Yulia's POV:
"Your husband and I are sleeping together in room 103. Yulia Rodney, you are not only cheap but useless? You can't even hold on to a man and own neither his body nor his heart, yet you are still trying to cling to the title of Mrs. Mullally."
Standing by the door of room 103, I read the text message on my phone once more, I dug my nails unconsciously into my palm, creating crescents of blood.
Did it hurt? It hurt just about right. I looked down at my reflection on the mobile phone screen to see a pale face. Instead of looking like a delicate beauty, I more closely resemble a patient who had lost too much blood.
Just as I was willing myself to calm down, I heard the sound of the door opening.
And my usual indifferent expression returned to my face.
Out walked Ryan Mullally with his sensuous assistant, Christina Baker, in his arms.
Seeing me, he didn't panic at all but was instead in high spirits. "Ah, here she is to catch me in the act yet again. Why didn't you come in? It's so hot out here. Aren't you tired of standing there?"
"I was worried that you couldn't get your little thing up if you saw me. How guilty would I feel then." Even though my heart was aching, I refused to show weakness.
When Ryan heard my bard, the little finger of his right hand twitched, which I knew for a fact was a sign of his anger. Our years of marriage hadn't been for nothing, as I now knew him like the back of my hand.
"Yulia, you were the one who messed everything up, so why don't you dial down that passive-aggressive tone of yours?" Ryan put away his previous suave attitude.
"Ha." I couldn't help but sneer.
Three years ago, Ryan's ex-girlfriend, who had been so maniacally in love with him, had kidnapped me, the so-called Mrs. Mullally. Even though I finally escaped, the tragedy had just begun as my virginity was taken away by a strange masked man.
I kept muttering Ryan's name at that time, hoping that he could magically appear to save me, and that was then I caught sight of his car. I thought that my prayer had been heard by God. Little had I known that he was there for other purposes.
Since the car was parked not far away from me, I saw through the window that he was having sex with another woman. Not just any woman but the very same woman who'd kidnapped me.
In an instant, all the strength in my body was drained and I gave up resisting, allowing the masked man to suck the life out of me.
"So, it wasn't God who heard my prayer, but the Devil himself." I closed my eyes as tears dripped from the corners of my eyes. At that point, even the masked man stopped in his act and gently kissed them away.
Ha! How pathetic I was! Even the man on top of me pitied me. My heart felt hollowed out.
The next thing I knew, I'd lost consciousness. When I woke up, afraid that I would worsen my mother's illness, I chose to sweep the episode under the rug and silently took birth control pills. With each reliving of what I had seen and experienced that day, the hole in my heart would grow bigger and bigger, constantly chipping away my love for that man.
"Well, forgive me if I upset you in any way. After being married to you for so long, I have had to learn to protect myself in a passive-aggressive way." Putting up a brave front, I raised my chin.
Ryan's eyes turned cold. "Look, just cut to the chase. Don't tell me that you're here just to make things difficult for me. Don't force me to be rude to you."
"I did come here on purpose to make things difficult for you..." I wanted to take revenge and vent the pain in my heart.
"F*ck off!" Ryan barked at me before I could finish.
The ghost of a cold smile played on my lips. I knew that any remaining embers of love for him in my heart had been snuffed out.
I took out a document from my bag and handed it to Ryan.
"What is this?" Instead of taking it, Ryan asked cautiously.
"It's about her." I nodded at his assistant but kept my eyes on him. I disdained to look at such a person.
"What's wrong with me?" Christina fearlessly leaned over and hugged Ryan's arm, trying to divert his attention.
"You're very famous in the city, but unfortunately, not in a good way. 80 percent of the wealthy businessmen have slept with you. Oh, by the way, one of them just found out that he is HIV-positive last month." I waved the document in her face.
Christina's face instantly blanched, whether because she was afraid of Ryan's rage or the possibility that she had contracted that disease, I did not know. However, all of this had nothing to do with me.
"You guys must have used condoms, right? If you didn't, I can introduce you to a doctor." I continued to rub salt into her wound.
Ryan yanked the document from my hands, his eyes narrowed. I knew that this was a prelude to his losing his temper.
Sure enough, the next second the document smacked my face. I should have seen that coming. It hurt more than I had imagined.
"You always know which buttons to push with me," Ryan snarled.
"Of course, I expect you to live the rest of your life unhappily ever after," I sneered.
He turned around and strode away. I knew that he would spend the night with another woman and smell like her, just like countless days and nights in the past.
In his eyes, I was no match for his filthy assistant.
Thinking of this, I feel tears welling up in my eyes.
I bit my lips hard, trying not to let my tears fall.
While I was distracted and holding back my tears, Christina slapped me, and I stumbled a few steps back. "Do you think you can win his heart just because you've ruined my plan?"
The pain snapped me back to my senses and my tears dried up, I calmed down and raised my head, glaring at her.
"If you like that jerk, just take him." I returned the slap. "But you have to remember that I'm not someone who will put up with your sh*t."
"Then why haven't you divorced yet?" Christina asked aggressively but stayed her hand as if she had been intimidated by my imposing manner.
"You don't have the right to know what happened between him and me," I replied coldly. "This information will be exposed on the Internet tomorrow. Take care of yourself."
Not waiting to watch Christina's reaction, I turned and left the hotel.
It was late at night, and the night wind was a little cold. I straightened out my clothes and walked aimlessly on the road.
......
I didn't want to go back to my empty room, so I decided to go to the hospital and rest in the duty room.
As soon as I arrived at the office, a soldier ran over with a serious look on his face and asked anxiously, "Oh, thank god! Are you a gynecologist?"
Feeling the anxiety rolling off the man, I quickly stood up and put on my white coat. "What's the matter?"
"There's a pregnant woman in the vicinity who has been held hostage. Her water broke, and the situation is urgent. She needs to be given first aid. Please come with me," The soldier quickly explained.
I quickly packed up my first aid kit and rushed to the scene with the soldier.
I was taken to room 802, a command center of sorts. 801, the room opposite, was where the woman was held.
Dozens of grim-faced soldiers were scattered around the corridor, waiting for instructions from their superiors.
The first thing I noticed when I entered the room was the man in charge. He looked like a natural-born leader with sharp eyes and a deep baritone voice.
While I was waiting by the side, I noticed that there were even colonels among the people who were taking orders from him.
What was his identity? A general? I couldn't help but guess.
The man seemed to have noticed my gaze, and when he turned his head to look at me, I was taken aback by the trace of hostility in his eyes.
Although I was shocked, I held my ground and forced myself to meet his eyes.
The man approached and I had to tilt my head back to keep my eyes on him as his tall figure enveloped me. The sense of oppression was so familiar that it somehow reminded me of the strange man from that night. Subconsciously, a shiver of fear went down my spine.
"Focus," he ordered.
"I am a doctor, not a criminal. You don't need to speak like that to me." I was a little dissatisfied with his tone.
"Get another doctor." this man turned his head and ordered his men.
"What? Why can't it be me?" I was confused. After hurrying me over, they just wanted to send me away?
"There are three drug dealers in there. All of them have the blood of many innocents on their hands. Do you have the guts to face them?" the man said coldly.
"Why wouldn't I?" I raised my chin, trying to prove that I could.
"Think about it before you answer me. Not only your life is at stake here, but also that of the pregnant woman inside." he looked at me coldly. When his breath fell on the tip of my nose, my heart seemed to skip a beat.
"I wouldn't have come if I was afraid of death." On the way, the soldier had briefed me on the matter, and I had confidence in myself.
He didn't say a word and just looked at me as if he wanted to see through my determination.
I stared back stubbornly into his eyes. I could make out my reflection in his bright eyes.
"Sir! The pregnant woman has fainted."
I knew better than anyone else how dangerous the situation was.
Knowing how important immediate critical care was for the woman, I didn't hesitate to put my life on the line.
"If I fail, you can punish me however you see fit! Whether I go to jail or the military court, the decision is yours to make."
"Alright." After a little pause, the man nodded and said, "I‘m Kaleb Clive. I'll accompany you inside later as your 'assistant,' and I hope, you'll still be as calm as you claimed to be afterwards."
