Chapter 3

I became Jonah's shadow again for the next three days. However, my state of mind was completely different this time.

I watched as he and Rose flirted in the backseat, as she made him laugh with a silly joke, and as he bought her a limited-edition designer handbag.

The scenes overlapped with the ones that I had witnessed in my past life.

However, my reaction was completely different this time. In the past, I would have felt incredibly pained by their intimacy, quietly clenching my fists in a deserted corner. Now, I felt as if I was simply watching a film that had nothing to do with me.

…

As we drove to the venue to get a feel for the location ahead of the business deal, danger struck without warning.

An out-of-control truck crashed through the barricade and rammed directly into our car.

I immediately kicked the car door open and hauled Jonah out.

Meanwhile, several black-clad men who were armed with knives surrounded us from all sides, cutting off all our escape routes.

The blades glinted as the men swung them at us.

I shielded Jonah and Rose, whose face had turned deathly pale, behind me as we retreated backward.

One of the men swung his knife from a tricky angle. The blade gleamed with a cold light as it sped toward Rose's back.

"Rose! Watch out!"

An incredibly strong force rammed into my side just as I heard Jonah's scream.

Jonah had shoved me into the line of danger without any hesitation.

The blade shone.

I reflexively shifted my body to the side, but I had lost my balance when Jonah suddenly shoved me.

The blade buried itself deeply into my right shoulder.

Pain exploded from the point of impact, and fresh blood immediately dyed my shirt red.

Although I had already expected such an outcome, my heart still ached terribly at the familiar feeling of betrayal.

Everything had happened within a split second.

"Go!"

Ignoring the endless stream of blood that flowed from my shoulder, I grabbed Jonah and Rose, both of whom were still stunned in place. I shielded them behind me and herded them toward the escape route that I had secured beforehand.

I became completely focused on calmly making decisions and fighting mechanically. I had gotten used to pain a long time ago.

I led them toward an abandoned factory that I was certain was safe. Only then did I allow myself to lean against the wall and sigh in relief. Excruciating pain lanced through my shoulder after I was forced to engage in such strenuous activities.

"Are you okay, Rose? Did you get hurt? Let me take a look!"

Jonah's priority would always be Rose. He anxiously checked her from head to toe as if she had been the one who was caught in a life-or-death battle earlier.

He only spared a glance at me after ensuring that Rose was completely unharmed. The color drained from his face as he swept his gaze over my bloodied shoulder. His lips trembled, and he looked like he wanted to approach me.

Just then, Rose's knees suddenly buckled. She let out a pained cry as she held the side of her waist and slowly sank to the ground, looking like she was in immense pain.

"Rose!"

Jonah immediately directed his attention toward her. He hugged her in a panic. His voice was thick with tears when he asked, "What's wrong? Are you hurt? Don't scare me like that!"

Rose weakly raised her hand and pointed at the side of her waist.

Jonah hastily pulled her shirt up and came face-to-face with a bloody cut that wasn't too deep.

Rose had accidentally scraped the side of her waist against a pile of discarded rebars during the chaos earlier.

"You're bleeding so much… What should I do?"

Jonah was having a full-blown panic attack. Tears welled up in his eyes and threatened to spill down his cheeks. He suddenly whipped his head up and barked an order at me.

"Lily! Carry Rose to the hospital right now!"

I shot an icy look at him as I leaned against the wall. "Reinforcements will be here in five minutes."

"I want you to carry her to the hospital now!" he shrieked. "I won't forgive you if anything happens to her!"

Jonah gritted his teeth when I refused to carry out his order. He then tried to carry Rose himself. However, he was the heir of a prestigious family who had been pampered since he was born. It was simply impossible that he would be strong enough to pick up another adult.

He tried several times, but he couldn't pick Rose up. All he succeeded in doing was exhausting himself. He looked absolutely pathetic and ridiculous with how sweaty he was.

I couldn't stand to watch him any longer. Not because I felt sorry for him, but because I felt incredibly irritated.

I strode over to them and hauled Rose onto my back. I then grabbed Jonah's wrist, ignoring the way he was staring at me in bewilderment.

"Follow me if you don't want to die," I hissed coldly.