Sean forced himself to stay calm and dialed the number once more.Again, no answer.Every single note of the dial tone felt like a splash of kerosene in Sean's burning heart.Could…something have happened to Nikki?Sean called the same number over and over.After a long internal battle, he finally let out an exhale and stood up.With Bonnie wheeled into the operation room, the doctors would still save her even if he was not around, but Nikki…Sean could not stop worrying about her now that he had no news about her.What if he had been wrong? What if Nikki had been telling the truth? What if the man had not managed to bring her to the hospital in time…Sean could feel his skin crawl at these thoughts.Finally, he gave in to his worry and stood up, intending to return home and find Nikki."Hey, where do you think you're going?" Sean had taken just a few steps when the doctor who reprimanded him earlier emerged from the operation room.When he saw Sean leaving, he furrowed his
Sean's entire body was frozen in shock when he heard Nikki's sobs.He felt his entire body go stiff, unable to breathe or even move.His brain seemed to have lost its ability to think.Nikki's voice sounded far away as she cried, "Sean, I don't want to live anymore! I just turned nineteen, and I still have a long life ahead of me, but I didn't manage to save my first time for the man I truly love. I…"Her voice was almost unintelligible as she sobbed, "What should I do now… Sean, are you coming home to see me one last time?"I don't have anything worth holding onto in this world. The only person I want to see before I die is you, so please come home. I'm going to die soon…"Sean bit his lip and tried to suppress the surge of emotions in his mind. "Nikki...don't…don't kid about things like this."Did she not say she had an attack while she was at home? How… How did everything end up like this? How could she have been raped?"Sean…" Nikki let out a bitter chuckle. "I can't believ
The doctor lifted his head to glance at Bonnie. "You should get a friend to go with you."Bonnie nodded and was about to say something when her phone, which was charging next to her bed, rang.She quickly picked up the call. "Luna?""What's wrong, Bonnie?" Luna's voice was riddled with concern. "Joshua, Nigel, and I were on a video call with Nellie and Nigel in the bedroom, and we both left our phones in the study. We were so engrossed in our call that none of us heard you call. Is…something wrong?"Bonnie rubbed her brows in frustration.She should have known.The fact that neither Joshua nor Luna could be reached meant that they were probably doing something together, but she never thought of the possibility of them being on a family video call together."It's settled now." Bonnie sighed. "Nothing much, just that I almost died, that's all."Luna let out a gasp, then asked, "What happened? Did my brother do something bad to you? When you told me about how nervous you were to m
Nikki clutched the rope tightly, refusing to let go, and struggled against Sean's grip. "You're a liar! I don't matter to you at all!"My life is worth even less than your precious Ms. Craig's finger!"Sean furrowed his brows, summoning all the strength in his body to pull Nikki down. Finally, the rope snapped, and Nikki's body landed against his."When have I ever told you you don't matter? When had I ever told you that your life is worth even less than Ms. Craig's finger?"Nikki, we grew up together, and even though we're not real siblings, you're like a sister to me! Don't say things like these in the future anymore, and don't stay mad at me, okay?"Tears slid down Nikki's cheeks when she heard this.She wrapped her arms around Sean's shoulders and sobbed, "But Sean, you already know that…"I've never been content with being your little sister. I—""That's enough," Sean stopped her short.He held her close to his body and turned to gaze at the mess around him.He could tel
It was all his fault!The car soon arrived at the hospital.After carrying Nikki into the hospital, Sean quickly explained what had happened to the doctors and nurses, who proceeded to wheel her away for a series of checkups, looking sorry for her.However, since the checkups Nikki had to undergo were all private, Sean was not allowed to go with her, so he had to wait in the hospital lobby.As he waited, he kept on calling the number.There was still no answer.Just as Sean was about to lose his patience, a call came in.Thinking that it was the bastard who sexually assaulted Nikki, Sean picked up the call and yelled without even checking to see who it was, "What the fuck is wrong with you, Terry Simmons? How can you do this to my sister when Boss asked you to help send her to the hospital?"Where the fuck are you, anyway? Don't you dare hide because I will find you!"Finally, a woman's voice rang out weakly from the other end of the line, "Um…Sean? This is Luna. Where are you
For a split second, Bonnie did not know how to answer.Sean could not help sighing when he saw how lost she had looked. "You shouldn't blame yourself. The person who harmed Nikki was that bastard, and it had nothing to do with you at all."If anyone were to take responsibility for what happened, that person should be me."Sean placed his hand on his forehead, obscuring his entire face, and said in a hoarse voice, "Nikki had already told me about her impending attack when I left the house, but I hadn't taken her seriously. I thought she had just said that to stop me from coming to save you, but I should have believed her, or at least…"I should've brought her with me when I came to help you. That way, not only would she have been safe, but I would've been able to help you at the same time…"It's all my fault. I should've been smarter about this, and if I had, Nikki wouldn't have gotten hurt…"His voice was beginning to sound choked, but Bonnie could not tell if he was crying.How
"The man who raped your sister is named Terry Simmons, right?" Luke, who had been standing behind Gwen in silence, asked suddenly.Sean paused for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, his name is Terry Simmons. He's a man I worked with when I was still at the factory…""I've already caught him." Luke shot him an impassive glance and continued in a calm tone, as though he was discussing what to eat for dinner, "What do you plan to do to him? Do you want me to cut off his leg or arm? Or…perhaps dispose of the thing he used to sexually assault your sister with?"He curled his lips into a smirk and added, "You don't even have to do this yourself; my men will help you take care of it."Sean's entire body stiffened when he heard this.He stared at Luke dazedly, his face debossed with disbelief.He had never seen this man before, nor did he know who this person was, but from the way he looked and the things he had…It sent chills down his spine.He was suggesting cutting off Terry's leg or ar
"He's not.""I'm not."Sean and Bonnie's voices rang out unanimously as soon as Gwen finished her sentence.As soon as they said this, both of them paused as though they both had things to say.Finally, Bonnie shot Sean a glance, indicating him to go ahead.She thought that Sean would deny being her boyfriend but to her surprise…He wrapped her arms around her shoulder and declared, "Yes, I'm her boyfriend now, but I'm not a replacement for Jim."Even though he and I look alike, we have no relations whatsoever, and I don't want anything to do with him."That scumbag should stay as far away from Bonnie as possible. Also—"He shot Gwen a dark look and continued, "I hope that you won't bring up his name in front of Bonnie ever again. He does not deserve her, not even a bit."Both Gwen and Bonnie froze when they heard this.Gwen was shocked by Sean's announcement, but Bonnie, on the other hand, was surprised that Sean had willingly admitted that he was her boyfriend…and even mad