Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion >>
“You?” She gave him an amused look. “Are you going to spare her after what she did to you?”
“I’m working with Max Pearson and Gilbert Hawthorn. If they share a portion of the Dickmans’ assets with me, I will get the Blooms to stop bailing out the Dickmans,” Eustace replied. When the Dickmans went down, Yvonne might be put in an uneasy position.
“Is that all?” She lifted an eyebrow.
In Danika’s eyes, Eustace was never a kind and merciful person. He went silent because he understood what she was implying. “I’ll turn in the evidence proving she had hired the assassin, but the Blooms will definitely help her out. I assume that she won’t go to jail.”
“You have the capability to drag someone down if you put your mind to it.” She chuckled, thinking that Eustace was making excuses.
“Danika, I probably haven’t told you stories from my childhood. Are you interested?” He suddenly changed the topic and looked at her as he took a trip down memory lane.
She was confused by the random mention and thought he deliberately wanted to change the topic. She felt infuriated but didn’t refuse to listen because she was interested in his past.
A long time ago, Eustace’s dad and Max’s mom eloped, leaving Eustace and his mom behind. He was a young child then, but he was acutely aware of the changes in his family. Despite that, he was sensible enough not to ask questions. Instead, he gave his best in his studies in an attempt to cheer up his mom. His efforts were in vain because his mom decided to take her life one night, leaving him all alone in the world.
He feared the dark because it reminded him of waking up to his mom’s cold body. Whenever night. descended, it brought uneasiness and anticipation of a tragedy that would plunge him into terror.
After his mom’s passing, he was taken in by Old Mr. Quincey and started living at the Old Mansion, where he met Yvonne. Back then, Yvonne was a bright and adorable child who always went to play with Eustace after he moved in. She was a ray of hope that pulled him away from the darkness. Hence, he found it hard to take any action against Yvonne even if she had committed crimes that disgusted him. After all, she was one of his few childhood friends.
Danika felt conflicted after hearing his story. She had never imagined his childhood to be riddled with pain, and she wondered how he had handled the death of his mother as a young kid. Suddenly, she felt sorry. for him.
*Danika, can I spare her just once? Consider it my way of repaying her kindness to me,” he asked for her approval while staring deep into her eyes.
She went blank when she met his pleading gaze. “That’s your business. You don’t have to ask for my permission.”
“No. To me, you’re more important than her.” He shook his head. “If you insist on taking action against her, I can help.”
Yvonne, unlike Danika, was not a priority for Eustace.
Danika felt cornered. She obviously couldn’t do anything to Yvonne after hearing the sob story from Eustace. She stared at him and asked, “What if she does it again? Do you plan to protect her if that happens?”
“Of course not! This is the last time,” he assured her with a confident look.
She sighed and finally nodded. “Alright. I will give her one last chance.”
Since Eustace had offered her a lot of help, she didn’t mind compromising this time. Moreover, knowing Yvonne, Danika believed she wouldn’t give up so easily. When Yvonne struck again, Eustace would have no reason to protect her anymore.
*Danika, thank you.” Eustace seemed happy.
She squirmed under his passionate gaze and quickly looked the other way. “You don’t have to thank me. She’s married to Sam Bloom anyway-I can’t do anything to her even if I wanted to.”
“But you have me. If you ever need my help, I can offer it,” he replied. Then, he added, “In the end, your didn’t do anything to her because you care about me. I’m glad.”
Danika was ready to retort by clarifying that she backed down because it was impossible to take action on Yvonne, who had married into the Blooms. She didn’t show Yvonne mercy for Eustace’s sake.
However, she was interrupted by a villager who hurried over. “We heard crying from Clearwater Elementary! Some kids are still trapped under the school! The village chief wants me to inform you, Dr. Zellweger.”
“Alright. I’ll head over.” She snapped back to reality and quickly packed her first-aid supplies. Similarly, Eustace was pulled back to reality, but he didn’t complain about the interruption because rescuing victims. was the priority.
“I’ll hold that for you.” He reached out to take the bag from her when she was about to put it on. Since she was focused on the rescue, she didn’t refuse his help.
After the initial earthquake, Danika had once rushed to Clearwater Elementary and saved a few children. Since the villagers didn’t hear any other response from below the rubble, they left to help the other victims. because they couldn’t afford to waste time in the school area.
Everyone had thought there were no survivors in the school’s rubble, but the latest development came as a huge shock. Some villagers started digging away at the rubble of the completely collapsed school as parents wailed. It was a tough scene to watch.
Danika went forward to join the digging but was stopped by Eustace. “I’ll go. You wait here. Once we get them out, you can give them medical support.”
“Sure.” She nodded, knowing that she was limited in what she could do. Offering medical support was a better role for her.
Soon, everyone around joined the excavation. Several times during the mission, Eustace’s satellite phone- which was in Danika’s care-rang from Vincent’s incoming calls. Vincent informed her that the rescue team was close to Clearwater Village and would arrive in three hours’ time. He also reminded them to stay safe. 1
After the call, Danika let out a small sigh of relief. When Vincent and the rescue team arrived, she believed that every victim in the village could be dug out of the rubble.
“There are kids in there!” someone shouted. “Who’s going in to bring them out?”
The villagers went silent. The memories of how Danika almost lost her life from saving Justin remained vivid, and no one wanted to bet their lives on the rescue. However, Eustace jumped into the rubble through an opening while everyone was hesitating.
The village chief sighed at the sight. He had never thought the village would ultimately have to rely on two outsiders to risk their lives for the rescue.
“Help! Take this kid from me.” The villagers heard Eustace’s voice from underneath the rubble and quickly lifted the young victim out to safety without a word. Soon, the kid was sent to Danika for medical treatment. Although she had no visibility of the progress, she understood that Eustace was deep in the rubble to save the children when she heard his voice. She didn’t stop him and merely prayed for his safety.
To their dismay, God did not seem to bless them. An aftershock struck without any warning.
“Quick! Pull him out!” the village chief yelled. Unfortunately, the villagers’ first instinct was to run to safety when they were hit by the aftershock. The chief watched helplessly as falling rocks and rubble sealed the opening
The aftershock went on longer this time. Five minutes later, when the quake subsided, the villagers. returned to the school only to find that the area was in a worse condition than before, and the only opening in the rubble was sealed up even more.
“C-can anyone survive this?” a villager blurted out without thinking.
“Yes, he will survive!” When Danika heard that Eustace was buried in the rubble, she rushed over, looking disheveled. Tears filled her eyes, but she held them back. Instead, she started removing the rocks from the sealed opening. “Eustace Quincey, I will save you. I swear!”