Amelia did not want to accept the call, but Cassie could be quite persistent. The woman kept calling non-stop that it eventually got on Molly’s nerves. “Mrs. Clinton, if you don’t want to take the call, you could just switch off the phone. Whoever the caller is, they’re so uncultured. They should stop calling when it’s clear that no one wants to answer the phone.”
Amelia smiled at her. “It’s fine, Molly, I’ll take the call outside. I’ll be back in a minute.”
“Mrs. Clinton, I’d advise you to answer it upstairs. You’re pregnant now. There’s no harm in being more careful.”
Amelia nodded and went upstairs.
She picked up the call once she entered the bedroom. “What now, Ms. Yard? What else do you have to say to me?”
On the other end of the line, Cassie spoke. “Amelia, are you free now? Let’s meet outside.”
Amelia refused. “Ms. Yard, I don’t have the time. Whatever it is, you can say it over the phone.”
Cassie was adamant. “Amelia, I’ll see you at Starbucks in an hour. If you don’t come, I’ll drop by at your place. I reckon Oz will love to see me make an entrance.”
Amelia ground her teeth. “Cassie, how do you still have the face to show yourself?”
“Oz has promised to marry me as soon as possible, you see. He also said that he’s not willing to have our child born out of wedlock. Since the house you’re currently staying in will be mine eventually, it’s not wrong for me, the soon-to-be lady of the house, to exercise my right in advance, is it?”
Cassie made some bold statements.
Amelia barked out a laugh. She changed her mind and said, “Fine. I’ll see you at Starbucks in an hour.”
With that, she abruptly ended the phone call.
Amelia went to the closet to pick out what she should wear. She took the task seriously because, even though she was with child, and that her belly would continue to grow, causing her body to swell out of shape—in fact, there was no shape to speak of now—she did not want to lose to Cassie.
To a certain extent, her appearance was bound to give people the wrong impression. They would always regard her as a promiscuous woman. On the other hand, Cassie, with her angelic looks, had a certain advantage over her. Therefore, when it came to seeking sympathy, Amelia would most likely lose out. Even so, she did not want to lose to Cassie before the competition even started.
The war between these two women actually depended on whomever the man would side with.
Amelia arrived at Starbucks five minutes before the appointed time. She ordered a cup of Jamaican Blue Mountain and got a table. Time ticked by and, unexpectedly, Cassie had yet to show up. Soon, she finished her drink. When she checked her phone, she realized that half an hour had passed.
Amelia dialed Cassie’s number. When the call was connected, she growled at the recipient, “Ms. Yard, are you here yet? Your time may be cheap, but mine is precious, so I suggest you show yourself within the next ten minutes or I’m leaving!”
The moment she finished her rant, however, Cassie’s weak voice sounded from the other end of the line, “Amelia, my stomach hurts a great deal. Am I going to lose my baby? Can you come here, please?”
Hearing that, Amelia panicked. She asked hurriedly, “Where are you? Give me your address. I’m coming.”
Cassie provided her the address over the phone.
Amelia was quite surprised to learn that Cassie lived so close to Oscar’s neighborhood, but right then she was facing a matter of life and death. She had no time to get jealous about it.
She quickly paid, rushed out of the shop, and got into her car. Before setting off, she thought she should give Oscar a call.
She dialed Oscar’s number, but it did not go through the first time. Luckily, it was answered on the second try.
“Mr. Clinton, Ms. Yard just called. She told me her stomach hurts. I don’t know what’s going on but I’m going there now to take a look. If you’re not busy, please come. After all… it’s your child. If anything happens, you’ll grieve as well.”
“I’m on my way,” Oscar said and promptly hung up the call.
Amelia looked at the beeping phone and, for a while, she let herself indulge in sadness. But she quickly got over it and drove away.
Luckily, it was not rush hour, so Amelia was able to drive at top speed to her destination. Before long, she reached Cassie’s neighborhood and took the elevator upstairs.
Outside Cassie’s apartment, Amelia knocked vigorously on the door, but no one came to answer it. She took the elevator downstairs again and informed the guards in the security room. The two guards took the keys and followed her upstairs.
They opened the door to find Cassie slumped at the stairway. A pool of blood had formed at her legs.
Amelia could tell that things had gotten from bad to worse. She ordered the guards to call for an ambulance. Then, she quickly ran over and kneeled down beside Cassie, calling her name over and over again.
Cassie slowly awakened. When she realized it was Amelia calling her, she grasped at the latter’s hand weakly. She pleaded, “Amelia, please save my baby. I don’t want to lose her.”
Amelia grabbed the woman’s hand firmly as she assured her, “Don’t worry. We’ll get you to the hospital now. You and your baby will be fine.”
“Save my baby. Save my baby. I still want to marry Oscar,” Cassie pleaded.
Amelia’s mind was all over the place, but she still managed to remain calm and said, “Don’t worry, your baby will be fine. We’re taking you to the hospital now.”
She turned toward the two guards. “Sirs, have you called the ambulance?”
“Yes,” came the reply. The two guards looked at Cassie, lying there in a pool of blood. They said, “This young lady is hurt badly. Should we get something to stop the bleeding first?”
Amelia thought for a while and came up with a better idea. “Sirs, which one of you is stronger? Carry her. We have to take her to the hospital now. We can’t wait for the ambulance. There’s too much at risk. The longer a pregnant woman dallies, the greater danger she’s in.”
“That works too.” The guard with a larger build stepped forward and took Cassie in his arms while Amelia was at the front giving commands. “Sir, be careful. She’s delicate.”
With a pregnant woman covered in blood in his arms, the guard was no doubt in a horrified state. It took a lot of effort to get Cassie downstairs. Amelia opened the door to her car, and the two guards carefully got Cassie into the vehicle.
Amelia drove to the Principal General Hospital as quickly and steadily as she could. Along the way, she called Robert in advance. As such, the moment the car arrived at the entrance, the medical staff that was already on standby came over with a stretcher.
The medical team placed Cassie on the stretcher and entered the hospital building. Amelia sighed in relief. She turned to express her gratitude to the two guards, “Kind sirs, thank you so much for today. If it weren’t for the two of you, I don’t know what will happen to her. If you don’t mind, let me buy you a meal next time.”
Both guards were middle-aged men, and they were honest people. They seemed dumbstruck when a beautiful woman like Amelia offered them her sincere gratitude. “Miss, don’t say that. This is our duty. Your friend has safely arrived at the hospital, that’s all that matters. We ought to get back to work now.”
“Oh, of course, kind sirs. She’s still being treated, so I’ll stay with her. After she’s recovered, do let me treat you to a meal.”
The two guards nodded and left the hospital.
After that, Mr. Lancester walked over to her. “Amelia, you don’t look so good. Shall I conduct a checkup for you? Olivia’s been looking forward to a grandson for some time now. We wouldn’t want anything bad to happen.”
Amelia shook her head and chuckled. “Mr. Lancester, I’m fine. It’s just that I was racing against time just now and got all tensed up trying to get here. I know I must look haggard. Thanks for worrying about me, though.”
Mr. Lancester had a very good impression of Amelia. Although she did not come from a good family background, she was kind, considerate, and very polite to her elders. She was also a brilliant, well-spoken conversationalist on top of being charming and elegant in every step she took.
From a man’s point of view, such a woman would make a wonderful wife. As long as the man was not superficial, he would not be deceived by her looks and presume that she would be unfaithful.
“You’re pregnant now. So you have to prioritize your wellbeing. If you’re high-strung all the time, it’s not good for the development of the fetus. You have to be more careful, alright?” Mr. Lancester said in all earnestness as the two entered the hospital together.
Amelia listened obediently to what he had to say. “I will, Mr. Lancester.”
“Why don’t you take a rest in my office?”
Amelia shook her head. “There’s no need, Mr. Lancester. I’m fine. I just need to rest for a while. You’re the dean, so you must have a lot of work to do. I really shouldn’t keep you. I already feel quite guilty for troubling you just now.”
“Don’t say that. You’re Oscar’s wife, after all. There’s no trouble here. Even if you call me in the middle of the night, I’ll call all the doctors to come to the hospital at once. If anything happens to you, Olivia will skin me alive!” Mr. Lancester exclaimed in a joking manner.
Amelia grinned.
“Thank you so much, Mr. Lancester! You really should get going. I can wait outside the operating room on my own. Oscar will be here soon, anyway.”
“Alright, then. I’m getting back to work. Call me if you need anything.” With that, Mr. Lancester left.
Amelia waited on the bench outside the operating room for about ten minutes before Oscar arrived.
“Amelia, how’s Cassie?” Oscar ran up to her and asked anxiously.
Amelia was once again confronted with mixed feelings when she noticed the panic in his eyes, but she went on to assure him, “Cassie’s still in the operating room.”
“What happened to her? Why did she call you? How’s the baby?” Oscar fired a barrage of questions.
Amelia gave him a complicated look while her heart ached.
“I got her call after breakfast today. She said she wanted to talk to me about something and asked me to meet her at Starbucks. I got there and waited for half an hour but she didn’t show, so I called her. She sounded weak on the phone and she wanted me to go get her. Something didn’t feel right so I went to her place. I asked two guards to open the door for me and after that, we found her lying in a pool of her own blood. I got one of the guards to carry her into my car and drove her here. I also called Mr. Lancester along the way. If you don’t believe me, you can check all you want, but don’t you think for a second that I caused harm to your lover on purpose. I’m not so noble as to take the blame for someone else.”
Seeing her stubbornness, Oscar felt somewhat relaxed.
He lifted a finger and rubbed her nose. “When have I ever doubted you?”
“You were questioning me just now. Weren’t you suspecting that I must have done something horrible to your lover?”
Oscar did not know whether to laugh or cry.
“I was just wondering how the two of you got together, so I asked. It’s as simple as that. Why, were you really mad?”
Amelia pursed her lips. “Mr. Clinton, I didn’t want this to happen to her either. Now’s probably not the best time or place to talk about her behind her back, but Ms. Yard had asked to meet me in person several times. I’m your wife, legally speaking, and your lover is getting in my hair. It’s frustrating!”
Oscar’s eyes darkened as he fell into deep thought.
Amelia glanced at him and added, “It’s useless telling you all this. You won’t take my side anyway.”
She paused, then continued, “Now that the unthinkable has happened, I suggest you be mentally prepared. Her unborn baby might not survive.”
Strangely, Oscar did not really feel sad when he heard Amelia’s prediction. On the contrary, he seemed to feel a faint sense of relief.
