Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Tristan Sterling Saves Holly Sinclair
"Don’t touch me! Don’t touch me!"
She shrieked, collapsing into tears and trembling uncontrollably.
As a fifteen-year-old girl who had never experienced such a terrifying moment, her psychological defenses had completely crumbled.
A coarse hand caressed her ankle. It felt like a gutter slug, utterly disgusting.
"Don’t... don’t touch me... Ah! Let me out! Please, let me out..." she cried and begged, kicking her legs with all her might, trying to shake off the man’s hand.
"Heh heh heh..."
The man’s lecherous laughter was more chilling and unsettling than the wail of a ghost.
BANG!
Just as she was about to faint from terror, the door was viciously kicked open.
A flood of light poured in, and a tall, handsome boy appeared, silhouetted against it.
Twenty-year-old Tristan Sterling, like a superhero riding a multi-colored cloud to her rescue, saved her from the depths of despair.
It was in that instant that she fell in love with him.
Her thoughts snapped back to the present. Holly Sinclair hugged her knees tightly, her face streaked with tears, unconsciously murmuring, "Help me... Someone, help me..."
Fear overcame reason, and a sliver of hope rose in her heart against her will.
How she wished he could still rescue her from Hell, just like he did before.
But...
He wouldn’t.
He would never come to save her again.
Now, he despised her utterly.
Now, he was deeply in love with Vivian Linton.
So, he wouldn’t come to save her again.
No one would come to save her...
No one...
Despair and fear were like invisible hands, gripping her throat tightly.
She couldn’t breathe.
In the darkness, every sound was infinitely magnified.
Outside the door, the faint sound of footsteps could be heard.
"Is anyone there?! Help! Somebody!"
Like a drowning person clutching at a straw, Holly Sinclair saw a sliver of hope and threw herself at the door, pounding on it and screaming with all her might.
"Heh heh heh..."
The lecherous laughter flooded her ears.
Holly Sinclair shuddered violently, her pupils contracting in shock.
Her cries for help caught in her throat.
She instinctively recoiled, scrambling back, back into the corner she was just in.
Fear was like a suffocating net, trapping her completely.
She couldn’t tell if her memories were making her hallucinate, or if the lecherous laughter was real.
She was terrified.
That laughter was her nightmare.
It was the shadow in her heart that she could never shake.
It had caused her countless sleepless nights, unable to find peace even with every light in the room turned on.
Hah~
A triumphant, cold laugh sounded from outside the door.
Holly Sinclair jolted violently again.
’It sounds like... Vivian Linton’s voice.’
Fear made it impossible to think, to distinguish what was real from what was fake.
"Heh heh heh..."
The lecherous laughter poured relentlessly into her ears.
"Don’t touch me... Go away, don’t come any closer... Don’t come any closer..."
Terrified, Holly Sinclair clamped her hands over her ears and curled up into a ball, sobbing helplessly.
Tears streamed down her face as she shivered uncontrollably.
「Outside the door.」
Vivian Linton held a phone, repeatedly playing a recording of the vile, lecherous laughter.
Hearing Holly Sinclair’s desperate sobs from inside, she couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from curling upward.
Although she couldn’t see Holly Sinclair’s miserable state, just hearing her cries was enough to know how terrified and pathetic she was right now.
’So satisfying!’
Vivian Linton was beaming, her heart swelling with glee.
’Bitch!’
’How dare you try to steal my man!’
’You don’t even know your own place. You think you can compete with me?’
Hah~
Vivian Linton gently stroked the edge of her phone with her thumb, a vicious, cold glint flashing in her eyes.
Why did she know Holly Sinclair was afraid of this kind of vile, lecherous laughter?
Because that incident all those years ago...
...was arranged by her!
...
「The Crestview Gardens」
Tristan Sterling sat in his car, the cigarette between his fingers glowing and fading in the dark.
His fierce, cold gaze was fixed on the window of Holly Sinclair’s apartment.
It was dark. No one was home.
The man raised his wrist to check his watch.
Nine o’clock at night.
’It’s so late. Why isn’t she home yet?’
’Where did she go?’
’Who is she with?’
’Justin Schofield?’
At this thought, Tristan Sterling viciously loosened his tie, his handsome face dark and terrifying.
The wicked fire in his body burned even hotter.
His phone suddenly rang. Tristan Sterling answered.
Connor Grant’s voice came from the other end—
"Second Master, I’ve found her. The building’s security footage shows that Miss Sinclair never left the company. She might still be working overtime..."
...
BANG!
With a loud crash, the warehouse door was viciously kicked open.
Warm light poured in, revealing the scene inside the warehouse in full.
Holly Sinclair was curled up on the cold floor like a broken porcelain doll, looking hopeless and pitiful.
She was soaked to the bone, as if she had been submerged in water.
Soaked strands of hair stuck to her cheeks. Her small, pale face was stained with tears.
There were dried bloodstains at the corner of her mouth.
That splash of vivid red made her already bloodless face look even more ghastly pale.
When the fear became too much to bear, she could only bite down hard on her lip, trying to drive away the terror inside.
But it was no use!
Even though she bit her lip until it bled, that terrifying, lecherous laughter still bored into her ears like a curse...
Sensing a light, Holly Sinclair mustered the last of her strength and struggled to open her eyes.
In the warm glow, a familiar figure appeared, silhouetted against the light.
Just like ten years ago.
’Am I dying?’
’To think I’m seeing Tristan Sterling coming to save me.’
’No, it can’t be him.’
’It must be a hallucination...’
Holly Sinclair gave a miserable smile.
Unable to hold on any longer, her eyes fluttered shut.
She fell into an endless darkness.
A tear slid silently from the corner of her eye.
"Holly? Holly!"
...
The rain poured down in sheets, accompanied by lightning and thunder.
「Azure Bay.」
Steam filled the bathroom.
Tristan Sterling placed the shivering little woman into the bathtub.
Her body was ice-cold.
Even though he had held her in his arms the entire way back, he hadn’t been able to chase away the chill from her body.
The warm water made the tight furrow in Holly Sinclair’s brow gradually relax.
Tristan Sterling reached out, wanting to change her out of her clothes.
But as soon as his hand touched her collar, she violently slapped it away.
"Don’t!"
Holly Sinclair’s eyes flew open. She cried out, her gaze filled with terror.
Tristan Sterling frowned.
Her eyes were open, but it was as if she couldn’t see.
Her gaze was unfocused, vacant, as if she couldn’t see him at all.
"Help me... Don’t touch me, ah, don’t touch me..."
Holly Sinclair shrieked, tears streaming wildly down her face.
Clearly, she was still trapped in her fear.
She hadn’t realized she was safe.
"Don’t be afraid. It’s me."
The man reached out and pulled her into his arms, comforting her softly.
"No! Don’t touch me!"
But she pushed him away desperately, her shrill voice filled with helplessness and despair.
As she struggled, water splashed everywhere from the tub.
Tristan Sterling’s clothes were soaked as well.
He simply took off his jacket, swung a long leg over the side, and got into the tub.
Holly Sinclair shrank into a ball, repeatedly crying, "Don’t come any closer..."
Seeing her in this pitiful, wretched state, Tristan Sterling’s heart inexplicably tightened.
He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her firmly. "Open your eyes and look clearly! It’s me, Tristan Sterling!"
His steady, powerful voice was like a warm beam of light, piercing the utter blackness of her world.
"Tristan Sterling..."
she murmured, finally showing a reaction.
Her tears flowed even more fiercely.
She threw herself into his arms.
