Chapter 210 Can't Hide
Caroline pushed Leopold away. "Alright, let's eat first."
Leopold grabbed her wrist, and Caroline let out a soft cry of pain.
He quickly let go. "Where are you hurt? Let me see."
'Can't hide it, there's no way to hide it!'
Caroline had no choice but to raise her hand. "I'm hurt here, but it's nothing serious."
Leopold took her hand and rolled up her sleeve, only to see gauze wrapped around her wrist.
He looked up and asked, "How bad is it that you need gauze?"
Caroline said, "Just a small cut."
"How long is the cut?"
Caroline gestured with two fingers. "Just this much, a tiny cut."
Leopold's face immediately showed a pained expression. Holding her wrist, he said, "You bled a lot, didn't you?"
"No," Caroline comforted him. "The cut wasn't deep, not much blood."
Leopold carefully cradled it. "How did this happen?"
Caroline said, "I accidentally cut myself."
"Where? At home?"
He meant if there were any safety hazards at home, he'd get someone to fix them right away. But Caroline worried Leopold might be catching on, her eyes darting around. "I got scratched outside. Stop asking, let's eat. I'm hungry."
She sat down in the dining chair. "Let me see if Mr. Wipere's cooking skills have gotten worse."
Leopold pulled out the chair next to her and sat down. "That's impossible."
The two ate and chatted, mostly about Leopold's time in Skyview City. After dinner, they worked together washing dishes in perfect sync.
Leopold brought a plate of cut fruit to the living room. Caroline was still wearing that conservative pajama set, sitting on the sofa with a face mask on. Leopold sat down next to Caroline, placed the fruit plate on the coffee table, picked up a small piece of watermelon with a fork, and brought it to her mouth. Caroline opened her mouth and ate it.
Caroline stared at the TV without blinking. Leopold gazed at her profile and said, "You look even more like an elder now."
Caroline turned her face. Because the face mask restricted her speech, she could only say with pursed lips,
"Don't make me kick you to the study to sleep at the happiest moment."
Leopold raised an eyebrow. "I didn't say anything just now."
Caroline smiled with narrowed eyes. "I didn't hear anything just now either."
Leopold replied, "Good. Take a step back, family harmony."
"Take a step forward, chaos and discord."
Leopold extended his hand. "Agree with Ms. Tudor's point. Happy cooperation."
Caroline shook his hand. "Appreciate Mr. Wipere's attitude. Win-win cooperation."
But after watching TV for a while, Leopold noticed she was sitting perfectly straight the whole time. "Aren't you tired?"
Caroline said, "Why would watching TV be tiring?"
Leopold pointed with his chin. "Aren't you tired sitting like that? Lean against the sofa."
Caroline slowly leaned back.
When her back touched the sofa, Leopold seemed to hear her holding back, letting out a muffled sound of pain from her nose.
He started observing her again. Caroline sensed it from the corner of her eye, but to keep Leopold from noticing anything unusual, she could only pretend to watch TV casually, while her back was actually hurting like hell.
The day she fell, her back only had a few bruises, but as time went on, the bruised skin expanded and the pain became more obvious. She had to sleep face down, and when she looked in the mirror while showering, her back looked as scary as a world map.
Leopold suddenly grabbed Caroline's shoulder, right on the injured spot.
Caroline frowned in pain.
Leopold let go. "Turn around."
Caroline looked at him. "Why?"
"I want to see your back."
Caroline fell silent.
"Turn around and let me see." He pulled up the hem of her pajamas. "Besides your wrist, where else are you hurt?"
Caroline was grateful for the face mask on her face, otherwise he would have noticed something was wrong long ago.
It was urgent now, she had to tell him.
Caroline said, "I have something to tell you."
Leopold said, "Talk later, let me check you first."
"No." Caroline held down her clothes. "Let me finish talking first, or I won't let you see."
Leopold had already guessed that what she was about to say must be related to her injuries. "Go ahead."
Caroline pulled Leopold's hand over and held it. "Let's agree first, you can't get angry, and you can't blame me."
"Okay." Leopold agreed readily.
Caroline began telling him about the day she discovered the electricity theft. When he heard she had gone to the hospital and had three stitches, Leopold looked at her hand with heartache, not daring to move it, worried about hurting her.
When she said her back was also injured, he was prepared, but actually lifting her clothes to see was a different feeling altogether.
No wonder she wore such a completely covered pajama set. The bruise on her shoulder had already spread to near the back of her neck. Her already thin back now had no less than six or seven bruises. Some places had scabbed over. The bruise on her waist also looked scary, you could tell she'd hit a round object. His hand was slightly cool, and when his fingertips touched her skin, Caroline's body tensed and flinched.
Leopold withdrew his hand. "Does it hurt?"
Caroline turned her head sideways and smiled. "It doesn't hurt, it's itchy."
How could it not hurt?
How could she still smile?
Leopold's heart ached so much he didn't know whether to hold her or not, and not holding her didn't feel right either.
He slowly lowered her clothes, his lips trembling with anger. "Where is that brick kiln? What's it called?"
Caroline turned around. "What are you going to do, go after them?"
Leopold's clenched fist pressed hard against the sofa, his other hand rubbing his forehead. "He hurt you, isn't it normal for me to go after him?"
"Why would you go after them? The police station got involved, they were detained, they compensated my medical expenses, and I gave them a letter of understanding. If we go after them again, we'd be in the wrong."
Caroline noticed that Leopold's face was cold and his eyes were fierce, a look she had never seen before.
"I don't care."
Leopold's breathing was noticeably heavier, a sign of anger.
Caroline held his hand. "Don't make me worry. It's all over, my injury is almost healed."
Leopold closed his eyes. All he could see in his mind were the images of the bruises and blood marks on her back, his heart aching as if someone was stabbing it with a knife over and over.
"Leopold." Caroline called him.
Leopold responded.
She said, "Didn't we agree beforehand, no getting angry, no blaming me?"
Leopold's gaze moved to her. His cold eyes softened when they met hers. "I'm not angry at you, and I don't blame you. I feel sorry for you."
Caroline smiled warmly. "I know, I know everything."
He wanted to hold her, but holding her shoulders would touch her injured areas. The arm he raised came down again.
Caroline continued to comfort him. "They've all been punished by law. If we go after them, what do you want to do? Beat them up? If we really hurt them, even though we're in the right, in the end, we'd be in the wrong, right?"
The person he treasured most had been hurt and even got three stitches. The more Leopold thought about it, the more his heart ached. Gently stroking her hand, he said, "Why didn't you tell me the day you got hurt?"
Caroline asked, "If I told you, what would you have done?"
Leopold answered without hesitation, "Do you even need to ask? I would have flown back immediately."
Caroline smiled. "That's exactly why I didn't tell you."