Chapter 132
James looked around and started tidying up the place.
He dragged Patrick to a corner and secured him with more rope.
Then he found some relatively dry wooden boards and stripped off Patrick's clothes to lay them on the ground.
"You two sit here," he said. "I'll look for something to start a fire with."
He rummaged around the room for a while and actually found some dry firewood and a broken metal bucket.
After lighting it with his lighter, the faint firelight illuminated the dim room.
The three of us sat around the fire, no one saying a word.
The sound of rain filled the air, occasionally mixed with thunder.
"Are you cold?" James suddenly asked me.
I shook my head. Actually, I was a bit cold, but I didn't tell the truth.
James had already taken off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders without asking.
The jacket still carried his body warmth, nice and warm.
"Liliana, move closer. Three people huddled together will be warmer," James said.
Liliana obediently moved over, and the three of us sat pressed together like this, by the fire in this broken-down house, listening to the storm raging outside.
Drowsiness slowly crept over me. I forced myself to stay awake, but my eyelids grew heavier and heavier.
Half-asleep, I felt someone gently put their arm around my shoulder, letting me lean into a warm embrace.
That embrace felt familiar and safe.
I finally couldn't resist the sleepiness and fell into a deep sleep.
I was woken up by Liliana's scream.
"James! What are you doing?"
I opened my eyes suddenly and found myself lying in James's arms.
His arm was around me, we were leaning against each other, sleeping on the ground covered with clothes.
Liliana was standing in front of us, looking really angry.
James frowned. "What are you freaking out about so early in the morning?"
Liliana pointed at us. "You two! How can you sleep holding each other like that! You're already divorced, aren't you taking advantage of her?"
James rubbed his temples, clearly not fully awake yet. "It was so cold last night. Three people huddled together to keep warm—what's the problem?"
"Does keeping warm require hugging that tight?" Liliana wouldn't let it go.
Seeing James act like it was perfectly normal, Liliana got even angrier and reached out to push him. "You stay away from Sophia!"
She used too much force. Caught off guard, James was pushed backward, and the back of his head hit the wall.
The air instantly went quiet.
James's expression darkened at a visible speed.
Liliana was startled, but she still talked tough. "You and Sophia are divorced; you should keep your distance! As Sophia's good friend, I have a duty to protect her!"
"Protect her?" James slowly stood up. He was more than a head taller than Liliana, and now, looking down at her from above, his presence was intimidating. "If it wasn't for your bleeding heart yesterday, would you two have run into this mess?"
"If I hadn't followed you, you might already be turned into dolls by now! And you still have the nerve to talk about protecting her?"
Liliana was left speechless, her face turning bright red, but she still argued, "Well... I didn't do it on purpose! How was I supposed to know that guy was a psycho!"
"Not knowing means you can just trust random strangers?" James continued scolding. "Liliana, you're twenty-two years old, not twelve! Can you use your brain a little!"
"You... you're the one without a brain!" Liliana talked back, timid yet fierce. "All you do is yell at me! Can't you talk nicely?"
"If I talk nicely, will you listen to me?"
Liliana acted unreasonably. "What kind of brother are you! All you do is bully me!"
Seeing James and Liliana about to argue again, I quickly stood up to smooth things over. "Okay, okay, stop fighting. Liliana was just worried about me."
"Um, is your head okay?"
James touched the back of his head, and his hand came away with some blood on it.
His head was injured.
Seeing the blood, Liliana immediately backed down, her voice getting quieter. "I'm... I'm sorry, James. I didn't mean to..."
James gave her a cold glance and said nothing.
There was nothing here to treat the wound with. The priority was to get back to the city as soon as possible.
"Let's call the police first," I said.
James nodded and took out his phone.
Fortunately, although the signal here was poor, it wasn't completely gone.
The police arrived quickly. Seeing the scene inside the house, the officers' faces all turned serious.
Patrick was still laughing strangely when he was taken away, muttering, "My dolls."
We were taken to the police station to give statements, and James's injury was also treated.
By the time we finished giving our statements, it was almost noon.
Standing at the entrance of the police station, James said, "I'll drive you back."
"No need." I immediately refused. "I can just take a taxi back myself."
James looked at me. "Can't I just give you a ride?"
I pressed my lips together and said quietly, "Amelia is pregnant now and emotionally unstable. You've been gone all night; she must be worried. You should go back and check on her soon, so she doesn't overthink things again."
James's expression darkened. "Sophia, I really have nothing to do with her."
"Whether you do or not doesn't matter anymore." I looked up at him. "James, we're already divorced. You don't have any obligation to take care of me anymore."
James opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end just let out a tired sigh.
Just then, his phone rang.
James answered with a frown. "Hello?"
The voice on the other end was loud—even standing nearby, I could vaguely hear Amelia's tearful voice. "James, where are you? Why didn't you come home all night? I called you so many times, and you didn't answer..."
"I'm out handling something." James was very cold.
"What could need handling for a whole night? James, are you with Sophia?" Amelia's tone became shrill. "I knew it! She's clinging to you again, isn't she? Don't forget, you two are already divorced!"
"Amelia! My business is none of your concern."
"How can I not be concerned? I'm carrying your child!" Amelia cried out. "James, do you have no conscience?"
James's voice turned cold as ice. "Whose child that really is, you know in your heart."
Amelia, on the other end, went quiet.
A few seconds later, Amelia's voice came through again, this time cautiously. "James, what... what do you mean? Did you hear some gossip? Don't believe what other people say. The child is really yours..."
"Enough." James cut her off. "I still have things to do. I'm hanging up."
He hung up the phone and looked at me, his eyes complicated.
"You saw that. You know what kind of person Amelia really is. If you really care about me, then just go, stay far away from me."
James was silent for a long time, then finally nodded. "Okay, then I'll just watch you get in the car. That should be fine, right?"
He hailed a taxi and watched as Liliana and I got in.
Before the car started, he tapped on the window.
I rolled down the window and looked at him.
"Sophia," he said. "Take care of yourself and the baby."
My heart jolted.
He stepped back and said to the driver, "Please drive carefully."
The car pulled away from the police station.
I watched James in the rearview mirror, still standing in the same spot, his figure getting smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared.
Liliana held my hand. "Sophia, are you okay?"
"I'm fine." I shook my head and leaned on her shoulder. "Just a bit tired."