurel’s call for help was loud enough to travel through the forest. Otherwise, only God knows what would’ve happened to you if you were still trapped down there in this rain.”
My hands paused their actions and I looked at her in perplexity. “Didn’t you guys search for me because Tessa came looking for help?”
She shook her head with a frown. “Not long after we got separated, we trekked around the forest, but then returned to camp when we didn’t find Anthony. He came back with Rachel later on. It turns out that she sprained her ankle and couldn’t walk back. Anthony was supporting her when they returned. Seriously, that woman is nothing but trouble.”
Flabbergasted, I blurted out, “Then, has Tessa come back?”
A small crease formed between her brows. “I would’ve forgotten all about her if you didn’t mention her. We haven’t seen her since you fell into the pit!”
“After Anthony and Rachel came back, we waited a long time for you guys. When it started to rain, we got worried, so we hiked toward the mountain. That’s when we heard Laurel calling for help and found out that you fell into a pit.”
I pursed my lips and fell silent.
After a brief moment, Nora’s gasp broke the silence. “Did you guys tell Tessa to come back for help?”
I nodded solemnly. “Yeah.”
Her lips pressed tightly together as her brows drew together. “Damn! That woman is seriously vile. She talks about virtue and kindness every chance she gets, but she’s actually a cold-hearted b*tch!”
I kept mum and resumed changing my clothes. Suddenly, I felt all the energy drain from my body and only fatigue remained.
To play safe, we decided to rest in our tents for the night.
After experiencing a life-and-death situation, everyone was bone tired. Initially, Nora wanted to accompany me in my tent, but she was taken away by Armond after a while.
Too tired to inquire about the rest of them, I lay in my tent and fell asleep in a daze.
The rain got heavier in the middle of the night, and I jolted awake when thunder cracked across the sky like a whip.
When I turned on my side, I realized with a start that there was someone lying down beside me.
Before I could release a scream, a hand shot out to grab mine and then came a man’s soothing voice. “Calm down. It’s me.”
My chest heaved as I tried to recover from my shock. “Anthony, what are you…” I trailed off.
His unexpected presence had brought scared the daylights out of me, but gradually, I regained my bearings and furrowed my brows. Shouldn’t he be with Rachel now? Why is he here?
I pursed my lips and uttered icily, “What are you doing here?”
His lips remained sealed, seemingly having no intention to answer me. Right then, another clap of thunder boomed overhead, and I flinched closer to him. However, he didn’t seem to notice the subtle movement as he stuffed a pair of earplugs into my ears.
My surroundings instantly became quiet and for a while, I merely stared blankly at him in the dark.
Throughout it all, he didn’t utter a single word. Instead, he hugged me and coaxed me to sleep by gently patting my back.
I was really sleepy, to begin with, I gradually dozed off in his arms and slept through the entire night.
The sky was already bright when I woke up the next day, and the morning air was slightly humid due to the heavy rain from the previous night.
Subconsciously looking to my side, I felt slightly incredulous when I found the space empty.
That man really comes and goes like the wind. I would’ve thought I hallucinated everything if not for the earplugs still stuck in my ears!
Putting aside those thoughts, I registered the headache pulsing behind my temples. Hence, even after waking up for a while, I remained in the same position. When Nora came into my tent and saw me lying down with my eyes open, she paused briefly and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
I shook my head and parted my lips to answer. “My head… hurts.” My throat was so dry I could barely say more than two words.
Crap. I think I may be down with a fever.
Nora’s brows knitted together upon hearing my scratchy voice. Upon touching my forehead with the back of her hand, she exclaimed, “You’re burning up!”
Then, she rushed out in a haste and spoke to someone. “We should pack our things right now and go back to A City. Sienna is down with a high fever!”
I wanted to say something, but my throat hurt too badly.
Anthony walked into the tent and scanned my face with his ominous eyes. Then, a frown appeared between his brows when he touched my forehead. “Jesus, you’re burning!”
Nora trailed in after him and suggested, “Mr. Featherstone, you should take her to the base to see a doctor first. There’s a clinic over there.”
Anthony nodded and picked me up. By then, my head was buzzing with a pounding headache. I knew that nothing I said would make a difference, so I simply went along with their decision.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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