Chapter 198 Caroline, I Am Edith
"Mrs. Hamilton!" Liam spun around sharply.
"Listen! I'm Mr. Hamilton's chief assistant. Plenty of people in Grandhaven know who I am. If they catch me, they'll think you're still on the island, or they'll use me as an important hostage. Either way, it'll buy you time."
"No! Liam, you can't do this!"
Caroline instantly understood his intention. She shook her head in horror, her eyes filling with tears.
"There's no time!"
Liam cut her off sharply. He quickly pulled out a waterproof document bag from his inner pocket and shoved it into Felix's hands.
"Felix! This contains proof and keys to all of Mr. Hamilton's assets in Valloria, plus new identity documents. Take Mrs. Hamilton and Kenna, and head southeast at full speed. Roughly eighty nautical miles away there's an uninhabited reef where you can hide temporarily. Then find a way to get to Valloria. Remember the route."
He gripped Felix's shoulder hard. "Felix, as Mr. Hamilton's chief assistant, I'm ordering you—swear on your life that you'll escort Mrs. Hamilton and Miss Hamilton to safety, until they're completely safe."
Felix's body shook, but there was no time to hesitate.
"Alright!" He nodded firmly.
"I, Felix, swear on my life that as long as I have breath in my body, I'll protect Mrs. Hamilton and Miss Hamilton. If I break this oath, I deserve no mercy."
Liam patted his shoulder, glanced reluctantly at Caroline and the child in her arms, then drew the pistol from his waist and resolutely turned to leave.
Caroline, who had been frozen in shock, suddenly snapped back to reality.
The island was blown up, Alexander wasn't there—who else could they be targeting?
Caroline broke down completely.
"Liam! No! Come with us!"
How could innocent people be dragged into all this sin?
She tried to rush forward, but Felix held her back firmly.
She could only watch helplessly as Liam's figure passed through the smoke, growing smaller and smaller, until he finally disappeared.
This goodbye was forever.
That Liam who always stood silently behind Alexander, who had secretly looked after her these past five years behind Alexander's back, would never come back.
"Mrs. Hamilton, forgive me!"
Felix gritted his teeth and, together with Kenna, forcibly pushed the nearly collapsed Caroline onto the speedboat.
However, less than half an hour into their journey, Felix spotted a signal on the radar—a ship was flanking them from behind.
Clearly the pursuers had found them.
The next second, a small black dot appeared in the distance.
The pursuers were here!
"Hold on tight!"
Felix jerked the wheel. Bullets whistled past the side of the boat.
But their pursuers' boat was faster and had more firepower.
Seeing they couldn't shake them off, Felix made a snap decision. He abandoned the original route and headed toward an area full of hidden reefs and an abandoned dock.
A dull thud—the speedboat lurched violently as a bullet hit the side, sending wood splinters flying.
Felix grunted, his body swaying, then gripped the wheel tightly again.
Finally, Felix temporarily lost the pursuers and risked crashing the speedboat onto a long-abandoned small dock.
"Quick! Get off! Into the woods!"
Felix jumped off first, then turned back to help Caroline and Kenna down from the unstable boat.
He led them winding through the jungle in a difficult trek, twisting and turning, until they finally reached a hidden, dilapidated wooden cabin.
"We're safe for now."
Felix used his body to ram open the creaking wooden door, pushing Caroline and Kenna inside first, then ducking in himself and closing the door.
Caroline, still shaken, was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she saw Felix slowly slide down the door panel to sit on the ground. A dark, spreading stain was rapidly forming across the side of his dark shirt.
Blood.
"Felix! You've been shot!" Kenna cried out.
Caroline's mind snapped into focus when she heard this.
Shot—that was life-threatening.
"Kenna, medical kit! Quick!"
"It's no use... Mrs. Hamilton..." Felix weakly raised his hand to stop her. "I can't hold on..."
Felix's eyes were already losing focus, but he still managed a faint smile for Caroline.
"Don't cry, Mrs. Hamilton... This life... was yours to begin with..."
His thoughts seemed to drift away, his voice growing fainter.
"Back then, you went into that hell alone for me... And you sent me to that suburban care facility to protect me from the Neville Family's retaliation. You saved me... That's when I swore this life belonged to you... I'm sorry I couldn't go further with you..."
He gently pushed the waterproof document bag, now stained with blood, toward her and instructed Kenna.
"Kenna, I checked the speedboat, there's enough fuel. When things die down, take Mrs. Hamilton and go east, around the sea minefield, to international waters, find a ship."
"Felix! Hang in there! Don't sleep! We'll find a doctor! There must be a way!"
Caroline sobbed as she pressed her hands over his bleeding wound, but it was futile.
Had she caused another person's death?
Felix stared vacantly at the light streaming through the damaged roof of the cabin, murmuring.
"Miss Hamilton... I'd like to... hear one more time... that song you used to sing on the rooftop at the Neville Family estate... It was so beautiful..."
Caroline finally broke down in tears.
She choked up as she hummed the familiar tune, its melody painting a vast prairie where buffalo and antelope roamed freely under a clear, tranquil sky free from sorrow.
Kenna covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face.
Felix's breathing had long since stopped, yet Caroline continued humming tirelessly.
After some time, the cabin door was slowly pushed open from outside.
Caroline's singing stopped abruptly.
Kenna instantly went on alert, glaring at the doorway. "Who?! Who are you?!"
Outside the door, a figure dressed entirely in black stood quietly.
The person didn't speak, just slowly walked in.
"Stop! Don't come any closer!" Kenna shouted, spreading her arms to shield Caroline and the baby behind her.
The figure finally stopped a few steps away from them.
Then, under Kenna's suspicious gaze, she slowly raised her hand and removed her mask.
A face badly scarred by fire was suddenly exposed in the dim light.
Kenna gasped.
The person looked at Caroline, her hoarse voice breaking the silence.
"Caroline... don't you recognize me?"
Caroline's eyelashes trembled, and she finally slowly raised her eyes.
On that unrecognizable face were a pair of extremely familiar eyes.
Edith.
Kenna asked in disbelief, "You... you're... Ms. Edith Neville?"
Edith ignored Kenna.
She took a gentle step forward, crouched down, and lowered her gaze to the bundle beside Caroline.
"This child is beautiful... looks like you."