Chapter 391
Chapter 391
“Ms. Evadne!”
Erica, pale with fear, closed her eyes in panic.
Evadne, momentarily engulfed by immense terror, felt her pupils contract violently, her heart turned to ashes.
In that instant, all her senses seemed to close off, with images flashing before her eyes like a flickering movie reel.
Each frame was filled with memories of Thaddeus.
She recalled their heart–pounding first meeting thirteen years ago, remembered the sense of them fighting side by side on the battlefield of Zenithia, their wedding, their divorce, and their moments of mutual comfort.
Taking a deep breath, Evadne found herself in tears.
It was said that facing death, one’s true feelings were the most real. Was she thinking of Thaddeus because she still had feelings for him, or was it because she harbored too much hatred?
Suddenly, a sharp sound of wind cut through the air, vibrating in her ears.
Then, in the next instant, her death did not descend.
Mr. Ward, momentarily caught off guard, felt a sharp pain in his wrist. The knife in his hand was kicked away, landing in the pool!
It was only then that Evadne turned her head abruptly.
When she saw Thaddeus, with his frosty demeanor, appearing like a divine figure in her trembling pupils, her eyes, once resembling ruins, suddenly ignited like a wildfire. Her heart pounded, and tears silently circled in the depths of her eyes.
He had come.
He really had come.
Thaddeus, his breath grew heavy as he cast her a brief and intense glance.
Seeing the crimson blood on his beloved’s arm, a surge of rage welled up in his rising and falling chest. His fists clenched tightly into fists.
Mr. Ward, a man who didn’t blink an eye at murder, found himself chilled to the bone under Thaddeus‘ fierce gaze.
What terrified him more, however, was the unexpected appearance of Thaddeus
With his forehead furrowed, Thaddeus stood tall and imposing in front of Evadne, resembling an impassable iceberg, providing her with an unshakeable protection. “I seem to have seen you somewhere. Are you one of Elspeth’s people?”
Evadne’s heart tightened. Jason, slumped on the ground, looked on in seething anger.
1
She could understand Elspeth’s desire to harm her. But what she couldn’t comprehend was that, with Elspeth’s cunning and scheming nature, they had maintained a fake peace for so long. Why would Elspeth suddenly act like a deranged person, eager to bring her to her demise?
Taking such hasty actions would only expose herself.
Or,Elspeth’s actual target was Erica, and she was just an incidental matter?
But why would Elspeth want to harm Erica? Did she uncover some deep and dark secret?
The rest three assailants, upon seeing Thaddeus‘ sudden appearance, were visibly terrified.
But at this point, there was no turning back. They had to fight back to make it out alive.
“Who’s Elspeth? I don’t know her,” Mr. Ward, gripping his throbbing wrist, sneered at Thaddeus. “But it doesn’t matter. As long as none of you make it out alive tonight, that’s enough.”
He dared to make a move against Evadne.
Thaddeus, who did he amount to? Just bastard of the Abernathy family!
“I was going to let you surrender peacefully. But since you’ve hurt my woman, now, I just want your life,” Thaddeus‘ fists clenched tighter, his figure like lightning, rushing towards Mr. Ward.
His woman?
Heat rushed to Evadne’s cheeks and her breath hitched.
But she had no time to dwell on his words as Thaddeus and Mr. Ward were already locked in combat, their punches landing with force, creating a chilling
wind.
The remaining three assailants closed in, their knives all aiming at Thaddeus‘ vital points.
Tonight, it was a matter of life and death, with no room for retreat.
“Thaddeus! Watch your back!” Evadne’s voice was hoarse with fear, her body soaked in cold sweat as she warned him.
She knew Thaddeus hadn’t fully recovered. Dealing with Mr. Ward was already challenging. Now, with three more assailants, it was an added layer of difficulty.
Worse still, their were ruthless, employing deadly moves aimed at Thaddeus‘ life!
Hearing Evadne’s warning, Thaddeus seemed to gather strength from every inch of his body. He didn’t even turn his head before he caught the assailant’s wrist and twisted it violently. With a crisp snap, he twisted the man’s wrist, and a wail of agony pierced the night!
Evadne’s heart pounded as she watched Thaddeus. The brave and fearless soldier from the battlefield had returned.
The next second, she saw Thaddeus plunge the knife into the man’s abdomen, his movements swift and merciless.
But as a doctor, she could tell that he hadn’t aimed for the man’s vital organs. He’d spared his life.
Despite living a life of luxury for years, Thaddeus‘ combat skills hadn’t dulled a bit. He handled the assailant with ease.
“Is it you who cut my woman?” Thaddeus tightened his grip on the blood–stained knife, his eyes filled with a violent rage that was as dark as a raging storm, flooded with a bloodthirsty crimson.
Grinding his teeth, Mr. Ward sneered.
“If she lost a single hair, I’d twist your legs off; if she lost a few drops of blood, I will take your life” Thaddeus recalled Evadne’s wounded arm, his heart aching.
But at this moment, he couldn’t bring himself to look at Evadne, fearing that even a single glance might upset her.
Hearing what seemed like an unconventional confession from Thaddeus, Evadne’s lips pressed together, her breath quickening, emotions swirling within. Mr. Ward smirked darkly.
Realizing that the chaos he’d instigated was getting out of control, he decided to take matters into his own hands. He reached for his gun, holstered at his waist.
The black muzzle of the gun was aimed directly at Evadne’s stunned face!
He refrained from drawing his gun earlier to avoid drawing too much attention. He wanted to deal with her quietly and discreetly.
But Thaddeus‘ unexpected appearance ruined his plans. Now, he had to end this quickly and efficiently.
“No, Ms. Evadne!”
Jason, beaten and battered, turned pale. He wanted to throw himself in front of Evadne, but his body wouldn’t cooperate.
Thaddeus eyes widened in shock, his instincts taking over as he lunged forward to disarm Mr. Ward.
But it was too late.
“Say goodbyes to your sweetheart, Thaddeus!”
Bang!
A gunshot echoed, sending shockwaves through the surroundings!
“No!” Thaddeus trembled violently, his scream piercing the air.
Evadne’s eyes were bloodshot, she could sense the bullet hurtling toward her.
In her days as a battle field medic, she had had developed a heightened sensitivity to the sound of gunfire. Even after returning home, she struggled with severe post–traumatic stress disorder, and it took many therapy sessions for her to overcome it.
In this moment, she closed her eyes in terror.
But then, she heard a weak and painful moan!
Evadne abruptly opened her eyes, her mouth half–open in shock, her body trembling as she cried out, “Erica!”
Erica was in front of her, her frail body was shielding Evadne. Her arms were spread out weakly, and then she fell, as if her soul had left her body.
Thaddeus and Jason were both stunned.
Evadne held Erica in her arms, feeling a warm wetness seep into her palm. Trembling, she raised her hand, and tears came pouring out.
“Erica1”
“Ms. Evadne, listen to me.” Erica was losing her consciousness, her lips struggling to move, her face as pale as death.
“Don’t talk! Save your strength! I’m taking you to the hospital!”
Evadne, sobbing, tried to lift Erica’s body. However, the previous struggle had drained all her strength, and at this moment, she couldn’t muster any power “I’ll help you stop the bleeding!”
Erica shook her head. “It’s too late. I know Elspeth’s secret. Elspeth killed Thaddeus‘ mom. The evidence is in my phone.”
Evadne felt like a sharp icicle had pierced her heart, and the pain and coldness exploded from her chest, quickly spreading throughout her body!
She looked tearfully at Thaddeus, who had just taken the gun from Mr. Ward, while the distant sound of sirens could be faintly heard.
Seeing the situation was lost, Mr. Ward jumped into the pond!
Thaddeus fired two shots at the pond, but the gun ran out of bullets, and Mr. Ward had already submerged, disappearing without a trace.
“Erica. We’re saved! Erica!”
Evadne took off her coat and press it against Erica’s abdomen, where the bleeding wound continued to ooze blood, her tears flowing non–stop.
Her heart told her to save her life.
But as a doctor, she knew that Erica was fading.
“Mr. Thaddeus! Mrs. Abernathy!”
Gordon led the Abernathy group’s security team, followed closely by Evadne’s older brother, Elvis, and Aaron, who was a police officer!
“Evadne! Evadne!”
Evadne couldn’t hear anything, her eyes numbly fixed on Erica’s pale face as the blood drained away, and her eyes slowly closed.
Cassius ran over, his expression full of sorrow, clutching his cross tightly.
Gordon tried to support Thaddeus, but when he passed Jason, he stopped and helped Jason up.
“You’re badly injured; the ambulance is on its way. You need to go to the hospital to get bandaged!” Gordon usually didn’t like the pretty boy hanging around Mrs. Abernathy, but he knew that Jason was a good man.
And if it wasn’t for him, who knows what would have happened to Mrs. Abernathy? The mere thought of it was suffocating.
Thaddeus stared at Evadne, who was holding Erica, tears streaming down her face. His heart was breaking.
No matter how much he suppressed the pain and adjusted his breathing, tears still dampened his long lashes.
He gathered his courage and took a step towards her.
However, at that moment, Elvis appeared behind Evadne, grabbed her arm, and lifted her up.
“Evadne, I’ll take you to the hospital. This girl is seriously injured, she needs to get to the hospital immediately.”
The paramedics arrived and took Erica away on a stretcher.
“Elvis, will Erica wake up? Will she be okay?” Evadne leaned against Elvis, looking in the direction Erica had been taken and asked softly.
Elvis frowned, holding Evadne in his arms. “She’ll be fine.”
He turned and glanced at Thaddeus.
Their eyes met, Elvis‘ face serious, he gave him a nod.
Thaddeus pursed his lips, watching them leave.
Elvis didn’t say a word to him, but he knew he was expressing his gratitude.
Evadne and Jason were taken away by the Ashbourne family, and the police arrested all the thugs.
The ground was covered in blood, a scene of devastating chaos.
Thaddeus stood there, holding the gun. With his exceptional combat skills, dealing with these small fries was effortless, and not a single hair on his head was out of place. Yet, he still felt more exhausted than he did back in the days when he fought fiercely on the battlefield.
“Mr. Thaddeus.”
Aaron approached him with two police officers, looking at the gun in his hand, his face serious. “Come with us to assist in the investigation.”
“Hey, what did you mean by this?”
Gordon rushed to stand in front of Thaddeus, his face turning red. “This gun is from the killer; Mr. Thaddeus took it from him! You’re not suggesting that Thaddeus shot her, are you?! If it wasn’t for Thaddeus, Ms. Evadne would have dead.”
“That’s enough, Gordon, stop talking.”
Thaddeus spoke in a deep voice, addressing Aaron directly. “Fine, I’ll go with you.”
“Mr. Thaddeus, don’t misunderstand. I’m not listing you as a suspect; there are procedures to follow in an investigation. I hope you’ll cooperate with our inquiry.”
Aaron’s eyes flickered, his usually formal tone softened as he lowered his voice, “My sister also needs to cooperate with the investigation. However, she’s not in stable emotional state right now and has injured that need to be addressed at the hospital. I’ll get her statement tomorrow.”
A sharp pang shot through Thaddeus‘ heart at the thought of Evadne. “Aaron, can I go see Evadne first? I’m worried about her.”
Under normal circumstances, Aaron would undoubtedly hesitate to refuse. But tonight, Thaddeus had saved Evadne from imminent danger. How could Aaron possibly deny his humble request?
The atmosphere in the hospital was heavy.
Jason had been already taken to the operating room for surgery to stitch up the knife wound.
The injury on his left shoulder was severe. And a wrong move could leave his left arm practically useless for the rest of his life.
Evadne had tried to rush into the operation room to personally perform the surgery on Jason but was held back by Cassius and Elvis.
Given her current condition, she wouldn’t hold up/until the end of the surgery.
“Evie, don’t worry.” Cassius held the trembling Evadne close, comforting her in a gentle tone “I’ve brought in the best surgeons in Elmsworth. Regardless of the cost, I want them to ensure Jason’s left arm is saved!”
“It’s all my fault. I’ve turned Jason into this,” Evadne was overwhelmed with guilt, her eyes welling up with tears.
“Don’t say that. No one expected things to turn out like this!” Elvis, unable to bear seeing his sister so upset, displayed a rare moment of vulnerability, tears shimmering in his eyes.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed in the corridor.
“Evadne!”
At the other end of the corridor, Arnold and the long–unseen Bennett rushed to the scene.
Apart from Aaron, who was still on his way, the Ashbourne’s young masters were all here.
In times like these, brothers had to stand by their sister, without a doubt.
“Bennett!” Elvis greeted with twinkling eyes.
Everyone knew that Bennett and Elvis had been the best since childhood.
Perhaps it was because both of them took their mother’s family name.
Arnold could only roll his eyes at the sight of Elvis‘ preferential treatment of Bennett. Being brothers, the contrast in treatment was simply too pronounced!
Bennett gave a slight nod to Elvis. The next moment, the urgent and resolute footsteps in military boots arrived at Evadne’s side.
“Evadne? Bennett is here.”
Evadne lifted her pale face, her swollen eyes squinting at Bennett, her lips trembling, “Bennett, you’re here. I messed up. Bennett, I messed up.”
‘Bennett’s throat tightened, his heart aching as he tightly held his sister’s cold hand, “It’s okay. It’s okay. I don’t mind if you mess up. I only mind if you don’t share your sorrows. Even if the sky falls, I will be there to support you.”