âActually, itâs not even necessary since thereâs no way weâre making it out alive when we canât even put on much of a fight!â Once Zachary finished remarking sarcastically, he turned around and asked, âHow have you made your way here? Is Sabby aware of the things going on?â
Shaking my head, I shared the bad news with him, âSabby was the one who told me of the things going on! Otherwise, I wouldnât even be here!â
Colors started draining from his face. He seemed as if he was about to pass out soon. The fact he was still conscious was a miracle since he could barely carry on with the conversation.
âI canât believe I have been away from home for a fortnight. Are the little ones doing fine?â
âTheyâre doing fine! In fact, theyâre in great hands with Sabby since sheâs exceptionally patient with the little ones. Your safety is her sole concern as of now.â
âNothing else matters as long as theyâre doing fine!â Zachary repeated himself over and over again as if he couldnât care less about himself.
Seated next to the boulder, Lyle remained silent throughout the session, but his disappointment was written all over his face. Initially, I thought he was nothing more than a burden when he insisted on tagging along for the trip to Yorksland. After all, he was the reason I was abducted the moment we reached.
However, I started appreciating his effort since he had put his life at stake when he couldâve returned and left me alone. To begin with, it had nothing to do with him at all.
I inched over and handed him a military ration, expressing my utmost apology, âIâm so sorry for getting you involved. I shouldâve stopped you when you insisted on tagging along with me.â
He had a mouthful of the ration and asked, âAre you going to make fun of me again if I say Iâm also regretting my decisions?â
Chuckling, I remarked in return, âThereâs no way Iâm going to make fun of you when Iâm equally afraid of dying. Itâs just humanâs nature.â
âE-Eveââ When I heard someone calling my name, I turned around and rushed in the direction of Christopher without a second thought. The moment he regained consciousness, he reprimanded me, âWhat are you doing here?â
I was certain he would lose his cool as soon as he found out I was there for him. In the end, I made something up to deceive him. âI-I just happened to be here!â
âAre you kidding me? Youâre not supposed to be here!â Christopher sat upright and was about to launch a powerful slap in my face. However, he stopped himself in the nick of time.
I was certain the intelligent man had figured out it was nothing more than a lie the moment I brought it up. Instead of carrying on with the conversation, I brought him another bottle of water and urged, âYou need to keep yourself hydrated after being unconscious for such a long time.â
Christopher shrugged me off and warned me, âNo, I want you to get out of my sight at one!â
I couldnât stand the manâs hoarse voice and knew he must be having a sore throat. âChris, you need to stop moving around since youâre still relatively frail! Weâll talk once you finish this!â
âHave I not made myself clear? Get out of my sight at once!â Unable to take it anymore, he pushed me away with all his might. As a result, I staggered and fell. In spite of sustaining a minor injury, I tried my best to stop myself from spilling the water since it was the partyâs sole source of hydration.
âYvonne, are you okay?â Lyle rushed over to help me up. He turned around and reprimanded Christopher, âAre you even in your right mind? Can you stop picking on her when she has put her life at stake for you?â
âLyle?â Christopher looked at me in the eyes and announced with a contemptuous look, âI canât believe youâre having an affair with Lyle when Iâm away! He must be the reason you werenât there to send me off, huh? I donât need such a pretentious woman like you here with me! Get off my sight with your boyfriend over here!â
âNo, Chrisââ I couldnât even explain myself since Christopher launched a powerful slap in my face halfway through my sentence. As a result of the slap, I felt my cheek turning numb.
He had never gotten so worked up in front of me. All of a sudden, it felt as if the man in front of me was a stranger.