When I woke up, my throat was sore and my mind was hazy. My whole body feels like I've run ten kilometers. Garrick sat next to me, and after seeing me awake he let out a sigh of relief.
"You scared the crap out of me. Luckily you're okay, if something happens to you, I'm not sure I can keep my composure."
"I'm fine now. It was an unexpected situation, and I didn't expect things to be so dangerous." My voice was hoarse as if I was sick, it was because I drank too much water and choked, causing my stomach to swell and my throat to hurt.
I didn't know how to swim, but unexpectedly I dared to jump into the bottomless deep river to save another person. I am not that brave, I love my life very much. But when I had to choose between leaving Vivian struggling in the water and me risking my life to save her, I didn't hesitate to choose the first option.
"Because of that noble act of yours, you almost revealed your true identity."
"What's wrong?" I am surprised.
"Dominic jumped into the river to save me."
"He saved me? How could that be? When Vivian and I went out, he never showed up."
"That doesn't mean he doesn't know where you and Vivian are." Garrick shrugged and said. "I also know Vivian is his girlfriend, he will definitely treasure her like a treasure."
"You're right." I mumbled.
The fact that Dominic saved me was most likely just his convenience while saving Vivian. I still remember before I suffocated to the point of fainting, I vaguely saw Vivian swimming and coming to the surface. Looks like I was mistaken, she was saved first by Dominic, then he dived to save me.
If Dominic was like before, he would have left me lying on the bottom of the river, because I was not originally his close friend. The fact that Dominic saved me must have been one of the rare times when he was nice to strangers. I should feel lucky about that, and about the fact that he didn't blame me for taking Vivian to the river.
"He didn't see my face, did he?" I asked Garrick.
"Yeah, if I was a little late, Dominic would have taken off your mask. He seems to be trying to give you CPR."
"Tch... that's really lucky." I gently shake my head, can't imagine how mad he'd be if Dominic found out I've been cheating on him for the past 4 years. Maybe he'll regret saving me, or mercilessly throw me back into the cold river.
"I heard they've already booked a plane ticket and are about to go home." Garrick came into my room and gave me some food. "Vivian's health is not very good so they returned a few days earlier than expected."
I listened silently and drank warm soup. It was best for them to leave and for me as well. While my mind was in a coma, I felt saved. His strong embrace is so familiar that I want to hold him back, but every dream has to come to an end, I shouldn't wallow in that sudden turmoil of emotions.
"Did Kenelm go out again today?"
"Damn it. I forgot. I took Kenelm to the river to look for her earlier, but seeing that she was in trouble, I rushed over immediately." Garrick's eyes widened as he remembered an unbelievable fact. He left Kenelm on the road.
"What? I have to go find him."
Although my body was still very weak, I still struggled to get out of bed and put on my coat to find my son. Garrick was going to stop me at first, saying he'd just let him find Kenelm, but seeing my determination and overwhelming anxiety, he knew he couldn't help it. So he followed me closely and went with me to find Kenelm.
We've pretty much scoured the whole city looking for Kenelm, but the more I look, the more worried I'm going to get mad because no one has found him at all. I even thought the worst-case scenario would be whether the boy would be distracted and fall into the river.
Seeing me burst into tears and collapse to the ground tiredly, Garrick apologized profusely, and he also felt very sorry for having neglected to cause Kenelm to get lost. I don't blame him, I can only blame myself for being an irresponsible mother.
Right at this moment, I received a text from an unknown number. That message was just a photo, but it made my heart clench.
…
Kenelm stood on the side of the road looking around with curious eyes. He was too short while everyone else was tall and blocked his view. Just know that after Garrick brought him here, he immediately ran away, but still did not return to pick him up.
He sat by the side of the road playing in the sand until it was dark and everyone had dispersed, and then everyone went home and he was still alone.
He was a little scared, but he was a boy so he decided not to cry. He doesn't remember the way home, and there's no one left to ask him for. At this moment, he suddenly remembered the story of the witch who would kidnap children who skipped meals. It made him worry if he would be taken away by the witch, he really regretted not eating properly.
Suddenly, someone approached him, he turned around in panic to see it was a tall man with a very handsome face.
"You... you're the black car driver." Kenelm exclaimed when he met an acquaintance.
Dominic and his bodyguard were supposed to go back to the hotel together. But because he was in a bad mood, he lingered for a while to smoke. When he decided to return, he happened to see Ms. Ambar is alone.
"Why are you here alone, not going home with your mother?" Dominic knelt down and asked him kindly.
After listening to him tell the story, Dominic immediately took a taxi and took him back to the hotel because he said he didn't remember where his home was. Fortunately, Vivian has Ms. Ambar, so this shouldn't be hard to deal with. Besides, he also wanted to take this opportunity to contact Ambar to ask if she was in good health or not.
In the car, the atmosphere was very quiet, when suddenly there was a sound like the stomach rumbling because of hunger. Kenelm embarrassedly touched his stomach, then looked out the window. Dominic laughed for some reason, told the taxi driver to stop at a restaurant and led Kenelm down.
"Eh... aren't we going home?" Kenelm was bewildered.
"First, I'll help satisfy your hunger."
Dominic led Kenelm into the restaurant, offering him all kinds of delicious dishes he rarely got to enjoy. Kenelm was very enthusiastic and ate nonstop. Dominic doesn't eat much, mostly he just sits and watches Kenelm. This boy has a very soulful round eyes, shining with innocence and purity, very similar to Ambar. That makes him have a special affection for Kenelm.
"Doesn't your mother normally take you to restaurants?"
"No. She's a thrifty person and wouldn't waste money on such luxuries." Kenelm said while munching on the chicken.
"So what?" Dominic involuntarily smiled. "Anything else?"
Dominic cleverly started a conversation, and gradually Kenelm also told Dominic a lot of things related to his mother.
"My mother is very strange this time, acting like a different person. My mother is always lost and dumbfounded, then sometimes tells me not to go out too much."
"Really?" Dominic thought for a moment, then asked. "Having Damian by your mother's side will make her feel better soon."
"Damian? Who is that?" Kenelm asked surprised.
"Isn't that the man at home with you and your mother?"
"Ah, that's Garrick. My bodyguard."
Dominic's hand holding the teacup stopped in midair. He stared at Kenelm for a moment, then a series of thoughts threaded through his head into a perfect truth. Dominic felt his mind spinning, there was so much evidence that he had been exposed but he had not discovered it. Although he was a bit skeptical, in the end he still believed that Esther was indeed dead. But at this moment, he could feel the past four years, the pain and torment he had to experience like a joke.
A trembling Dominic reached out to Kenelm and stroked his hair gently.
"What's your mother's name, I forgot."
"Esther Ambar."