Chapter 16
Chapter 16
Fifteen years ago, Julian and Noel ended up stranded on Skull Island. At the time, Skull island had been developed into refugna holding
It wasn’t just refugees on that island there were also fugitives hiding out after committing serious crimes, as well as impoverished people from unve countries. The government, alming in clean up the cities, had rounded up homeless people and dumped them there too.
There was no water, no electricity, no internet, and no ships connecting the island to the outside world. The government would drop food supplies at
intervals.
But whether it was due to the sick sense of humor of those in charge or not, every time they dropped food, it was only enough to feed about a tenth of the population
So, fights would break out, people would die every day, and the corpses would be eaten by those who survived.
After Julian and Noel ended up on the island, Julian’s enemies apparently found out he was there and started bombing t
the place.
They were both injured and could barely move, let alone find a place to hide.
Just when it seemed like the end, a filthy little girl appeared and led them into an underground cave to hide. That tunnel sloped downward for at least over 300 feet.
Later, they found out that the girl had spent five years digging it out with her bare hands. She had naively believed she could tunnel her way out of that hellish island.
After the bombing stopped, they came out of the tunnel. The entire island was in ruins–every plant and animal had been turned to ash. The dirt was stained red. The whole place reeked of death.
The people on the island had been blasted into pieces. Since it was summer, by the time they came out, the bodies had already started rotting and were crawling with maggots.
There was no way to survive on that island anymore. Even if there were no more bombings, the stench and toxins from the corpses would cause disease soon enough—or they’d die of hunger and thirst.
Back then, Noel had a piece of bread hidden on him. He originally planned to take it out and split it three ways. But the moment that girl saw the bread, she snatched it and ate the whole thing by herself.
After she finished eating, she went and took a dump, then turned to them and said, “One piece of bread split three ways isn’t enough for anyone.
“It’s better for me, the only one not injured, to eat it and get my strength back so I can go out and find help.
“But I did leave something for you guys. I pooped over there. You two can take turns eating it to survive. One of you eats it, then poops, then the other eats that and poops, and so on.
“If you keep doing that, you should be able to hold on for a while. If I manage to get out, I’ll call the cops for you and ask them to come save you.”
Then she dragged a log into the sea, climbed onto it, and started paddling away.
Noel and Julian were both stunned. They thought no human being should ever–could
dever–say something that insane.
By the time they snapped out of it, the girl was already drifting off into the distance, leaving behind only that burd to keep them company
Noel pulled himself out of the memory, his expression complicated.
After a while, it suddenly clicked, and he asked in disbelief. “My lord, you don’t mean to tell me the woman who’s keeping you is that little weirdo from back then, right?
“How is that even possible? There’s no way she swam across thousands of nautical miles of ocean.
Chapter 16
“She might’ve been nine years old at the time, but she was tiny like a five–year old. She was so petite. How could she have had that far?
Back then, it was the Astome Familly who ended up finding and rescuing them not because the girl had called for help. So they had she’d died out there on the ocean.
Julian even had a gravestone made for her, and kept a nameless memorial plaque at home in her honor,
Noel hadn’t expected that she was actually still alive. “My lord, what if you’ve mistaken her for someone else?” Noel thought it was more likely Julian had gotten the wrong person than that the girl had really survived.
Julian said firmly. “There’s no way I’m wrong. Even if she were reduced to ashes, I’d still recognize her?
Noel got a little excited. “My lord, can I meet her? I didn’t get a good look at her face at the mall today. She might’ve been kind of out there, but she did save my life. I want to thank her in person.”
Julian replied in a low voice, “She doesn’t remember me, and there’s no way she remembers you. What happened back then wasn’t exactly sunshine and rainbows. Don’t bring it up and make her relive something that awful.”
Nool said, “Then I won’t talk to her or anything. Can I just take a look from a distance? I want to see what my savior looks like as an adult.
“If I don’t even know what she looks like, what if I end up crossing her one day without realizing it?”
Julian nodded and told him to come along next time and catch a glimpse from afar,
Just then, an agent messaged Julian: Six pum. Target has separated from the group and is walking alone of Ember Street]
Ever since they left the Federal Police Bureau, Julian had arranged for two trusted agents to follow Olivia around the clock in shifts, just in case something happened to her.
Even though Julian had ordered a lockdown on anything linking Olivia to him, he still worried that word might leak, and if one of his enemies caught wind of her existence, they might go after her. So, he’d stationed people to protect her in secret.
The agents would check in every hour with an update on Olivia’s whereabouts,
Seeing that she was finally alone, Julian immediately put aside what he was doing, ready to go to her,
Olivia hadn’t expected the luxury boutique manager to actually send her $15 million. Staring at the long string of zeros in the bank alert, she felt like she was dreaming–none of it felt real
In a great mood, Olivia decided to treat herself for once. She spent a hundred bucks at a roadside shop on a light green maxi dress, then headed beauty salon to get soft curls and a full face of makeup.
She’d always liked looking nice, but with massive debt hanging over her, her mind had been filled with nothing but paying it off. Dolling herself up just never made the list.
But today, the windfall had landed in her lap without any effort at all, so Olivia finally allowed herself to spend just a tiny bit on herself.
“Oh my goodness, you look incredible, like a supermodel straight off a magazine cover. The salon owner personally did her makeup and hair, and then spent ten full minutes gushing over her beauty until Olivia felt a little embarrassed.
Olivia quickly paid the bill and stepped out of the store.
At that moment, Julian had just arrived nearby. He glanced around but didn’t see the familiar figure anywhere, so he texted his agent: (Where is she?]
The agent replied: [About 60 feet straight ahead, Green dress, loose curls. That’s her.
Chapter 16
udukan looked up. The moment he saw her, his heart loped a beat. In the noisy, crowded world, it Bi
Just
nt then, Noel’s voice brake through beside him, completely missing the mood. “My lord, didn’t you say you’d recognize her eared th “ashes? She’s right there, and you still had to ask the aperit?”
Julian reined in the fire in his eyes and said calmly, “Achas, yes, Makeup,
In truth, Olivis didn’t look that different with makeup just more polished, more striking. But she’d changed her outfit and look so suddenly Instinctively been searching for the version he’d seen in the morning, which was why he hadn’t received her right away.
Noel was instantly speechless.
Julian was about to walk over, but suddenly paused. He turned to Moet and ordered, “Find me a stylist, I need to look good. She’s got me comprast hooked—I’ve gotta turn the tables and make her swoon.”
Noel’s mouth twitched. “Look at you–down bad and pathetic”
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