"Why are you standing there like a statue? If you want in, come in, if you want out, go out. You just stand there, I might mistake you for a newly bought ornament." Young Mimi was brimming with satisfaction, closely observing Winky's every movement, concurrently relaying the situation to Matthew.
"How should I deal with you? Break your arms or legs first? Or should I cage you?"
Her voice carried a joy she could hardly suppress, resonating down the hallway, reaching Winky's ears. His brow furrowed as he scanned the surroundings, striving to filter out these disturbing sounds.
He understood Mimi's words aimed to unsettle him. Aha! He hoisted his gun, aimed, and fired without hesitation. A laser beam on one side suddenly dropped in intensity.
Seizing this chance, he dashed through, shattering a few obstructive "barriers" along the way. Despite several injuries, he finally escaped.
Mimi, who had already reached the second-floor balcony of the building, raised her gun, aimed at the head of the escapee. Her finger brushed against the trigger, but she let go.
She sighed: "Let's leave it at that, consider it a charitable act for Paul. He is... not entirely a villain." Not entirely a villain, merely madly in love with Selena.
Matthew received no report from Mimi as he was eagerly awaiting his reunion with Flora and their daughter. As he entered his daughter's hospital room, Flora was there, her chin resting in her hand by the bedside.
On the bed, their little one was sleeping deeply, eyes tightly closed. Flora herself was drifting in and out of sleep. At the sound of the door, she opened her eyes.
"You're back? Have you finished your tasks?" She rubbed her sleepy eyes and asked him in a drowsy voice.
"Yes, I'm back." Seeing her and their daughter, Matthew's resolve to step back solidified. He smiled: "It's chilly here, let me take you back to the room to rest."
Truth be told, the room wasn't cold at all, it was just an excuse. Before Flora could respond, he had scooped her up and carried her into the corridor towards another room.
"Put me down!" Taken by surprise, Flora jolted, hastily asking Matthew to put her down: "I'm heavy... I can walk by myself..." She was embarrassed, fearful of being seen by others in this place.
"You're not heavy, you're light. You've lost weight." Matthew grinned, hoisting her even higher: "I want to hold you like this. It's been a while since we spent time together, it feels like... half a lifetime has passed."
Their prepared room was quite spacious, a wall of glass masked by floral curtains, and the light seeping through was dim. The room was well-equipped. Originally Matthew's room, but he often slept near their daughter to monitor her condition. Now that Flora was here, he returned to his own room.
He gently placed her on the bed, sat down beside her, and softly stroked her hair. After a long silence, he began: "You once asked whether I came here alone... You knew I was here with Selena, didn't you?"
Flora didn't understand why he suddenly brought up Selena, she only nodded, remaining silent, waiting for him to continue.
"I did come with Selena, she's in my territory along with Mimi."
Flora was slightly startled. She hadn't seen Mimi for a long time, so Mimi had followed Matthew here. But, what was he planning by keeping Selena and Mimi together?
Matthew didn't let her wonder for long: "I'm keeping her confined there, not allowing her to step out. Everyone who harmed you and our children will pay." Including himself, he thought but didn't say it out loud: "Do you want to take revenge on her? I'll leave it entirely to you to decide. About our child..."
At that point, Flora finally understood his intention. She was shocked, frozen in place. Suddenly, she remembered that he didn't know their little one was still alive. Since the baby had been surgically removed, her stomach was flat as if they had lost the child. And she had forgotten to tell him.
"No need. Right now, what's most important to me is your safety and that of our children. As for Selena... I don't want my heart filled with hatred." She paused, then said: "Regarding our child, I think... I need to be honest with you..."
"No need to say anything, it's my fault. Whether you forgive me or not is up to you, you can hate me, you don't have to forgive me..."
Flora stared at him: "What are you blabbering about?" In her view, his words were indeed nonsense. She hadn't even finished her sentence, and he was already rushing out with these words.
But Matthew didn't seem to intend to let her finish. He sighed: "Actually, the first time I met you, I had a strange feeling. But I was a fool and didn't realize it was love."
"I harbor no grudges against you." said Flora, shaking her head gently: "Haven't I told you I forgave you? Don't you remember? I, along with our children, will never leave your side.
But can you... Can you abandon that perilous profession of yours?"
Her desires were not of power, wealth, or high societal standing. All she yearned for was a cheerful home where everyone gathered together in peace and health. She didn't want the father of her children, her husband, to live a life continually haunted by the fear of enemies knocking on their door.
Matthew solemnly nodded, his promise sincere: "Of course, I'll keep my word. Once Paul recovers, we'll move you and the kids..."
A shrill ringtone interrupted Matthew's solemn pledge. He picked up the phone, his expression darkened: "Hello?"
"Why do you sound like you want to bite my head off? Did I disturb you? I've got some really important news!" chirped Mimi from the other end.
Matthew managed to resist hurling the phone against the wall, his voice deepened as he inquired: "What's the matter?"
Mimi carried on chattering from the other end. Matthew quietly listened, his brow furrowed: "Are you sure you didn't misidentify the person?"
Mimi's high-pitched voice echoed indignantly: "What do you think? How could I have mistaken someone? Do you think I'm so unreliable?" The young girl seemed highly offended at being doubted.
After her outburst, Mimi reverted to her normal tone: "Anyway, that's it from me." Just as Matthew prepared to hang up, she quickly added: "Have a good night!" and abruptly ended the call.
Matthew set down the phone. His expression remained unchanged, but Flora, sensitive to his mood, sensed his discomfort.
She stood up quietly, lightly holding his hand: "What's the matter?"
"It's Winky." Matthew didn't intend to hide anything from her: "He's here, trying to get Selena out of custody." But for him, that wasn't the issue, as Winky's infatuation with Selena made his intentions understandable.
The real concern was how Winky knew where Selena was being held.
A thought sparked in his mind, his hand tightened reflexively around Flora's: "This is bad! He must have been tailing you!" He must have followed Flora, traced her to his location, deduced where Selena was being held.
A difficult task for the average person, but child's play for individuals like Winky.
Matthew, filled with worry, pulled Flora back towards Paul's ward.
As they hurried back, they ran into Andrey coming out of the ward.
He swiftly called out: "Andrey, we have a problem..."
"What's wrong?" Andrey furrowed his brow: "You two should be resting, why are you..."
"Andrey, I need to check the stem cells for Paul's transplant, right now." This was what Matthew feared.
If Winky couldn't rescue Selena, he would likely take something of equal value in exchange.
The only thing valuable enough and easily stolen was the stored stem cells prepared for Paul's upcoming surgery.
They were still there in the storage cabinet, unharmed.
Andrey breathed a sigh of relief: "I told you, there's nothing to worry about. They're stored safely in the hospital's secure cabinet, guarded round the clock. How could they be stolen?"
Matthew exhaled: "Good they're still there." These were his daughter's lifeline, if lost, he didn't know what he would do.
At this point, Flora suddenly stepped forward: "Wait!" Her brow furrowed: "Has the vial been switched?" The vial now in front of her was different in size and color to the one originally stored.
"No." Andrey responded quickly.
The same thought flashed in the minds of all three.
Perhaps what Matthew had feared had come true, Winky had indeed stolen the stem cells.
His objective was certainly to save Selena..
Matthew reacted swiftly.
While Andrey was still fretting over the stem cell situation, he had already removed his protective gear and was arranging transport.
"Stay here and wait for me. Don't worry too much." He told Flora: "I know what Winky wants, I will meet him and bring back the stem cells." What Winky desired was summed up in one word: "Selena".
"Matthew..." Flora started, but was stopped by Andrey holding her arm.
"What are you doing? Why are you holding me?"
Andrey didn't let go: "You have to trust him. He will bring back the stem cells. If you go with him, you'll only distract him as he'll be concerned for your safety."
In reality, Andrey was right.
Flora knew her presence wouldn't help but would only hinder Matthew.
It was just a knee-jerk reaction due to her worry, causing her to momentarily lose her composure.
Taking a few steady, deep breaths, Flora endeavored to regain her composure, shifting her focus elsewhere: "Dr. Andrey, I have a question to ask you..." Her shining brown eyes bore into Andrey, permitting no escape: "Winky did all this for Selena. But what about Matthew? Why did he imprison her?"
Andrey's gaze upon her was strangely odd, as if mildly surprised that she should have known the answer long before now.
After a silent exchange of glances that stretched for minutes, he finally sighed: "Isn't it all because of you? He knew Selena was harming you, so he imprisoned her for you to deal with."
So his earlier question of whether she wished to take her revenge on Selena was serious.
She nodded: "I understand now, thank you." Then she departed, leaving a bewildered Andrey behind, questioning if he said something wrong.
Flora was not alone in her journey abroad. Accompanying her was Hubert, the assistant her father had recently sent to support his beloved daughter.