Chapter 373 What Grounds Do You Have to Negotiate With Me?
The stagnant air in the bathroom became extremely humid.
The faint musk of sweat accompanied with Courtney’s broken and painful moans created a sorrowful ambience in the small space.
The sounds of security guards banging on the door, as well as the sound of passersby stopping and whispering from the other side of the thin bathroom door, was frantically stabbing into Courtney’s eardrums.
Her consciousness began to fade; with the man’s hoarse grunts, a new, sharper pain—one that exceeded the countless previous ones—stabbed into her already numb lower body. Her pupils contracted, and she raised her neck high up as a scream tried to escape her throat.
“I will give you whatever you want, but you will never see Jordan again. As for your daughter, since you’ve signed the contract at the beginning, it doesn’t matter how many children you have—they won’t have anything to do with you.”
Alexander fastened his belt and stared at her coldly, letting her slip off the sink like a broken, lifeless toy.
“No.” Her voice was low, and she gritted her teeth before making the final broken sound. “Don’t you dare lay a finger on Tina.”
She used her remaining strength to pull up her clothes as she staggered against the wall and stood up, albeit shakily, while looking at Alexander with an ashen face; it was as pale as dying embers.
“Alexander, I’m begging you. I don’t want Jordan anymore. I’ll take Tina with me, and I’ll never appear in front of you again.”
“What right could you possibly have to even think of negotiating with me?”
As they spoke, a loud bang bounced off the walls of the bathroom as the door was smashed open by the security guards. Immediately, a group of people rushed in, and when they entered, they were surprised to see Courtney and Alexander standing about and talking civilly.
…
“On today’s news, a customer at Pinnacle Shopping Center had called the police, claiming that a man had broken into the women’s restroom. The security personnel arrived soon after and realized the restroom was locked…”
Back at the Duncan Residence, Oliver was answering the phone, and the live news broadcast on the TV was playing in the background. As he was facing away from the TV, he did not see the mosaic of the familiar figure on the screen.
“She’s not back yet. There could be traffic on the road, so don’t worry.”
Whoever was on the other end of the line did not buy what Oliver said and continued to express their worries.
“I’m going to Grandpa’s place, so I’ll drive out and have a look while I’m at it. If I manage to contact them, I’ll call you back immediately.”
After hearing what Oliver said, the person on the other end of line finally seemed to be more at ease.
After hanging up the phone, Oliver took the jacket from the servant and accidentally overheard the two servants cleaning the house talking.
“Oh, I heard it was all a misunderstanding—it was a couple quarreling in the washroom of the mall. The security guard thought something was wrong, but when they finally smashed the door down, only then did they realize it was a misunderstanding. When everyone dispersed, the woman came out to run after the man, but after taking just two steps, she fainted…”
Oliver’s expression froze when he heard what they said. For some reason, even though he had already walked to the door, he had a nagging feeling to turn around and look at the TV. Coincidentally, he did it just in time to see the picture of the paramedics wheeling an unconscious person into the ambulance. The moment he saw the familiar beige coat on the stretcher, his eyes immediately narrowed, and his face turned into a scowl.
At the Emergency Department.
When Cameron and Gale arrived, the doctor had already dealt with Courtney’s injuries and had arranged for her to be hospitalized, while Oliver was guarding the hospital bed.
“What happened?”
Oliver shook his head. His expression froze, but he managed to say with difficulty, “The doctor said it’s nothing major. It was just that…”
“Just what? Where is Alexander?” Cameron looked anxious. “Gosh, Oliver. You’re killing me here!”
When she received Oliver’s call, she was having a reunion dinner with the Langley family. The dishes had just arrived on the table when she heard Oliver say that Courtney had been wheeled into the operating room, but he didn’t explain the reason.
“U-Uh… you should ask the doctor. I-I can’t explain it clearly to you.”
Oliver’s voice was a little dull.
When Cameron saw him like this, she knew that he couldn’t tell her anything, so she turned around and tried to go out.
Gale originally wanted to chase after her but was stopped by Oliver instead.
“Gale, don’t go.”
“Why?” Gale turned around in confusion.
Oliver didn’t explain why, but only lowered his head and took a deep breath while running his hands through his hair irritably. “Just listen to me. Don’t go.”
Gale was floored when he heard the news abroad about Oliver being Alexander’s younger brother. He had met Oliver in Melrose many times before, but this was the first time they met after Gale found out about their relationship.
Oliver, in Gale’s opinion, had always looked like a young adult, but he didn’t have Alexander’s dull personality. Instead, he felt like the sun—warm, and always playing with the waiters of Sunhill Hotel all day long. While he was there, the hotel would always be filled with laughter.
His dejected look now was completely different from his usual appearance.
Seeing that, Gale felt a little uneasy in his heart.
10 minutes later, Cameron came back and walked in with bloodshot eyes, as if she had cried, which startled Gale. “Cameron, what’s the matter? What did the doctor say?”
“Where the hell is Alexander Duncan?”
Cameron asked as soon as she came in—her eyes were blistering from the anger.
Oliver frowned and shook his head. “I don’t know. I came to the hospital immediately after seeing the news. I-I can’t reach Alex…”
“What exactly is the matter here?” Gale looked puzzled. “What happened?”
Cameron pushed him away after shaking his hand off.
“You stay away from me. All of you men are pigs.”
Gale was stunned. “What does this have to do with me?”
“Get out.”
Cameron glared at him angrily, then looked at Oliver. “You too. Get out.”
Gale wanted to say more, but Oliver immediately stood up, pushed Gale out with him together, and closed the door to the ward behind them.
There was only Cameron and Courtney left in the room; Cameron walked to the side of the bed and held Courtney’s hand.
“I used to think that my life was sh*t. I used to think that I probably chose the wrong life when I was reincarnated in my past life—the first half of my life was filled with bad memories and traumas, but why you too? You were obviously born a daughter of a rich family, so why did you have to go through all this bad luck?”
Courtney lay on the pillow pallidly—her delicate face was devoid of color, and even her lips were white as paper.
After what seemed like forever, Courtney’s hand that was held in Cameron’s palm moved. Following that, she slowly opened her eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling for a while.
What she saw was blinding whiteness. She frowned, and when she moved her body ever so slightly, she felt a sharp pain in her lower body—one so painful that it had completely woken her up—and that was when she could hear the faint sounds of her name being called.
“Courtney, you’re awake! Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”
She turned her head slowly and saw that it was Cameron. “Who brought me to the hospital?”
Cameron was stunned for a moment as she heard her. She then bit her lip and said hesitantly, “It should be the ambulance called by the manager of the mall. When I arrived, Oliver was already with you in the ward.”
Whatever little anticipation she had faded away as soon as she heard those words, and her eyes turned a little hollow.
How could she forget that it was totally Alexander’s style to just disappear whenever he was enraged?
She thought that after going through hell and high water with him, something like this would no longer be an issue. However, Alexander thought of her as a woman who was scheming and deceitful—that she had only approached him with the plans to gain custody over her children and to get back at him for what he had done to her in the past.
The deep affection and trust that she finally mustered up to be with him were all in vain from the very beginning.
