The phone was ringing, and Xavier couldnât help furrowing his brows when he noticed the caller ID on the screen.Why did I furrow my brows? I should be happy, shouldnât I? In fact, itâs perfectly normal for me to be wild with joy in this situation.Yet, I seem to have a bad feeling about this. Sheâs calling me all of a sudden, and perhaps she might even say some things Iâm not too keen on hearing.If thatâs the case then Iâd rather not hear her out at all.A moment of hesitation later, Xavier eventually picked up the call.He decided to make the first move and piped up first.âIâve decided to go to where you are, Winnie.
No matter what happened, we have to get through this together. Iâve already booked a flight for tomorrow afternoon, and weâll be able to meet soon.âHowever, never in his wildest dreams did Xavier expect to hear a manâs cold and indifferent voice coming from the other end of the line.The man spoke in a foreign language. âMr. Fairchild, is it? Iâm sorry, but youâre not welcome here. Save yourself the trouble and cancel your ticket.âXavier instantly rose to his feet when he heard the unfamiliar male voice.He, too, replied in the same foreign language, âWho is this? Why do you have my wifeâs phone?
Let her speak to me herself!âThe man on the other end of the line simply sneered in response. âStop being delusional, Mr. Fairchild. Whoâs your wife, and who acknowledged the fact that you two are married?âHis words enraged Xavier, who promptly threatened through gritted teeth, âWho the f*ck are you? Where on earth is Winnie? I swear, if you dare to lay a single finger on her, I will not let you off!ââHmph. You sure know how to talk big, Mr. Fairchild.â The man was not amused, his voice laced with disdain as he continued, âBut you donât have to worry about that. Winnie will be far safer with me than with you, and the reason why I called you is to tell you to stay away from her. Are we clear, Mr.
Fairchild?ââNo way! No one else has the right to tell me to stay away from Winnie except for Winnie herself! Answer me! Are you Nathaniel? Let me talk to Winnie!âUnfortunately, what Xavier heard next was the beeping tone that followed after a call was disconnected.When he tried to call the number back, the phone had already been switched off.âD*mn it!â Xavierâs emotions were a jumbled mess as he didnât know what happened to Winnie. He had no idea if she was safe, nor did he know who was the man on the phone earlier.Unable to wait any longer, he swiftly gave his assistant a call. âI wonât be attending the meeting thatâs scheduled for tomorrow morning. Also, cancel the ticket for tomorrowâs flight, and get me a ticket for the earliest flight to Yartran.âLouis had been paying attention to the outgoing flights from Avenport to Yartran. Having remembered the details, he instantly replied, âThe earliest flight is tomorrow morning, and itâs a transit flight. I booked the one in the afternoon because itâs a direct flight and will arrive in Yartran first.ââThatâs too late! What about private planes? Is it too late to arrange for one?ââIâm afraid so, Mr. Fairchild. We have to book a private flight in advance, and thereâs no time even if we are to go through the process now.ââD*mn it!â Xavier couldnât help cussing under his breath.Meanwhile, in a tiny motel at the foot of Mount Albeise, Winnie walked out of the bathroom with a handkerchief covering the wound on her hand.Ten minutes ago, Nathaniel told her everything that happened while she was on Mount Albeise.She figured Xavier must have seen the fake news about her engagement with Nathaniel, so she intended to give him a call to explain everything.Unfortunately, both her phone and her power bank were out of battery. Since Winnie was in a hurry to make the call, she didnât bother waiting for Nathaniel, who had gone to buy coffee, to come back. Instead, she went back to her room by herself with the intention of charging her phone.She had just plugged her phone in when she heard a knock on the door.Initially, Winnie thought it was Nathaniel, but when the person spoke, she realized it was Wilhelm who was on the other side of the door.Winnie opened the door to let her brother in, but she didnât have time to speak to him and quickly went to turn on her phone.As she was in a hurry, Winnieâs movements were clumsy, causing her to accidentally knock over a drinking glass that was on the table.She instinctively went to pick up the broken pieces, but Wilhelm stopped her from doing so.âItâs okay. Iâll take care of this. Why donât you go ahead and continue what you were doing?âWilhelm could tell Winnie was anxious, so he stepped up to help her without hesitation.Winnie immediately allowed her brother to help, and upon seeing Wilhelm needing some space to clean the mess up, she retreated to the bed.That was when the incident began.Transparent glass shards were hard to spot with the naked eye, especially when they were on white-colored bedsheets. Hence, when Winnie sat down, she unknowingly pressed her hand against a piece of glass shard.Her hand was instantly cut, and before long, the white bedsheets were stained scarlet by her blood.Seeing this, Wilhelm instantly asked her to go to the bathroom and run some water over her wound while he called the front desk for a first-aid kit.After he hung up the call, Wilhelmâs gaze subconsciously fell on Winnieâs phone screen which indicated she was planning on calling Xavier.Wilhelm took the liberty to make the call in her stead and had the opportunity to speak to Xavier.Once he had said what was necessary, he turned Winnieâs phone off.Thus, when Winnie stepped out of the bathroom, the first thing she saw was Wilhelm holding her phone.âWilhelmâ¦â Winnie eyed her brother, frowning slightly. âWhy are you holding my phone? Were you on a call?âI thought I heard Wilhelm talking earlier, but the sound of running water had drowned out his voice, so I wasnât able to hear what he said.Wilhelm gently placed her phone back on the table and addressed her queries with a half-truth. âYeah, I called the front desk for a first-aid kit. The wound on your hand needs to be taken care of.âAs if to prove Wilhelm wasnât lying, the motel staff arrived with the first-aid kit as soon as Wilhelm was done speaking.He took over the first-aid kit and began taking care of Winnieâs wound, starting with disinfecting it.While he was disinfecting the wound, Wilhelm glanced at his sister. âDoes it hurt?âWinnie was busy fiddling with her phone at that moment. âI remember turning on my phone. Why did it turn off again? Wilhelm, you havenât answered me. Why did you take my phone earlier?âAfter tossing the cotton bud away, Wilhelm responded without lifting his head, âI made a call with your phone.ââYou used my phone? Who did you call?â Winnie was slightly taken aback.Wilhelm didnât answer her questions right away, but he wasnât planning on hiding the truth from her either.âXavier,â he answered.âWhat?â Winnie was utterly dumbfounded. âYou two donât know each other. Wilhelm, how could you do something like this?âShe didnât need to ask to roughly guess what her brother had said to Xavier.Winnie felt rather irate and pulled her wounded hand away from Wilhelm before turning on her phone once more. After that, she quickly gave Xavier a call.The call got through almost instantly, but Xavierâs tone was less than kind.
âWho are you? What the f*ck do you want? Whereâs Winnie? Is she all right?â he thundered.âXavierâ¦â
Upon hearing the familiar voice, Winnie instinctively breathed a sigh of relief. âItâs me. Iâm fine. I was in the bathroom earlier, and the person who spoke to you on the phone is my brother. I donât know what he said to you, but no matter what he said, his words do not reflect mine,â she stressed.After a brief pause, Winnie continued to assure the man on the other end of the line, âYou have to understand something. No matter what itâs about, unless I tell you myself, you shouldnât believe anything that others have said or written! Engagement, arranged marriage, and all that are nothing but baseless rumors. I just got to the foot of the mountain and found out about the news regarding my engagement with Nathaniel. That is all fake.ââI knew itâ¦â Upon hearing her explanation, Xavier couldnât help curling his lips into a smile, and his tone also became much gentler. âI knew it was all complete nonsense. I wonât believe it unless you tell me about it yourself.ââThatâs good, then.â Similarly, Winnie also broke into a smile as she threatened with her usual sweet and gentle tone, âYouâre dead if you dare to doubt me. Iâll chop you up into pieces when I get back.âXavier didnât pay attention to her threats at all as he was completely fixated on her last four words.Does this mean sheâs coming back to me?He tried his best to suppress the glee that was welling up in him and pretended to be calm when he asked, âAre you done relaxing now? When are you planning on coming back?âAlthough he tried not to sound too excited, Xavier was ultimately betrayed by the eagerness in his voice.Sure enough, Winnie noticed, but she didnât expose him. A beautiful smile hung on her lips as she said, âSoon. Iâll probably head back in a day or two.âMeanwhile, Wilhelm, who was observing his sister the whole time, couldnât help wondering if she had been bewitched by Xavier.Whatâs so great about that man? Is he even worthy of all the things Winnie does for him? She hasnât even been home for half a month, yet sheâs already eager to return.Wilhelm was ticked off and pulled Winnieâs injured hand back.âDonât move. Your wound needs to be dressed! Winnie, I know you want to leave, but have you asked Grandpa and Grandma for their opinion on the matter? I think you should stay home and accompany them more often. Besides, our family doesnât acknowledge your relationship with this Mr. Fairchild. Donât you think you should carefully reconsider this relationship?â he scolded.Wilhelm didnât bother lowering his voice. He knew Xavier would be able to hear him through the phone, and he meant for the latter to hear all of the things he said.âWilhelm!â Once again, Winnie pulled her hand away from her brother. âYou using my phone and calling Xavier without my permission is highly inappropriate! Iâm still upset about that.âShe then said to Xavier, âI have to go and take care of something, but Iâll call you later.ââNo need!â Wilhelm bellowed. âLet him listen. I can also tell you every single word I said to him if thatâs what you want.âOn the other end of the line, Xavier suggested, âWhy donât you put me on speaker, Winnie? Besides, Mr.
Speiser is your brother, and Iâd like to have a discussion with him, too.âWinnie mulled over it for a couple of seconds and came to the conclusion that Xavierâs suggestion wasnât a big ask. Hence, she put him on speaker and placed her phone aside.Winnie then spoke to her brother. âLetâs talk, Wilhelm.
If my memory serves me right, I told you I have a partner a couple of months ago and that Iâd find a suitable time to bring him here to meet you all.âHere, she paused before continuing, âI know Helenâs behind the whole ordeal with the Huxley family, and I donât blame you for that, but whatâs up with your statement? How could you publicly announce that my marriage to Xavier is invalid? And without my permission? Donât you forget this, Wilhelm, I might be a part of the Speiser family, but Iâm a Chanaean, through and through. I chose my Chanaean nationality when I became an adult, and both my identification card and my passport back this up. Although Xavier and I have yet to register our marriage in Yartran, we have a marriage certificate thatâs issued in Chanaea, and our union is acknowledged by the Chanaean law.ââYour actions truly disappointed me, Wilhelm,â concluded Winnie.Wilhelm had tried to reason with his sister in the past, but those instances involved other matters.This was the first time their argument concerned a man.Feeling an uncomfortable sensation in his heart, Wilhelm drew a deep breath before saying, âThatâs because Iâm disappointed in Xavier Fairchild. Winnie, youâre outstanding and capable, so your partner should be just like you. Not to mention his peculiar illness, Mr. Fairchild canât even protect you. If he was capable, then your escape from Manchernius wouldnât have been so difficult. If he canât even guarantee your safety, then I donât think heâs fit to be your husband!ââBesides, your union is nothing but a farce. Your marriage should be grand, romantic, and happy, not some kind of childâs play. This is why I object to your marriage.
Grandpa and Grandma will not feel at ease leaving you in the hands of a man who canât even ensure your safety,â he added.A crease formed between Winnieâs eyebrows after she listened to her brotherâs reasoning. Nonetheless, she stood her ground.âThereâs no use objecting now. If you put it this way, then I have no choice but to refute everything youâve just said. You said heâs plagued by a peculiar illness, but do you know why he ended up like this in the first place? Thatâs because he saved me. If it hadnât been for him, I would be the one whoâs being endlessly tormented. Furthermore, you said he couldnât keep me safe while I was in Manchernius, but who was the one who sent me on that mission, and who was the one who put his life in danger to go with me? You were the one who tasked me with infiltrating the drug den, and Xavier was the one who was willing to live and die with me!âAn emotional Winnie continued, âI never once resented you for sending me on those life-threatening missions, but this is the truth, and you have no right to criticize Xavier for all of it! Also, I wonât change my mind after making a decision. Iâm going back to Chanaea.âWilhelmâs expression turned sullen when he saw how resolute the woman was. âVivian Speiser! Donât forget you still have this identity. You canât just do things your way and refuse to listen to your familyâs opinion!âSeeing how Winnie and Wilhelm were about to get into an argument with one another, Xavier hurriedly called out to the former, âWinnie, why donât you go back with your brother for now? Spend some time with your grandparents. Iâll come and find you instead. Besides, itâs about time I pay a visit to your family.âXavier didnât want to put his wife in a tight spot, nor did he want her to return to his side while everyone was strongly objecting to their union.Instead, he wanted to take her hand in his and bring her back to their home, openly and brazenly.