Chapter 255 Live Together, Die Together
"Get out of here! No time left!"
Aurelia yelled, tears streaming down her face. Nathaniel's hands were all over the knot tying her up, shaking like crazy. He was too zoned in to hear her, his brain working overtime.
But this knot? It was a nightmare, not something Nathaniel could just undo in a snap.
Sweat was dripping off Nathaniel's forehead onto Aurelia's dress. She was almost crying, begging him, "Just go, don't bother with it, there's no time."
Nathaniel tried to calm down, but the knot wasn't budging. He glanced back—the sea was just a few feet from the car, and the keys were still in the ignition.
He made a snap decision to ditch the plan.
As he left, Aurelia's feelings were all over the place. She thought he was bailing on her. Even though she wanted him to leave, it still hurt when he let go.
But then she heard the car start. The door was wide open, and the wind was howling as the car sped towards the sea. Aurelia was stunned for a second before the car plunged into the water.
Water rushed in, and she choked on a few mouthfuls. She couldn't swim and had no clue how to hold her breath.
Nathaniel swam over from the front, now focused on the half-untied knot. The water made the rope slippery, which actually helped.
The timer was still ticking.
Nathaniel was ready to die with her, his calmness in the face of death was almost unreal, like it was just another day. In that moment, his childhood fear of water vanished.
The memory of almost drowning as a kid was totally gone.
The rope slipped from his hands, and Aurelia was finally free, though her limbs were numb, and she kept choking on water.
The countdown hit zero just as they were about to leave the car. The cold, silent sea reeked of death.
Nathaniel's mind was racing; he knew the next second could mean life or death.
He gambled that the bomb under the car seat was a regular, non-waterproof one, so he drove the car into the sea at the last second to kill it.
Of course, if he was wrong and the bomb was high-tech, they were done for.
Nathaniel held Aurelia's hand tight, thinking if they died here, at least they'd be together. In life and death, they face it together, and in the next life, they'd still be husband and wife.
He focused all his energy, counting the seconds, one, two, three...
He'd already swum a few feet with Aurelia, and there was no explosion. He didn't dare relax, using all his strength to swim toward the shore with her.
The bomb didn't go off, and he finally relaxed, knowing it wouldn't explode.
He'd won the bet.
Nathaniel remembered the swimming lessons from his childhood coach, using his rusty skills to desperately swim to the shallow water.
He was grateful the car had fallen into water not far from the shore, and the water wasn't too deep. Otherwise, his lousy swimming wouldn't have cut it.
Aurelia had swallowed a lot of water and had passed out from the shock.
On the shore, Zack and the rescue team finally showed up. When Zack had sent Nathaniel the car's location, he'd already called for backup, and luckily, they arrived just in time.
The rescuers ran toward them, who were utterly exhausted.
After the whole ordeal, Nathaniel felt a wave of relief seeing Zack and the team, like he'd finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel.
"She's drowning! Help her, quick!"
The team saw Aurelia sprawled out on the beach and jumped into action.
When they finally got the water out of her chest, Nathaniel's heart could finally chill out a bit.
Aurelia was still out cold, so they decided to rush her to the hospital after the emergency treatment.
Nathaniel held her in the back seat while Zack floored it to the city hospital. After a bunch of tests, they hooked her up to an IV.
The doc said she needed to be watched for 24 hours, so Zack handled the paperwork while Nathaniel stayed by her side.
Looking at her pale face, his heart ached. If he hadn't been near her work and stumbled into this mess, who knew what would've happened?
He was scared out of his mind. Finding Aurelia in Coral Bay was like a miracle, and now he couldn't stop checking if she was breathing.
It was like he was haunted by the fear of losing her again. The thought of losing her a second time? It'd probably drive him nuts.
Around two in the morning, Aurelia finally woke up.
She moved her left hand, feeling a bit of pain. The IV was out, and her hand was bandaged.
The sound of someone breathing in the room made her realize she wasn't alone.
As the memories of what happened before she passed out came flooding back, Aurelia turned over, touched her limbs. She realized she was still alive.
The person by her bed looked exhausted, leaning on the bed, fast asleep.
Aurelia instinctively wanted to touch his hair, but her hand froze above his head. With a bitter smile, she pulled it back. What was she thinking?
Nathaniel seemed to sense her movement and lifted his head after a few seconds.
Their eyes met, catching both off guard.
Nathaniel was stunned for a moment, then placed his fingers on her forehead to check her temperature.
The doc had said she was fine, just shocked and had swallowed some water. As long as she didn't get a fever, she'd be good to go the next day.
Feeling her temperature was normal, he pulled his hand back.
They both stayed quiet; the vibe a bit awkward.
It was another full moon night, and the moonlight outside the window cast a soft glow on Aurelia's face.
Nathaniel stood with his back to the light, so Aurelia couldn't see his expression, just that his big hand was holding hers tight.
She tried to pull her hand away, but he held on tighter.
"Aurelia, if you work late again, I'll be there with you. I won't let this happen again."
Aurelia paused and said, "You shouldn't have taken the risk. If something happened to you, what about the Heilbronn Group?"
Since their reunion, this was the first time they talked calmly. Aurelia, for once, wasn't all emotional and was willing to listen.
Nathaniel felt a sense of relief. "Aurelia, the Heilbronn Group can find someone else if I'm gone. You can't get hurt again."
His voice was deep and had a hint of vulnerability, making it especially heart-wrenching in the night.
Aurelia took a deep breath. "Today was really dangerous. In that situation, you could've escaped, and I wouldn't have blamed you. After all, our relationship now..."
Aurelia wanted to say that he need not have risked his life to save her.
Nathaniel cut her off, "Aurelia, how could I leave you in that situation? Is that really how you see me?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
