Chapter 25
Courtney’s breathing grew rapid as she stared at Austin, frantically pushing and hitting him, but it was furile.
In her struggle, she fell off the sofa, shattering a glass on the floor.
Grabbing a shard, she pressed it against her neck with force. Dark red blood began to seep
ep from the wound.
Austin froze in place, his entire body rigid as he stared at Courtney. Slowly, he slumped to the ground, overwhelmed. At that moment, he finally calmed dowIL
Courtney’s body was tense, her gaze full of hostility as she stared at Austin. She cautiously backed away until she was huddled in a corner. Austin sat on the floor for what felt like an eternity, before angrily slapping himself across the face,
“Courtney. I just care about you so much. I feel like I’m losing my mind. From the moment I found our you were alive, that you’d come back. I’ve been on the edge. I feel like I’m going insane,” he said,
“Every day I’m caught between the joy of your return, the pain of what we’ve lost, and this constant fear of losing you again. I love you so much. Courtney” He pulled at his hair. Courtney, what am I supposed to do? Tell me.”
Courtney’s body remained rigid as she stared at Austin. She knew that he wasn’t really that sad; he was just being greedy. He wanted her, his first love, but he also wanted Vera and their child.
But life didn’t hand out such perfect opportunities.
“Courney, give me a month. I’ll handle the issue with the Edwards family’s old mansion. I promise to give you an answer, Austin said as he slowly got to his feet, taking a cautious step toward her.
But Courtney recoiled like a frightened deer, her eyes wary and filled with hatred. The moment he approached, she pressed the shard deeper into her skin.
Austin froze, his heart aching as he stepped back. “Courtney, don’t hurt yourself. I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. I’ll leave right now, okay! Just put it down, please.”
He backed away slowly, step by step, until he reached the door. “Courtney, I’ll come see
tomorrow.
Courtney didn’t respond. It wasn’t until Austin left that her hands dropped limply to her sides, exhaustion overtaking her.
Blood trickled from her neck, soaking into her T–shirt. She felt drained–her entire body ached, throbbing with pain.
Curling into herself, Courtney hugged her knees and cried silently. She was so exhausted.
Curling up in the comer, Courtney drifted into unconsciousness. It wasn’t until the next morning that she slowly woke up.
The blood on her wound had dried, but her entire body felt like it was falling apart.
She was ill–her head pounded, a fever burning through her
Dizzy and weak, she staggered to her feet, only to collapse onto the sofa. Her breathing grew labored, her chest heaving with a heat that felt suffocating
At that moment, the crushing weight of loneliness consumed her, as though she had fallen into an icy abyss, Her heart ached, as if it were being
torn apart
For reasons she couldn’t explain, her thoughts drifted to Hayden. For the first time, she realized that having someone who talked too much wasn’t so bad after all.
Hayden always liked to taunt her, and she was afraid of him. But his existence had always made her feel undeniably alive.
Her phone buzzed suddenly, interrupting her thoughts. The caller was Lorraine,
“Courtney! Did you check the group chat or the forum?” Lorraine’s voice was frantic.
Courtney didn’t respond.
–
“Courtney, whatever you do, don’t check the forum! Don’t check anything. Listen to me I’ve already asked Carl to report this to the police. They’ll handle the slander and rumors, she went on.
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11:22 AM ►
Chapter 25
“Just promise me you won’t check it,” Lorraine urged repeatedly, clearly terrified that Courtney might see it and spiral further.
Courtney’s fingers trembled, and a chill spread through her body
After ending the call, her shaky hands unlocked her phone, and she opened the Henisburg General Hospital forum.
Her heart plummeted as she saw the explosive posts about her–rumors spreading like wildfire.
The accusations were cruel and vile. Someone claimed Courtney had sold her body in South Weldan, submitted to terrorists, been defiled, and lived as the wife of a terrorist
Some even branded her a traitor who didn’t deserve to live
There was no need to guess who had started these rumors. It had to be one of the people who had returned with her.
Courtney had sacrificed so much to ensure their survival, to bring them back alive to Henisburg. And yet, human nature was proving to be more terrifying than anything she had faced in South Weidan.
Her phone buzzed again. This time, the caller was Robert
“Courtney, it’s Jeffrey.” Robert’s voice was filled with anger as he spoke. He explained that Jeffrey Anderson had spread all these malicious rumor
“I’ll ask him about this. Don’t worry–I’ll make him apologize to you, Robert assured her.
Bus Courtney couldn’t respond. Her fingers trembled as she clutched her hair.
Her family was gone, her love had betrayed her, and now even her comrades–those who had shared life and death with her–had turned their backs on her.
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