“Eat something first,” Gordon said, offering her some food.
Lillian hadn’t eaten properly for days and couldn’t stomach anything, shaking her head.
“You need to eat, even if you don’t feel like it. You’ll need the energy to find your grandmother,” Gordon insisted. “The helicopter’s here.”
He had already heard it approaching.
Gordon led Lillian up the stairs to the second-floor deck. “My bodyguard will meet you there. Tell them it’s on my orders to give you a phone. Contact whoever you need and have them take you to your grandmother.”
“Thank you!” Lillian’s hair was tousled by the night wind, and she looked frail, as if the wind could blow her away.
The yacht was too small for the helicopter to land, so they had to lower a rope ladder. Gordon grabbed it and said to her, “Climb up.”
Lillian clutched the rope ladder and began to ascend, but before she could get far, a bright light shone directly on them. The spotlight from the island’s watchtower was fixed on their position.
“They’ve spotted us!” Lillian cried out in shock and anger.
“Go quickly!” Gordon urged.
Lillian tried to climb higher, but a second light targeted them, and even three helicopters were heading straight from the island.
“Lillian! Where do you think you’re going?” Conrad’s voice echoed across the vast sea through the speakers, reaching her ears.
Her eyes, dried out by the sea breeze, stubbornly stared in the direction of the island. “We can’t escape.”
Gordon pressed his lips together. “I’ll talk to him. He might not have considered your grandmother’s situation since he was unconscious.”
Lillian shook her head, her gaze fixed on the approaching helicopters and the lights persistently shining on the yacht. Then, she let go of the rope and jumped down, landing at the very edge of the deck.
Gordon was stunned. “Lillian, what are you doing?”
Her long hair whipped around in the wind as Lillian continued to look toward the island. “I don’t know. But this is the only chance I have to try.”
Before Gordon could rush to her, Conrad’s angry shout pierced the air. “Lillian!”
Like a falling white butterfly, Lillian, in her thin nurse’s uniform, leaped into the dark, churning sea.
Conrad smashed the intercom, trying to rush down despite his injuries. George and Andrew held him back as his wounds reopened, and his eyes burned with fury.
“Lillian!” he roared, barely restrained by the others.
“What are you standing there for? Go help! If Lillian dies, you might as well not live either!” George shouted at the others.
******
Cold…
So cold…
Lillian felt as though she was alternately soaking in the icy sea and being scalded in a fiery furnace. Her mind was foggy, her consciousness drifting. It felt harder to live than to die.
In her dream, warm hands gently stroked her forehead, softly caressing her cheeks. “Grandma… is that you?”
“I miss you so much,” she murmured.
Conrad, holding her from behind, carefully moistened her parched lips with a cotton swab.
“Why hasn’t she woken up yet? Didn’t they say she was rescued in time?” Conrad fumed, his temper rising again.
George, exasperated, replied, “She was already weak, barely sustained by nutrient fluids. She’s not like you; she needs time to recover. Can you be reasonable for once?”
Conrad’s brow remained furrowed, unrelenting.
“It’s time for your medication,” George reminded him, but Conrad acted as if he hadn’t heard, refusing to leave Lillian’s side.
Angry, George snapped, “If you don’t take your meds, neither will she. Do you both want to die here as some tragic pair? Are you planning to return or not?”
Reluctantly, Conrad took his medicine in one go.
When Gordon entered, Conrad gently laid Lillian down and walked straight up to Gordon, landing a punch without holding back, despite his injuries.
Gordon’s head turned with the impact, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, glaring at Conrad before charging back at him.
The fight between the men was raw, with no pretense, just brutal blows.
“Keep at it if you want to kill each other. Is this helping anyone?” George’s cold voice cut through the tension.
Gordon spat out more blood, letting go of Conrad’s collar. “You’re crazy!”
Conrad, eyes red with fury, sneered coldly, “She jumped into the sea right under your nose. I guess you don’t need that leg anymore.”
Gordon wanted to retort that he hadn’t lived in a world of schemes and backstabbing like Conrad had, with years of accumulated experience, but he held his tongue, realizing it was too harsh.
“You sure know how to criticize me,” Gordon said. “What have you pushed her to? Conrad, don’t blame me for not warning you. If anything happens to her grandmother, think about the consequences before you act.”
“Does my relationship with her really concern you?” Conrad snapped, clearly frustrated.
Gordon smirked, glancing at Lillian. “I may not have the right to interfere, because it’s not that I can’t help Lillian-it’s that she just can’t bring herself to truly leave. Conrad, if you let go, she would have the freedom she’s wanted.”
The room fell silent after Gordon spoke.
Conrad knew exactly what Gordon meant. He knew Lillian had always wanted to leave. He was frustrated that despite doing everything he could for her, she still wanted to go, and her avoidance only added to his anger. But what frustrated him the most was how he couldn’t bring himself to fully let go of her, no matter how bad things got.
She was willing to walk away from him, but he couldn’t let go of her.
He felt utterly defeated in his relationship with Lillian.
“Conrad, you need to remember, that once you’re in this position, you must let go of everything that holds you back. Only by controlling everything can you ensure victory. You can’t afford to have any weakness-it could destroy you,” Gordon said.
He’d been raised to calculate and manipulate, and those instincts were deeply ingrained in him.
Kenneth didn’t like him as a son, and Conrad had no desire for that man as his father. He slowly stripped away Kenneth’s power, pushing him further down while the older man could do nothing but seethe in helpless rage. But with Lillian, whether it was through manipulation or physical force, he had even lowered his guard. She could give up on him just like that.
He knew she wanted to leave, to discard him, but he couldn’t shake the feeling.
It wasn’t just Lillian he couldn’t let go of. What she had done, who had made her do it, none of that mattered. What mattered was that she was here, with him, near him-more important than anything else.
Conrad didn’t say anything, but he touched Lillian’s forehead to check her temperature and suddenly remembered her grandmother.
“George, is her grandmother still at the hospital at Boyd Town? Have you heard from her recently?” Conrad asked.
George replied, “The island’s communications are completely shut down. You haven’t been able to contact anyone on the mainland, so how could the hospital reach me?”