âWell? What is it you want to ask me?âThe female voice on the other end of the phone enunciated, âItâs about Winnie Garland. How is she now? Have you finished her off?â
âWell? What is it you want to ask me?âThe female voice on the other end of the phone enunciated, âItâs about Winnie Garland. How is she now? Have you finished her off?ââNo.â While answering that question, David cast a surreptitious glance in Winnieâs direction.At the same time, Winnie had also perked up her ears upon hearing her name.Then, David continued, âShe isnât dead, but she will be soon. She inhaled a bottle of radioactive gas and passed out. I donât think sheâll be able to survive, but even if she does, the rest of her life will probably be hell.ââReally? If youâre not lying to me, this is truly great news.â The female voice on the other end of the phone chortled gleefully.At once, a frown marred Davidâs countenance. âWhat do you mean by that? Why would I lie to you?ââCalm down. That was just a casual remark. Just hide and wait for me to save you.âAfter saying that, the person hung up right away.Shrugging, David said to James, âShe didnât reveal her current location at all.âJames dipped his head a fraction in acknowledgment before turning to Winnie. âDo you know of any woman Harold once had who holds a grudge against you?ââNo,â Winnie denied firmly. âHeâs been intimate with countless women, thatâs for sure, but then Iâve never heard of him collaborating with any of them. Besides, the female voice on the phone earlier sounded unnatural to me. Itâs highly likely that the person used a voice modulator.âJames nodded. âThatâs indeed a possibility.âAfter he said that, he asked Greta, âDid you record the conversation just now?ââYeah. Iâll take it back to the team for analysis later.ââOkay. Make it fast.âAfter James and the others left, Winnie plunged into deep contemplation.Seeing that, Xavier couldnât help lifting his hand and caressing her hair. He called out to her softly.Only then did Winnie jolt out of her thoughts. âWhat is it?ââWhat are you thinking about that youâre not even talking to me anymore?âChuckling lowly, Winnie groped for his hand. âIâm talking to you now! Iâm thinking that the person must detest me to the core, considering the fact that he was so glad after learning about my current condition. If that voice was a result of a voice modulator, it was most probably a man. Other than Leandro, I canât think of anyone else fitting the description of a man whoâs in collaboration with Harold and wants me dead.âWith his gaze pinned on her eyes in anguish, Xavier replied, âYouâre right.
Youâve already told Officer Clark and the others about this, so theyâll investigate thoroughly. The only thing youâve got to do right now isââKnowing what the man wanted to say, Winnie cut him off and completed his utterance. âAdhere to the treatment plan. I know! Donât worry. I donât want to die. Iâll value my life, no matter for the sake of myself, you, or those who love and care about me. Iâll cherish it greatly.ââOkay. Iâm glad you understand. Youâre going to have the surgery tomorrow, so donât overthink things today. Be sure to stay positive and relaxed. Adequate rest is vital before the procedure. You canât strain your eyes. As for the result, you donât need to worry either. The doctor has said that there are a lot of cases of such retinopathy. The success rate of the operation is pretty high,â Xavier rambled, spouting advice after advice.Although Winnie couldnât see him right then, she could imagine that he was undoubtedly frowning and looking exceedingly fretful.Perhaps he wouldnât be so nervous even if he were the one undergoing surgery soon.Following that thought, a wealth of warmth suffused her.
Raising her hand, she tentatively reached out for the manâs head. She cradled it and planted a light kiss on him by approximating the position.While her kiss fell on the face shield used for quarantine purposes, Xavier abruptly went silent.As he was no longer talking, Winnie immediately declared, âI wanted to seal your mouth. So, how was it? I got it right, didnât I? Sure enough, youâre not nagging me anymore.ââYeah, you got it right,â Xavier fibbed in a muted voice.In truth, she hadnât gotten the position right. Her kiss had almost landed on his forehead.Verily, he felt as though he was on the verge of suffocating.If possible, Iâm willing to exchange everything I have for the success of her surgery tomorrow!Every time Xavier visited Winnie, he didnât want to leave anymore.This time, more than ever, he remained there, unbudging despite her efforts to get him to leave.Later on, Josiah came over.He was likewise worried that Winnie would be anxious about the surgery tomorrow. He deliberately made a trip over to inform her about the things she had to look out for.Conversely, Winnie wasnât the least bit perturbed. She merely asked him for a favor to take Xavier away.Josiah reasoned with Xavier for some time. In the end, he successfully got the latter to leave with him.It wasnât until Winnie heard the sound of the lights flicking off and the door slamming shut that she went to the bathroom to wash up.Unbeknownst to her, Xavier didnât leave.Instead, he continued watching her from outside the glass door.Standing beside him, Josiah patted him on the shoulder lightly and asked, âArenât you leaving when you canât even see her anymore?âHowever, Xavierâs gaze remained fixated ahead. âRight now, all she sees is vast darkness regardless of whether itâs day or night. Itâs probably the same as the sight before my eyes presently, huh? How about you beat me up?ââWhy?ââBack then, you urged us to go back, but I turned a deaf ear to you. I said Iâd protect her. Yet, I failed to keep my word.ââIf so, you should also beat me up. I shouldâve gone after you both at that time!âBoth of them were racked with guilt, especially Xavier.Whirling around, he leaned back against the glass and slowly slid down to the floor. âSheâs going to have the surgery tomorrow. I want to stay and keep her company here tonight.âIn the darkness, Josiah stared down at his best friend, who was over one point nine meters tall yet curled himself up into a ball at that moment. He said in a choked voice, âAll right. Iâll come and pick you both up tomorrow morning.âAfter saying that, he walked off. However, he didnât really leave.Despite leaving space for his friends, he also wanted to keep them company. He sat on the bench in the corridor outside the entire night.Winnie, on the other hand, had a dream when she was sleeping. Accurately speaking, it was a nightmare.She dreamed of Harold advancing toward her with a hideous face littered with scars.As he closed in on her, he yanked off the layer of grotesque skin on his face.While doing that, he ordered, âLook at me! Iâve had plastic surgery. See how I look now. Here, have a look! I promise youâll like it for sure!âIn the dream, Winnie found the sight of the man ripping off his face indescribably revolting.However, she knew that she was already blind while Harold was already dead. It was impossible for her to behold a dead person then, so it was definitely a dream.Loathed to continue watching the gory scene, she wanted to wake up, but she couldnât open her eyes no matter how hard she tried.She kept calling out for Xavier, but even when she had done so at the top of her lungs, no sound came out of her mouth.She stayed frozen in bed for a long time before finally struggling awake.Right before she woke up, she unexpectedly glimpsed a transformation in Haroldâs face.It really appeared as though he had undergone plastic surgery. Alas, she had already jolted awake before making out his countenance.She couldnât see who exactly he had turned into.