Chapter 5

By then, Wendy had inhaled too much smoke and had fainted. When she awoke in a hospital, she felt her arm throbbing beneath layers of bandage. She paused slightly when the memory of Adrian carrying her out of the fire flickered through her mind. Why had he saved her? Just then, voices came from outside the ward. Adrian's voice carried a careless and flippant tone as he said, "Julian, you should've seen her when I pulled her out of the flames. That little face was as white as porcelain. It would be a waste to let such a fair-skinned beauty burn to death. I was planning to have a few more days of fun with her." Next came Julian's voice, devoid of emotion, "Take it easy. Don't break her. But honestly, what's so special about her that you're so interested in?" "Interested?" Adrian laughed under his breath. "I just find her refreshing. You're way too stiff and proper. You have no idea how wild she is in bed. Her voice was so soft when she begged me in bed last time." The rest of Adrian's words faded away, and Wendy felt as though the blood in her veins had frozen. So, he'd saved her not out of kindness or guilt, but merely to keep her as a plaything for him and his brother to be entertained with. Wendy tightly clenched the bedsheet until her knuckles turned pale, and her eyes filled with a hollow numbness. She felt a pain so intense that it drained her of the strength to feel anything else. Just then, the ward door was pushed open. Julian walked in, followed by Adrian's receding footsteps. Wendy lowered her gaze, pretending she hadn't heard a single filthy word from earlier. "We've investigated the cause of the fire." Julian was the first to speak. His tone carried an unquestionable certainty. "Lila accidentally spilled water on a faulty wire and caused the fire. But she's just a child. Don't blame her." Wendy abruptly looked up, her voice trembling as she said, "Accidentally? Last night, Lila told me through the door that she wanted to burn me to death and that she wanted Bianca to be her mother. Do you really think that was an accident too? "I have every reason to believe Bianca put those words in her head!" Julian's brows instantly furrowed. "Don't talk nonsense! Bianca's so kind. How could she do something like that?" But Wendy didn't bother arguing with him. Instead, she reached under her pillow and pulled out her phone to call the police. Instantly, Julian lunged forward and snatched it the moment her finger touched the dial button. "There's no point in calling the police. I know everyone at the police station. Even if you report this, I can make them drop the case. Don't even think about framing Bianca!" With that, he turned around and walked out without looking back. As the ward door slammed shut, Wendy watched Julian's retreating figure. Her heart felt hollow, as if something had eaten away every last piece of it. So, this was what it felt like when pain had reached its limit. … Wendy quietly spent the next two days in the hospital. No one came to disturb her, but she would occasionally scroll through her social media and would always see Bianca's posts. In one of the photos, Julian was pushing her on a carousel, and he had a rare smile on. He was also handing her an ice cream as his eyes brimmed with undisguised indulgence. Another picture showed them gathered around a restaurant table, with a birthday cake and candles blazing in its center. The scene was dazzlingly cheerful. A faint sting pricked Wendy's heart every time she glanced at such photos. But now, it was no longer a heart-wrenching pain, it was merely a dull ache she had grown used to. Wendy silently swiped each image away. The companionship she'd once yearned for now felt meaningless. … One day before her planned departure arrived, Wendy packed her belongings and checked out of the hospital. But suddenly, a handkerchief soaked with chemicals was clamped over her nose and mouth just as she was turning into a small valley. Wendy instinctively struggled, but the numbing sensation from the chemicals spread too quickly. The last thing she saw was the sky growing increasingly small as darkness swallowed her whole.