The moment Victoria glanced at her watch, she froze in shock—an entire hour had slipped by since she had left home.
"Rozer, I really must go now. I can't believe how time flew—it's already been an hour since I left. By now, Mom and Dad must have returned home too," Victoria said, rising from her chair.
"But why do you have to leave so soon? As far as I know, Uncle and Aunty don't place any restrictions on you. We were just starting to have fun, and now you're leaving. Don't go yet. Come on, let's watch a movie. I heard a new psychological film has just been released. It's Friday—let's catch the first-day, first show," Rozer urged, trying to hold her back.
But Victoria knew that Truth Fairy was home alone, and she had promised to return soon. If she delayed any longer, Truth Fairy would grow upset. Besides, she still had a college assignment to complete, due on Saturday. For the past two days, she had been busy dealing with the demons Aethna had sent, leaving her unable to finish her work.
"I know you enjoy spending time with me, Rozer, but I have responsibilities too. We can watch the movie on Sunday. Even if Mom and Dad don't impose any restrictions, I cannot misuse the freedom they've given me. So please, understand."
With that, Victoria picked up her car keys from the table and headed toward her car.
Rozer knew very well that Victoria would do exactly as her heart desired. And so, he didn't try to stop her.
Victoria pulled her car out of the parking lot and drove toward home. By now, her parents had already returned.
"Who is that girl, and where did she come from? I'm amazed at how powerful she is. I really like it when girls rise in society and leave the boys behind," Victoria's father, Allen, said as he sank into the sofa.
"You're absolutely right. But I don't know why, that girl felt strangely familiar to me—as if I had some kind of connection with her. By the way, did she mention her name?" Victoria's mother, Olivia, said thoughtfully.
"Secret Admiral… that's the name she gave. Anyway, enough about that. Where are my two mischievous sons today?" Allen asked, glancing around the house.
"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Actually, you left early this morning, and I thought that since troubles seem to be hitting our family one by one lately, I sent both of them back to boarding. Besides, we were getting calls from the boarding school confirming whether they would continue there or not," Olivia replied, sitting down beside him on the sofa.
Hearing Olivia's words, Allen was momentarily surprised, but then he said, "You could have at least asked me first—those two hardly enjoy being there. Anyway, if you sent them back, I'm sure you had your reasons. But where is Victoria? Today was a holiday from college, and the offices are closed too. She should be at home." With that, Allen started calling out for Victoria.
At that moment, a maid came out of the kitchen and informed him, "Sir, Victoria Ma'am has gone out."
"Alright, then do one thing—bring some hot coffee for me and Olivia," Allen said, turning on the TV, which was showing the day's recent events.
Meanwhile, at the hospital, Cheng's treatment had been completed, and the doctors had shifted him to the general ward. Yet, Cheng was still severely injured, and the marks of Marcus's blows were visible all over his body. Just then, Garrie, the police officer who had brought Cheng to the hospital, approached him, sat on a chair nearby, and cuffed his hands.
"Look, I know you're injured and can't run anywhere in this condition, but still, I have to follow the law and put these handcuffs on you," Garrie said, pocketing the key.
Cheng met Garrie's gaze and said, "Thank you for bringing me to the hospital, but… could you help me with one more thing?"
"Look, I can't make any promises, but I'll certainly try. Tell me, what do you need?" Garrie asked, looking at him.
With tear-filled eyes, Cheng looked at Garrie and pleaded, "Please… let me make a call. My mom is admitted in Metro Hospital, and tomorrow she has surgery for her tumor. I needed to pay her hospital bill today. If I don't talk to them, they'll discharge her, and she could die." Saying this, Cheng began to cry.
Seeing his condition, Garrie's heart went out to him. He took out his phone and handed it to Cheng. But fate seemed to betray Cheng, because as soon as he dialed Metro Hospital, where his mother was admitted, the call connected and… Garrie's phone suddenly died—the battery had run out.
"It feels like God doesn't want me to speak to my mom. That's why I don't believe in His existence," Cheng said, lying back on the bed and crying.
"Don't worry, Cheng. I'll go to the reception and get a phone charged. Then you can call your mom at Metro Hospital," Garrie said, rising quickly. "I may be a police officer, but not every cop is corrupt or cruel. Some of us, like me, are honest and serve the people." With that, he grabbed his phone and headed toward the reception.
Cheng remained lying on the bed, still cuffed, his mind consumed with worry for his mother. Yet, there was nothing he could do—he had no money, and in his condition, he couldn't arrange it to pay the hospital bill. Today, it felt to him as if being born poor was a curse in itself. No matter how many false promises or schemes the government made, the harsh reality was that the system itself didn't want the poor to escape their poverty.
Lost in his thoughts, Cheng's gaze fell on his handcuffs. He noticed that the part of the cuff that Garrie had locked onto the bed was broken—barely held together. With a strong jerk, it could snap, and he could be free.
Cheng thought about escaping, but then a thought struck him—if he ran away like this, Marcus would never spare Garrie, and Garrie's job would be in jeopardy.
Meanwhile, Garrie had put his phone on charge and was now using the reception phone to report Cheng's condition to Marcus.
"Hello, Sir! Cheng is out of danger for now and has been moved to the general ward. But his condition is still serious; he's sustained multiple injuries," Garrie said over the phone.
"Why are you even feeling so concerned, Garrie? Listen, no matter how bad his condition is, he's conscious and able to stand on his own feet, right? Then get a fitness certificate from the doctor and bring him back to headquarters. There's a lot of documentation pending, and you want your promotion too, don't you? Don't waste time—bring that bastard back immediately," Marcus said, cutting the call abruptly.
"What should I do? I don't understand anything. Cheng isn't in a condition to be discharged from the hospital, and on top of that, his mother is admitted in another hospital, caught between life and death. If I take Cheng back now, that bastard Marcus will frame him in countless false cases, and then he'll never see his mother again. Where has God trapped me? I joined this police force to help people, but because of Marcus, I've become a corrupt cop myself. Anyway, what else can I do? My seniors have ordered me—so I have no choice but to take Cheng back." Thinking this, Garrie started heading back toward Cheng's room.
"Cheng, how are you feeling now? Don't worry—the phone will be charged soon," Garrie said, sitting on the chair beside Cheng's bed.
But the next moment, Garrie's eyes fell on the same broken part of the bed where he had unknowingly cuffed Cheng. He was shocked—despite having the perfect chance, Cheng hadn't tried to escape.
"Cheng… when you had the opportunity, why didn't you run away from here?" Garrie asked, staring at him in astonishment.
Hearing Garrie's words, Cheng looked at him and replied with a faint smile, "When I noticed that you had cuffed me to the wrong part of the bed and that I could easily break it and escape, I did think about running away. But then it occurred to me that if I escaped, Marcus would take away your job and punish you. That's why I didn't run." Saying this, Cheng fell silent.
Listening to Cheng, Garrie realized that Cheng was not a bad man at heart. Circumstances had forced him onto the wrong path, and now Marcus was exploiting his helplessness to turn him into a hardened criminal.
The moment Garrie remembered Marcus's words, he immediately unlocked Cheng's handcuffs and said, "Cheng, run away from here and take your mother to another city. Otherwise, Marcus will destroy your life—and I can't stand by and watch such injustice happen."
"But what about you, Garrie sir?" Cheng asked, looking at him in shock.
"I'll handle everything here. You just don't waste any more time—please, leave now," Garrie said, quickly handing Cheng his clothes. Cheng put them on and stepped out of the room, moving toward the exit. As he left, he turned back to look at Garrie, who stood silently outside the room, bidding him farewell without a word.
At that moment, Cheng moved forward with only his mother on his mind, silently praying that she would be absolutely fine—because if anything happened to her, he would take revenge on Secret Admiral.