The shocking sight of crimson blood made me waver for a moment. But in the next instant, I hoped that the three bullets would kill him.
Well, you’re merely reaping what you sowed. Have you ever thought that this day would come when you hurt my family and friends, Nathaniel Hall?
My focus was so intent on his injury that I only raised my head after a long time had passed. However, my eyes then met with the man’s pained expression.
He seemed to have seen right through me, his eyes filled with resentment and grief. Regretfully, I remained stubborn, unwilling to even put on an act.
In the end, his body slowly collapsed onto the ground in a puddle of blood.
Even so, he mulishly looked up at me. The excruciating pain had the veins on his face popping, and his eyes turned bloodshot. On the whole, he appeared horrific and pathetic.
“I took the three bullets for her, so can you please take it as Sienna Stanhope having died, Mr. Jensen?”
Nathaniel was a talented man, so Garrett was reluctant to take his life for real. In utter disappointment, he dismissed his subordinates. “Let them go.”
Perhaps he didn’t want to witness Nathaniel’s weak state, for he stormed out of the private room in a fit of rage.
When he had reached the door, he unwittingly halted in his tracks and snapped frostily, “I’m very disappointed in you.”
After saying that, he left without a backward glance.
It wasn’t until after his footsteps faded outside the corridor that all strength drained out of Nathaniel, and he collapsed onto the ground before me without warning.
If it weren’t for the bodyguards who rushed forward to save him, I would watch him die slowly without any hesitation.
It was clear as day that Garrett was far more rational than Nathaniel. Despite the latter having disappointed him greatly, he still sent some men to escort the injured and unconscious man and me back.
Of course, there was another possibility—he was afraid that Nathaniel would die at my hands.
If that was the case, it proved that they knew me all too well.
After Nathaniel was injured, the man in the suit moved into the Featherstone residence to look after him 24/7. In fact, he guarded against me even more than he did Garrett’s subordinates.
That was all the better, for it gave me much more freedom than I usually had.
The afternoon after the day we came back, I planned to go out on the pretext of having some fresh air and return to the mall back then for a fortuitous meeting with the mysterious woman.
I applied light makeup and hid the note I had long since prepared into the hidden compartment in my backpack before I went downstairs.
When I bumped into the man in the suit at Nathaniel’s door, he cast a long look at me.
I reckoned he was wondering how there could be such a heartless woman in the world who was still in the mood to go shopping when his employer sustained such a severe injury because of her.
I simply ignored his look and sauntered downstairs.
In terms of being heartless, I was far from Nathaniel’s level. As such, I was just giving him a taste of his medicine.
Armed with my experience back then, I headed straight for the cafe after entering the mall and sat there for the entire afternoon.
Alas, luck wasn’t on my side that day. I waited until five o’clock in the afternoon when the cafe started serving dinner, but still to no avail. In the end, I could only foot the bill and leave.
Disheartened, I strolled about the mall with my head lowered when someone blocked my path out of the blue. Just when I was going to move around that person, she called out to me. “It’s been a long time, Sienna!”
It was none other than Rose. Although six years had passed, she hadn’t changed much other than the addition of the undisguised affection and contentment on her face. Hmm, it looks like Nick has been taking good care of her.
“It’s been a long time,” I greeted placidly in return. I didn’t plan on talking to her at length since the situation was precarious right then. Whoever drew close to me would also be unwittingly putting themselves in danger.
Thus, I proceeded to murmur, “I still have something to do, so please excuse me. We’ll have a meal together another day.” While saying that, I made to leave.
Rose, however, stepped forward and took my arm. She dragged me along enthusiastically. “Let’s make it today instead of another day. I know of a restaurant that will certainly be your cup of tea, so let’s eat there together!”
“Let go of me first, Rose. Please do as I say. Rose, Rose!” After entering the elevator, I finally shouted at her with my face flushed from panic.
Rose was at a momentary loss, and her grip loosened. Seizing the opportunity, I broke free from her hold. At once, the atmosphere in the elevator turned exceedingly awkward.
After a brief silence, Rose apologized. “I’m sorry, Sienna. I didn’t know that you’re in a bad mood.”
My wrath wasn’t directed at her, so there was actually no need for her to apologize. “It’s okay. It has nothing to do with you. It’s something personal.”
The matter about Nathaniel didn’t reach Nick’s ears. Hence, they were in the dark about many things. Now that things have become tense between us, it’ll keep them safe instead.
“Actually, I didn’t bump into you by chance. I purposely came to try my luck in meeting you. My friend told me that she saw you here, so I came over. I’m not doing this for myself but Nick. I want to help him, so…”
Ah, she’s still the foolish woman who loves Nick wholeheartedly!
“I got it. No matter the problem with Nick, I’ll have someone resolve it. But for today and the near future, I hope that neither you nor Nick look for me or go to the Featherstone residence if I didn’t make the first move in contacting you both. Can you please do that?”
“But why?” Rose was clearly stumped by my sudden estrangement. Nonetheless, she was the wife of the general manager of Cruise Corporation, so she had the ability to read between the lines. In no time, she nodded in acknowledgment. “I got it. Don’t worry, Sienna. Nick and I will remember to do as you said.”
No sooner had she finished speaking than the elevator came to a stop. Rose insisted on seeing me out.
When we arrived at the entrance, a boy of about Audrey’s height blocked our path with a toy gun in his hand.
The boy was all smiles and appeared exceedingly cheerful. He seemingly knew me, but he mistook Rose for me. Looking up at Rose with a silly smile on his face, he inquired, “Are you Ms. Sienna?”
Rose chuckled the moment she heard that and self-deprecatingly remarked, “Nick often tells me that I used to look just like your biological sister, Letty.”
As she said that, she crouched. Pinching the boy’s arm, she asked, “Why are you looking for Ms. Sienna, sweetie? Why don’t you tell me?”
“Are you Ms. Sienna?” The boy was still smiling, but the toy gun in his hand was so realistic that it transported me back to the scene on the cruise ship the day before. I remembered that Garrett’s subordinate’s gun was of the same model.
Rose was tickled pink by his stubbornness. “Haha, just tell me what it is. When I hear it, Ms. Sienna will also know about it!”
“Then, you must be Ms. Sienna,” the boy affirmed in emphatic tones this time.
“All right, stop teasing him,” I urged since I was in a hurry to leave.
Only then did Rose shrug and decide to tell him the truth. “Okay, then. Actually, sweetie, you got the wrong… person-”
Bang!
Before she had finished speaking, the sound of a gunshot broke the silence at the mall entrance in the blink of an eye.
I could only look on helplessly as blood splattered onto the ground a near distance from where Rose was crouching.
Subsequently, the second and third gunshots rang out.
The bullets pierced Rose’s body and whizzed past my cheek, spattering my face with her blood.
It was as though there was a drizzle, and the raindrops were her fading life.
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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