“Well, it’s rare to have a peaceful moment like this,” Echo said, stretching her stomach. “Nothing to do, and it’s kind of strange.”
With Ryan, it was always danger and chaos-battles, fire, and everything in between. But now, on this deserted island, they could just sit and do nothing. It felt strange, but in a way, it was boring. There was nothing here.
Cobra burst out laughing as soon as he heard that, and Bill, grinning, said, “If you’re so bored, why don’t you go into the water and learn to swim? Don’t you think it’s embarrassing that you’re the only one who can’t do it?”
Echo immediately raised an eyebrow and said bluntly, “No thanks, I’m good as I am.”
Although she knew Bill and the others meant well, she understood that in the Dark Family, even the smallest weakness could be deadly. Not to mention, her fear of water was a huge flaw-if anyone else knew about it, they could just toss her into the water and she wouldn’t stand a chance. But the truth was, she really didn’t like water, especially after all the rough seas they’d been through. She was actually starting to fear it.
“Take a fifteen-minute break,” Ryan said, glancing at Echo.
As soon as Echo finished her meal and set down the food, she heard Ryan’s words. She raised an eyebrow and looked at him, noticing the clear, intense look in his eyes. She quickly said, “I’m full. I’m going to go give Ivy a massage.”
And with that, she jumped up, heading toward where Ivy was.
However, she was fast, but Ryan was faster. Before she could even take a full leap, Ryan shot out his hand and grabbed the back of her collar, yanking her back down and lifting her off the ground.
“It seems like you’re in good spirits, so you don’t need a break,” Ryan said, not waiting for Echo to respond. He stood up, holding her, and started walking toward the water.
Echo immediately screamed, “I don’t want to learn!”
“You don’t have a choice,” came Ryan’s cold, domineering voice on the wind.
Bill, Cobra, and the others watched as Echo struggled in Ryan’s grip, but it was useless, making them laugh out loud.
Learning to swim was for her own good. With time, space, and opportunity on their side, there was no escaping it now.
Michael watched the scene unfold, unsure whether to laugh or not. On this strange island, Ryan and the others didn’t seem at all scared, even though they were supposed to be.
Now, here was Ryan, teaching Echo to swim. Michael couldn’t decide if Ryan was clueless about the situation or just too cocky and overconfident. He was pretty sure it was the latter.
Watching Echo, who had been so defiant, now completely under Ryan’s control, Michael slowly shook his head.
“Do you want to jump in yourself, or do I throw you in?” Ryan asked, looking down at Echo, who was holding onto him tightly. He didn’t mind her clinging to him, but he couldn’t allow her to have such a major weakness.
Echo looked up into Ryan’s eyes, about to beg and maybe even try to charm her way out of it, but when she saw the serious, unwavering expression on his face, she knew it wouldn’t work. With a sigh, she reluctantly let go of him.
“I’ll go in myself,” she muttered.
Ryan’s voice was firm as he said, “If you can’t learn, don’t come back up.”
With that, he let go, lowering her into the shallow water and standing off to the side, arms crossed, watching coldly.
Echo realized there was no way out, and with a grimace, she slowly began to sink.
Ryan, seeing this, snapped, “I told you to learn to swim, not dive!” He stepped forward, grabbed her by the neck, and lifted her back up.
Echo immediately felt herself lose her footing and began to float, panic setting in as she flailed around in the water. She splashed water everywhere, swallowing several mouthfuls of seawater. If Ryan hadn’t grabbed her head and pulled it out of the water, she probably would’ve swallowed a lot more.
“Cough, cough… Are you trying to kill me…?” Echo’s words were cut off when Ryan threw her back into the water.
By the shallow waters near the beach, Echo was flailing around, splashing water everywhere, while Ryan stood beside her. When he saw she was close to drowning, barely able to catch a breath, he grabbed her head to let her get some air before tossing her back in. His expression was getting darker and darker by the second.
The Dark Family members, who had once looked up to Echo after the pyramid incident and respected her greatly, couldn’t bear to watch anymore. They all lowered their heads, afraid of breaking their long-standing, cold facades.
It was too embarrassing-way too embarrassing.
Michael, torn between laughing and worrying, said with concern, “Mr. Ryan, is he even going to teach her? It looks like she’s about to drown.”
Though he knew Ryan wouldn’t hurt Echo, the situation was still looking pretty dangerous.
Cobra’s grin had already stretched ear to ear, and he chuckled darkly, “Oh, he knows how to teach her. We’re all taught by Boss.”
Michael immediately gave Cobra a skeptical once-over.
Bill nodded and laughed, “Just throw her in the water, and she’ll learn. Honestly, Boss is being pretty patient and merciful today.”
Michael, hearing this, immediately shot to his feet and said, “I’ll go teach her instead. At this rate, she’s not gonna make it.”
“I’ll go. You should sit down,” Hawk said, smiling faintly as he stood up and walked over.
Michael raised an eyebrow but sat back down. He knew Ryan didn’t like him, and Hawk probably had better luck teaching her anyway.
“Boss, maybe I should teach her,” Hawk said with a grin, eyeing Echo struggling in the water.
Ryan doesn’t teach anyone to swim. If I teach her, she’ll never learn in this lifetime.
Ryan glanced at Hawk and snorted coldly, his face darkening even more as he glared at Echo. He couldn’t believe how bad she was with water.
Without Ryan’s oppressive presence and with the misguided instruction from Hawk, Echo’s progress was rapid. After half an hour, she was nearly swimming on her own. Meanwhile, Ryan’s face had turned ashen. He couldn’t teach her, but someone else could?
“My stomach feels so full,” Echo grumbled, plopping down on a rock in the water.
She was out of breath and rubbing her stomach, which felt bloated from all the seawater she had swallowed. It’s so salty.
Hawk watched her with a smile. “Wait until you-”
But before he could finish his sentence, a rustling sound came from the trees in the distance. It was faint, but in the silence of the island, no one could miss it.
The Dark Family members, who had been resting with their eyes closed on the sand, instantly sprang to their feet, alert, weapons drawn. Their movements were as quick and fluid as leopards, a complete shift from their previous relaxed posture.
Ryan’s face darkened slightly, his anger subsiding as he focused. There was no wind to make the trees rustle like that, and from his angle, it didn’t look like the branches were moving either. The sound was suspicious.
“What’s that sound?” Echo asked, looking up at the trees, her curiosity piqued.