جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 720

Having lost first place, Ada was reminded of another painful defeat—losing the endorsement deal for Murphy Jewelry.She looked over at Annabelle.Everyone was congratulating Annabelle on winning third place, which meant she could stay on the island for five more days with her husband.Some people even urged Kendrick to make sure he kept his promise.Ada clenched her fists.That woman had stolen all the attention from her.As a famous model, she was now being overshadowed, treated like an insignificant nobody.She was fuming inside, wanting to throw a few mocking words at Annabelle, but with both Willie and Kendrick around, she had no choice but to hold back.All she could do was grit her teeth silently.Honestly, Annabelle also felt like her prize was a bit unnecessary.It was sponsored by Kendrick—five extra days on the island.The money was coming out of his pocket anyway, so wasn’t this just shifting funds within their own household?But the real issue was that she didn’t even want

Annabelle opened her mouth, wanting to ask if he was okay.But she knew—no matter how many times she said, Put me down, I can walk by myself, Kendrick wouldn't let go.Unless he passed out.Forget it. She decided to stay quiet and let him carry her peacefully, not wanting to distract him.But why did this path feel so long?Would they ever get there?Could Kendrick really hold on?Just as a flood of emotions surged in her heart, he spoke first.“How did you even get hurt?”Annabelle replied, “Mm… I wasn’t wearing shoes on the beach and stepped on broken glass.”“Why weren’t you wearing shoes?”“Sand gets inside. It’s uncomfortable…” She glanced at him worriedly. “You should put me down.”“No.”His chest wound ached, but he refused to show weakness in front of her.He didn’t want her to think that Gauge was more reliable than him.To distract himself from the pain, he decided to keep talking.“When you saw someone else trying to dance with me… were you jealous?”Annabelle’s first insti

Annabelle kept nagging at him as she hurried into the bedroom.Watching her retreating figure, her back completely soaked, Kendrick felt a dull ache in his heart.This foolish girl… He had carried her on his back so she wouldn’t get drenched in the rain, yet in the end, she was the one who got completely soaked.He hadn’t planned on telling her about his injuries. He figured he could just rest for a couple of days and recover on his own—no need to let her see it and scare her.But now that the secret was out, there was no point in hiding it anymore. He might as well enjoy the care of his little wife.In the bedroom, Annabelle rummaged through her suitcase and pulled out her small medical kit.Whenever she traveled far, she always carried one with her. She had almost left it behind this time, thinking she wouldn’t need it in the Maldives—but thankfully, she packed it in the end.Inside, she had her own specially formulated hemostatic powder, which was highly effective, along with other

Annabelle continued explaining that while repeated infections in the wound might not be immediately fatal, modern medical treatments could only slow down the deterioration.However, the wound would never fully heal. As the area of necrosis expanded, the pain would become unbearable, forcing the victim to rely on painkillers.Once the body developed a tolerance to painkillers, the relentless combination of pain and itching could drive a person insane.To endure such suffering, one might have to resort to stronger sedatives, and once dependency formed, they would be no different from an addict.Even then, the wound would continue to fester. Eventually, after prolonged drug abuse, the body would begin to collapse.This was a slow and cruel method of killing.As she spoke, she quickly wiped the back of her hand across her eyes, clearing her tear-blurred vision.Pointing at his wound, she told Kendrick that from the odor and the way the tissue was deteriorating, she could confirm that trac

“Alright…” Annabelle gritted her teeth and forced herself to carry on, carefully scraping away the necrotic flesh from Kendrick’s wound. To ensure it was thoroughly cleaned, she didn’t hold back.Kendrick never uttered another sound of pain after his initial reaction. While she focused entirely on treating him, he concentrated solely on her—watching her intently. Only by keeping his eyes on her could he distract himself from the pain.She truly had a strong stomach. To be able to handle such a gruesome wound…Or had she seen something even worse before?As he gazed at her delicate features, it was hard to imagine that she had once survived a fire. But he knew that behind her ear, there was a burn scar. Anna had told him that it was an oversight during her treatment—otherwise, it wouldn’t have scarred at all.She finished cleaning one wound, but there was still another. She needed a short break—and clearly, so did Kendrick.He had broken into a cold sweat, so Annabelle handed him a cup