Molly's eyes widened and she stared directly into his eyes, reading his mind and his feelings through
those deep and attractive eyes. She strove to recollect what had happened the day before, trying to put
together the fragments in her mind. Everything was a blur. She could not tell whether they were dreams
or realities which had actually happened to her. She vaguely remembered the shock and fear she had
felt as she walked through the pathway under the shadow of the night and someone had suddenly
covered her mouth from behind. She remembered how utterly scared she was as she blacked out.
After that, her memories were hazy. She couldn't remember much clearly.
Molly's eyes widened more thinking about the terror she had felt when her mouth was covered from
behind. It was like something horrible or some unnatural evil spirit had crept out from the shadow of the
night and dragged her into hell. She wanted to scream, she wanted to tell him what had happened to
her, how terrified she was, to ask him why she was here. She doubted if she really was alive and
rescued and wondered if everything she was seeing or feeling now was just a delusion of her terrified
mind. She paid no heed to Brian's warning, opened her mouth and struggled to scream.
The intolerable pain in the throat sobered her up from her hallucination. But again, there was no sound,
no more than some shattered, almost inaudible voice. She felt something amiss with her throat. She
doubted if it was really just a throat inflammation like he had said. Unlike the throat inflammations she
had had before or seen so far, this was too severe and it almost made her mute and she was in so
much pain. She felt like she was being stabbed by a knife in her throat.
Brian just sat there and watched her pallid face twitch in mixed feelings, and he watched her suffering.
Unlike her, who was always revealing her thoughts and feelings through her eyes, she could not see
any emotions in his face. Sometimes she felt that his face was much like a mask. A dazzling, exquisite,
good-looking mask. "Didn't you hear me? I just told you that you should not speak. Why are you so
stubborn? Do you want to split open your throat?" he asked sullenly.
Obediently, Molly closed her mouth and forced herself to calm down. Significantly baffled and upset,
she stared at Brian with her adorable, pretty eyes which was now filled with terror. She was very
anxious to figure out if Brian was telling her the truth.
Realizing that Molly was still doubtful about his explanation, Brian reached out and caressed the little
shell necklace which hung around Molly's neck. As he touched the necklace, his finger made contact
with her neck. A silky and soft feeling came over his mind. He wondered for an instance about why this
woman attracted him so much. "This shell thing is an antique. You were stalked by a thief from the
moment you stepped out of the restaurant. No need to panic. He wanted no more than this necklace,"
he assured her.
Molly was rather surprised. She had no idea that such a tiny thing would bring her so much danger.
She blinked at Brian in astonishment, then drifted her eyes down and looked at the shell necklace
suspiciously. After all, it looked as ordinary as a common shell necklace when she accidentally picked it
up on the beach. She inspected the necklace carefully, trying to find something which might distinguish
it from other shell necklaces. 'How can this thing be an antique?' a bewildered look came over her face.
"Don't be so silly as to think it is just a common shell necklace. As a matter of fact, it is an exquisite
artifact, worth as much as a diamond. Otherwise, why on earth do you think he would try to rob it from
you?" he asked as idly as he could so that Molly would not suspect him again. Looking at the shell
necklace, his mind went back to what had happened the day before. 'It was Eric who had attached the
chain to the shell. How is it possible that he didn't realize that it was not a shell at all?' he pondered.
Molly's face was full of depression as she kept glancing at the necklace. 'Why do I have such bad luck?
Even a tiny little shell necklace puts me in so much danger. No matter how I look at it, it looks like
nothing but an ordinary shell with the chain attached by Eric. Why is all this happening to me?' her
brows furrowed at the thought.
"Now get up and get dressed. I will take you to the diner," Brian said gently. He put down the shell
gently back on her chest below her neck. He gently slid his finger over her lips and leaned forward to
give her a soft, warm kiss. He then rose and walked out of the bedroom, leaving behind a blushing,
shocked Molly with the unexpected kiss.
Molly's eyes watched Brian's back as he left the room. A flow of warmth and apprehension rose in her
heart. 'It is true that I have bad luck in everything. But at least I have this person who saved me and
kept me company till I woke up after such a horrible accident. Who knows what would have happened
if he hadn't shown up?"
She didn't want to think about it any further. But then, in an instant, her suspicious mind took over
again, 'No, that is not the point. As grateful as I am, he is only doing this for his own good. He wants to
break through my defense and fulfill his own nasty wishes. I cannot be so silly as to give in so easily.
There is no way that he is attached to me,"
Molly sat up at the thought, sighing. After a moment, she pulled herself up and slipped out from under
the quilt. She went into the shower and felt calmer as the warm water flowed steadily through her body.
Brian sat in the couch, his long slender legs extended and overlapped. He picked up the phone on the
table and made a call. From the other end of the phone, came Eric's vague, blurry hello. Brian
asked,"You knew that the necklace you gave Molly was not a shell, didn't you?"
"What? What did you say?" Eric pinched the middle of his brows, completely sobered up by Brian's
question. He stared at the light on the roof for a moment, trying to find a good way to explain it to him.
"Yes, I knew that it was not a shell. But I promise you that I never expected that this would happen. If I
had known it was the Pluto, all this wouldn't have happened,"
Eric said. His mind retreated to what had happened at the auction exchange the day before. He did not
comprehend why he did it. Maybe it was pure curiosity, or maybe he was just bored.
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