Something crashed through the burning door.
Fire exploded inward as a tall figure forced his way inside the warehouse without hesitation.
"RAYA!"
The voice didn't sound human. It sounded desperate. Broken. Terrified.
Through the smoke and flames, I saw him.
Steven.
He ran through the fire as if it couldn't hurt him. As if the flames were nothing compared to losing me.
I didn't know if it was real or just a hallucination before death. The fire around me had grown too wild. The heat devoured the remaining air. My breaths were short. My chest burned.
Then something slammed into my chair.
Hard.
My body lurched along with the chair as someone kicked it, sending me crashing sideways onto the scorching floor.
"Raya! Listen to me! Don't pass out!"
Steven.
It was really Steven.
I tried to open my eyes, but my vision blurred from the smoke. All I could see was a tall figure breaking through the flames without hesitation.
His hands immediately grabbed the rope around my wrists.
"Damn it… it's hardened…"
I screamed when the hot rope touched my burned skin.
"Sorry! I'm sorry… hold on a little longer!"
He took off his jacket, wrapped it around his hands, and pulled at the rope with all his strength.
I could smell my own flesh burning.
Then—
Snap.
My hands were free.
But my legs were still tied to the chair.
A large burning beam collapsed behind Steven. The fire grew more violent.
"Hold my neck!" he shouted.
I didn't even know how, but suddenly my body was lifted into his arms. My legs were still tangled with the half-burned chair.
Steven kicked the chair until it broke apart, then dragged me away from the flames.
"The smoke…" I coughed violently.
"Don't talk! Breathe slowly!"
He lowered his head, covering my face with his arm as he pushed through the fire that seemed alive, trying to trap us inside.
Things were collapsing everywhere.
The warehouse was about to fall apart.
Then cold air hit my face.
We were outside.
I felt my body laid down on dusty ground. The night air stabbed into my burned lungs.
I couldn't stop coughing.
"The ambulance is on the way! Stay with me, Raya! Look at me!"
I tried to focus on Steven's face. It was smeared with soot. His eyes were red. Panicked. Afraid.
Something I had never seen before.
"Why… did you come…" I whispered weakly.
"I was late," his voice broke. "I'm sorry…"
Then everything went dark.
—
I woke up in a white world.
The smell of medicine.
The sound of machines.
My body felt… no longer mine.
Heavy. Sore. Stiff.
I tried to move my hand.
I couldn't.
Panic hit instantly.
I forced my eyes open wider. The light in the room blinded me.
A hospital.
I was alive.
"Raya…"
That voice was soft. Hoarse.
Steven.
He was sitting beside my bed. His face had small cuts, a bandage on his temple, and his hands were wrapped in gauze.
"You… survived…" I whispered.
He let out a soft laugh, but his eyes were glassy. "I should be the one saying that."
The memories came rushing back—Walker and Berta in the warehouse, trying to kill me for my father's inheritance. Tears streamed down uncontrollably.
"They tried to kill me…" My voice trembled.
Steven went silent for a few seconds. His jaw tightened.
"I know."
I looked at him.
"My father… he doesn't have a heart condition…"
Steven nodded slowly.
"I've suspected for a long time. But I didn't have proof."
My chest rose and fell rapidly. Fear, pain, and anger mixed together, making my body shake.
"Walker said… you had an accident…"
Steven's gaze darkened.
"That wasn't an accident."
My heart pounded.
"They hit me. On purpose."
My world seemed to collapse again.
"They wanted to make sure no one could save you…"
Steven carefully held my hand, afraid of hurting me.
"I almost died on the road, Raya. But there was only one thing in my head…"
He looked at me deeply.
"I had to reach you."
Tears fell again.
"Why…?" My voice was hoarse. "Why would you do this for me…?"
Steven fell silent. His gaze dropped briefly to my heavily bandaged hand, then returned to my face.
"Because it's my duty," he said quietly.
Too short.
Too flat.
Too… dishonest.
I wanted to ask more, but pain attacked my entire body at once, as if my nerves had just realized I was still alive.
"Ah—" I groaned.
Steven immediately stood up. "Doctor!"
A nurse and a doctor rushed in. They checked my IV and the monitor beside the bed.
"The pain will come gradually," the doctor said gently. "Your body experienced severe heat trauma. We've given you painkillers, but you need a lot of rest."
I nodded weakly.
"Can I see my face?" I asked softly.
The room went silent.
The nurse and doctor exchanged glances.
The doctor forced a small smile. "Later, okay? The important thing now is your recovery."
My heart beat strangely.
Why were they avoiding it?
Before I could think further, the door suddenly opened without a knock.
A very familiar pair of footsteps entered the room.
I turned my head.
Walker.
My heart slammed violently.
He stood there in a neat suit, a fabricated worried expression on his face, eyes pretending to be shocked by my condition.
"Oh my God… Raya…"
Tears streamed down my face—not from emotion, but from overwhelming rage that made my body tremble.
Steven immediately stood between us.
"You can't get too close," he said coldly.
Walker glanced at him briefly before looking at me again with the expression of a devastated husband.
"I just heard about this… that old warehouse suddenly caught fire. The police said it was a tragic accident…"
Accident.
I wanted to laugh hysterically.
"Accident…?" My voice shook.
Walker stepped closer. "Calm down. I'm here. You're safe now."
Safe?
With you in this room?
My hands trembled on the bed.
"Father…" I whispered. "My father…"
Walker let out a long sigh. His acting was flawless. "His condition worsened. The doctor said his heart couldn't handle the news."
My chest tightened.
I looked at Steven.
His eyes were sharp as he stared at Walker. Full of undisguised hatred.
"I want to speak with my wife," Walker said.
Steven didn't move. "No."
Walker looked at him sharply. "I'm her husband."
"And I'm the one who saved her life," Steven replied coldly.
The air in the room grew tense. I noticed something different on Walker's face. Something subtle.
Not worry.
Not sadness.
But… annoyance.
As if he didn't like the fact that I was still alive.
And in that second, I knew.
He knew that I knew.
Walker stared at me for a long moment. A look I had never seen before.
Cold.
Calculating.
Then he gave a thin smile. "Get some rest. We'll talk later."
He turned and left.
The moment the door closed, my breathing became erratic.
"He knows…" I whispered.
Steven nodded slowly. "I saw it too."
"He wasn't surprised that I survived…"
"Because he never expected you to survive," Steven said.
Tears fell again.
"He'll come back," I said softly.
Steven looked at me seriously. "And this time, he won't come alone."
My heart pounded.
"You mean…?"
Before Steven could answer, the door opened again.
A nurse stepped in with a hesitant expression.
"Sorry… someone else is insisting on seeing the patient."
Steven let out an annoyed breath. "Who now?"
The nurse swallowed.
"A woman. She claims to be the patient's close friend."
My blood turned cold.