The soldier searched the records and informed Harriet, ‘The second volume was signed out by General Sheppard two days ago. If you need it urgently, you can ask him directly.’Harriet clenched her jaw.Frustration welled up within her.Dylan had become her nemesis, and their encounters were invariably troublesome.Harriet considered whether to request the documents from him.In the grand scheme of things, her personal grudge against Dylan mattered less than the bigger military issues Elias and his comrades were dealing with.Steeling herself, Harriet decided to visit Dylan’s office.She knocked on the door.‘Come in.’As Harriet entered, she couldn’t help but notice Dylan’s calm, almost beguiling demeanour.His eyes were as serene as a tranquil lake, and the mole beneath his right eye added to his captivating appearance.He exuded an air of danger and allure, like a devil of the night.His angular face had an enticing charm, and his eyes seemed to penetrate hers.The slight lift at the
With a wicked grin, Dylan quipped, ‘I know you won’t understand, Lieutenant Colonel Daniels. While work is essential, spending time with my woman is equally important. I worry about Callie working here. I can’t be at ease if I don’t come to see her.’Harriet gazed at Dylan, and it felt like something in her heart shattered.He appeared entirely indifferent to her, and she couldn’t fathom how she’d allowed herself to be in such a sorry state.His words, though seemingly insignificant to him, had driven her to the brink.She was bewildered and painfully aware that their kiss was probably no different from countless others he’d shared with other women.It didn’t mean anything to him.A sharp pant of pain welled up in Harriet’s heart, and she bit her lip to contain it.Elias couldn’t help but notice Dylan’s hand on Callie’s shoulder, and even though he knew it was all an act, jealousy still gnawed at him.Dylan and Callie’s feigned intimacy was hard to stomach, and he saw it as an eyesore
Angelia and Jamison sat in the consultation room, watching Callie and Dylan’s interactions through the window.Jamison’s complexion had soured, and he appeared distant.Angelia gazed at Jamison, hiding a sneer.She couldn’t help but prod him, saying, ‘Dr Garcia, don’t you resent her?’Jamison turned to her, momentarily taken aback, then shook his head. ‘I don’t resent her. I understand her choices.’Angelia let out a soft sigh, her tone laced with calculation. ‘You love her so deeply that you were willing to sacrifice your life for her. But what has she offered in return? Besides feeling touched and saying thank you, does she feel anything more for you?’Jamison had told Angelia that he didn’t mind, but her words still pricked his heart with bitterness.He replied with a tinge of resignation, ‘It’s not her problem; it’s mine. The only person she loves is Elias, not me or Dylan.’Jamison shifted his gaze from the window back to the room, a bitter smile tugging at his lips.His affectio
‘I would have done that even without you telling me,’ Harriet responded, unimpressed by his instructions.‘Is that so?’ Dylan replied with a sly smile.As he leaned in again, Harriet quickly changed the subject. ‘General Sheppard, what’s your mission this time?’‘It’s classified.’‘Are you going alone?’ Harriet tried to pry information from him.‘Are you worried about me?’Harriet snorted. ‘As if.’‘It’s a little dangerous. If something happened to me, what would you do?’ Dylan asked, his tone more serious.‘I’d say, good riddance,’ Harriet quipped.‘I don’t believe you.’‘Believe whatever you want.’‘I have to go now. Time to collect my parting gift,’ Dylan said and lowered his head to kiss her.This time, the kiss was tender and passionate.Harriet’s attempts to push him away were in vain, and she found herself lost in the moment.After a lingering kiss, Dylan finally broke away and left her with a roguish smile. ‘That’ll hold me for a while. After I come back, we’ll continue where
Angelia sighed and began to reveal a painful truth. ‘You should know that I was kidnapped by those people from Shadowfire.’Whitney nodded.Angelia continued, ‘I never told anyone what happened there, but I’ll tell you now. I endured a living hell. Those monsters treated me like a plaything because I wasn’t the major general’s wife. They unleashed their hatred and anger on me. Among them was a drug addict who not only used, but also forced me to use. That’s when I developed this addiction. It wasn’t my choice. I wanted to quit, but I can’t control myself when the withdrawal symptoms hit.’She held out both arms and rolled up her sleeves. ‘Look at my wrists, my arms. When the symptoms came, I bit myself to resist it, to fight back, but it was useless. I failed time and time again. So, I resorted to stealing those drugs from the pharmacy.’Whitney couldn’t help but shudder.She had heard some rumours about Angelia’s ordeal, but she had never fathomed the extent of her suffering.Being a
The sergeant continued, ‘We’re just soldiers. It’s best if you, as doctors, examine the cause of death. We’ll hand her body over to you temporarily and report the case to my superior. Later, someone will come to take your statements.’Callie and Wendy acknowledged this as they moved Whitney’s body to the surgical room, which had been turned into a makeshift morgue.The news of Whitney’s death sent shockwaves through the infirmary.Harriet, who was in Elias’s ward, overheard the commotion and asked about the cause.Elias was quick to notice Harriet’s troubled expression.Harriet relayed the grim news to Elias. ‘There’s a nurse named Whitney in the infirmary. She died from blunt force trauma to her head, likely from a rock, and there was excessive blood loss. Do you have any idea who might have done this?’Elias frowned, deep in thought. ‘I can’t say for certain, but I highly doubt it’s the work of Shadowfire. Even if they were within our camp, using rocks seems too random for them. Bes
‘Elias, is that all right?’ Callie asked, tilting her head.‘Of course.’‘Then we’ll continue the charade,’ Callie said earnestly. ‘I’ll do my best to take care of myself, so you don’t have to worry about me.’‘Will you blame me?’‘What do you mean?’‘Everything comes back to the fact that I’m a soldier,’ Elias explained. ‘If I were a CEO or a celebrity, maybe you wouldn’t have to go through this.’Callie smiled and shook her head, brushing aside his concerns. ‘There are plenty of CEOs in the world, but none of them are you. No matter how wealthy or promising their lives might be, they can’t compare to you. Only you can support me when I’m at my lowest, willing to make sacrifices for me. I only want you, Elias. No matter how impressive others may be, they’re not you.’‘Callie, how could I not fall for you?’ Elias murmured, as much to himself as to her.‘Elias, time for you to go!’ Callie urged, giving him a gentle push. ‘You can’t stay here. What if someone sees us? Go back to your wa
Jamison said, ‘We’ll have to go through a drug test.’Angelia’s face turned ashen.She had anticipated being exposed, but she didn’t expect it to happen so quickly.There was no time to frame Callie.To divert the focus, Angelia suggested, ‘Could it possibly be Whitney? She may have used the key to open the cabinet and traded the drugs with Shadowfire secretly. But after the deal, they might have killed her.’Callie was quick to dismiss this theory. ‘That’s unlikely. Whitney wouldn’t have done this, and no one has reported their keys missing. The person who stole these medications must be among us, doctors.’Angelia realised she was forced into a corner.She bit her lip, trying to change the topic. ‘Dr Hawthorne is right. If no one has any objections, let’s start in two hours.’Panicking, Angelia pondered her next steps.She knew the drug test would reveal her guilt and she couldn’t allow that to happen.Half an hour later, General Conway arrived at the infirmary to address the murder