Emma Johnson pressed her lips together, drawing in several deep breaths, but she still couldn't calm down. The things that terrified her always seemed to come one after another. For a moment, she felt as if her fragile body could no longer bear the weight.
A sharp pain throbbed across her face. Her ears burned red and hot, and her entire body felt weak and exhausted. Emma gently raised her hand, pushing against Liam Williams' chest, ready to go to bed and lie down for a while.
But Liam reached out and grabbed her wrist.
He had just noticed the marks of strangulation on Emma's wrist. Looking more closely, he saw that her small face was swollen like two steamed buns, and the corner of her mouth was bruised.
The streetlight had been dim earlier, so Liam hadn't seen clearly. It turned out there were so many wounds on her body. He had thought there was only that thin scar on her face... It turned out she had suffered so much.
Liam stared at her, unable to identify what he was feeling.
Guilt? Pain? Or... heartache?
Emma's wrist was already very painful, and with Liam's clamp-like grip, her brow furrowed. She said in a weak voice, "Liam, you're hurting me..."
Liam snapped out of it and saw some pleading in her watery eyes. His whole body froze.
He let go of her wrist. Before Emma could react, Liam wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her tightly into his embrace.
Liam held her so tightly that it seemed he wanted to press her into his very body, making it hard for Emma to breathe.
Emma didn't know what was wrong with her. Her grievances, sadness, and fear all poured out at once. Her tears had just stopped, but with such a domineering hug, the defenses in her heart crumbled one by one.
Emma pressed her cheek against his warm chest. Listening to Liam's powerful and rapid heartbeat, she couldn't help but cry.
Liam wrapped his left arm tightly around her slender waist. With a little effort in his right hand, he pressed Emma's head against his chest and lowered his head, his chin and lips lightly brushing against her hair.
At this moment, how guilty and angry he felt. How much he hated the culprits who had kidnapped and hurt Emma. One day, he would make those people with ulterior motives pay a heavy price for their actions.
After a long time, Liam carefully bent down, picked up Emma's thin body, and gently placed her on the bed.
Every time he saw her tears, Liam's heart burned—so hot and stinging.
Liam gently kissed the tears on Emma's face with his lips and whispered softly, "If you're tired, go to sleep. I'm here with you..."
In truth, he wanted to say, I'm sorry, I didn't protect you well.
He also wanted to say, Emma, if something happened to you, what would he do?
But so many words all turned into silence. In Liam's eyes, a very quick flash of regret appeared, and then they returned to their original cold and elegant appearance.
Emma nodded gently and slowly closed her eyes.
After that terrifying kidnapping, her body had almost collapsed. Now that she was finally in bed, she fell asleep after a while.
Liam saw that she was asleep, and the worry hanging in his heart finally settled.
Her white and clean face, now under the light, was red and swollen, no longer as small and delicate as before.
It was truly damned. Who could be so cruel to such a lovely girl?
Liam wanted to raise his hand to touch her cheek, but then he noticed that his right hand had shed a lot of blood. The wound was almost scabbed over, but he had been indifferent to it.
You know, it was because of this hand injury that Liam had to quit the army.
But now, the old injury hadn't healed, and a new one had been added.
Emma's smile had deeply affected his mood—happiness, depression, or pain.
Liam got up quietly, found some gauze in the medicine box, and bandaged his right hand casually.
Then he sneaked into the kitchen, found two eggs in the refrigerator, and put them into a pot to boil.
Liam sat at the dining table waiting, took out a cigarette from his pocket, put it on his lips, and lit it.
He took a fierce drag of smoke, and the rich nicotine poured into his lungs, making him feel a burning pain. Liam coughed violently twice, then sat there with his left hand holding his head and his right hand holding the cigarette. His face looked a little pale and haggard.
He had never been so worried about a person before, and he had never been so furious and out of control.
He remembered that Liam had never smoked before. On one hand, smoking wasn't allowed in the army. On the other hand, he hated the strong smell of smoke, which seemed to make it hard for him to breathe.
Unexpectedly, now, he had begun to enjoy the excitement and pleasure that cigarettes brought. In the dead of night, Liam always liked to smoke quietly. In the smoky room, he exhaled lonely rings of smoke, watching them all disappear. It seemed that all his worries and anxieties would vanish with them.
Although Sophia Johnson and James Johnson had entered their room, they couldn't sleep at all. When they heard something in the kitchen, they secretly looked out.
"Why is my son-in-law smoking there?" Sophia tried to keep her voice down, afraid that Liam would hear her.
"Fight, or let's go and persuade him." James was also worried when he saw their state just now.
"Go and have a look..." As soon as Sophia finished speaking, they went to the opposite side of Liam, pulled out chairs, and sat down.
"Cough... Well, Ah Hao, why aren't you in bed so late?" Sophia took a look at Liam's right hand and said with some concern.
"Mom, Dad, how did you come out?" Liam quickly extinguished the cigarette in his hand and noticed that Sophia and James were staring at his right hand.
He hesitated for a moment, then slowly lowered his hand and put it under the table, trying not to let them see.
"What's the matter? Did you have such a big fight just now? Is Vivian okay?" James spoke slowly. What he cared about most was naturally his daughter. When a husband and wife quarrel, the man should always let the woman have her way.
After a pause, Liam thought it was better not to tell them.
Besides, when they were older, they tended to think wildly. If he told the elders that his daughter had been kidnapped in the last few hours...
What would happen? It was estimated that Sophia and James' blood pressure would rise instantly and never come down.