Dark Romance: A Cruel Obsession

Vilem couldn’t accompany Vivian for long, as he had an urgent task and had to leave immediately, without time to see Vivian off.

Vilem said to Vivian, “We’ll meet in Hawaii.”

Vivian also looked forward to meeting him in Hawaii, “Let’s meet in Hawaii, Vilem. Take care.”

“You too, may God bless you.”

Vilem bid her farewell and walked away.

The ward regained its calm. Vivian felt tired, wanting to rest, yet worried about Shelley.

She got out of bed, putting on the coat by the bedside.Material © of NôvelDrama.Org.

Mare remained outside the door, not leaving unless necessary.

After Vilem left, there were no visitors in the ward. He thought Vivian might need to rest, but before long, the ward door opened from the inside.

Mare looked at Vivian in confusion, “Where are you going?”

“Can you tell me where Shelley is having surgery?” Vivian zipped up her coat, saying to him, “I want to go and see.”

“Alajos has already gone.” The building where Shelley was having surgery was some distance from theirs, and the security there wasn’t as good as here. Mare was not at ease. “You can wait a little longer; Alajos will call.”

“I know, but it’s been a long time, and I’m worried.” Vivian walked out of the ward towards the elevator. “I’ll just go and see.”

“You should stay here.” Mare blocked her way. “Only here is safe. Vivian, your situation is very dangerous right now. We need to be more careful.”

“But…” Vivian looked in the direction of the elevator. “Isn’t Richard dead?”

“Yes, Richard is dead. But do you really think Richard is your biggest enemy?”

Mare’s words exploded like a bomb in Vivian’s mind without any warning. She stared at Mare in surprise, wanting to refute, yet feeling inadequate.

She silently took a step back, her eyes evasive. “I don’t know.”

“Why are you so afraid of Joseph?” Mare said. “In fact, you know everything.”

“I don’t…” Vivian wanted to argue, but Mare’s phone rang at that moment, interrupting their conversation.

Mare answered the phone immediately; it was Alajos calling.

During the call, Mare’s expression did not change much, making it impossible for Vivian, although anxious, to glean any information about Shelley from his expression.

At this point, Mare handed her the phone. “Alajos wants to talk to you.”

Vivian took it apprehensively. “Alajos, Shelley…”

“The surgery was a success.” Alajos announced the good news to her. “The doctors are already making arrangements; she will be transferred to your building’s ward soon. Mare will take you there.”

Upon hearing that Shelley was fine, Vivian finally breathed a sigh of relief. “And Festus?”

At the mention of Festus, Alajos fell silent for a moment before saying heavily, “Festus is seriously injured; he may need to be observed in the ICU for a few days.”

Vivian’s heart sank; the joy of Shelley’s well-being was somewhat overshadowed. “How did this happen?”

“He was in a car accident; broken ribs punctured his spleen,” Alajos frowned, looking up at the just-extinguished light of the operating room. “That’s not the worst part. The worst part is that he was shot, the bullet was only 2 millimeters away from his heart. Fortunately, he’s been lucky; the grim reaper didn’t take him away from us.”

Vivian was both shocked and relieved, her heart racing as Alajos described it, feeling as if she were on a rollercoaster, her heart pounding so much that it almost stopped. “Is Festus out of danger now?”

“We’ll have to wait for him to wake up to be sure.” Alajos was currently heading to the intensive care unit with Festus’s parents. “After sorting things out here, I need to go to the port; I’ll come back to see you tonight.”

“Joseph is currently at his aunt’s estate for a family gathering; he probably won’t have time to come to the hospital to see you. But if he does come, keep your distance from him, don’t meet him alone. Promise me, Vivian.”

“Alajos…”

“Vivian, we are in this together.” Alajos’ tone suddenly became serious. “I know you have matured; you are no longer the naive girl you once were, are you?”

“I…” Vivian swallowed hard, finding it difficult to answer Alajos.

Alajos didn’t force her, but he needed to ensure that Vivian was fully aware of the current situation. So, he spoke solemnly and earnestly to Vivian, “Listen, Vivian, what I’m about to tell you, you may already know, or you may not, but now that I’m telling you, you must know, understand?”

Vivian wanted to say she didn’t know, she wanted to escape. But she also knew she couldn’t.

“There will be a war between Houston and Los Angeles, perhaps today, perhaps tomorrow, perhaps some day in the future. I don’t know when it will come, but I know it will come.”

“At that time, only one person between me and your father, Bryson, will survive.” Alajos was almost cold to the point of ruthlessness, but he still retained a hint of tenderness for Vivian. “I won’t force you to make a choice, but you must know, I won’t harm you for your father, but your father will surely kidnap you to threaten me.”

“Joseph is in Houston right now. If Bryson starts the war, Joseph will undoubtedly be the one to kidnap you for Bryson. I don’t care how you feel about your brother, but you must be careful with him, keep your distance from him, at least don’t meet him alone. You must have Mare with you. Understand?” Alajos emphasized, asking again, “Understand, Vivian? Answer me!”

“Under… understood,” Vivian covered her mouth and wept. “Why does there have to be a war?”

“Because Bryson wants to take over Houston, and I need to protect it.” Alajos was completely transparent, exposing Bryson’s deceit. “His generosity to Houston has been a complete conspiracy from start to finish. Now, it’s time for him to remove his mask of hypocrisy.” And they had to be one step ahead of Bryson’s actions.

The first step of his plan was to get Vilem out of Houston.

Alajos quickly hung up the phone.

This time, there was no need for Mare to dissuade her; Vivian returned to the ward on her own, lost in thought.

Mare was somewhat concerned about her state, but Alajos hadn’t done anything wrong. Instead of letting Vivian continue to deceive herself like an ostrich, which could lead to a greater collapse and danger in the future, it was better to have Vivian accept it from the beginning.

Mare silently left the ward, closing the door behind him.