Chapter 158

Evelyn's lips trembled slightly. The words died on her tongue.

Ethan's gaze turned icy, his voice laced with unyielding authority. "Evelyn Sullivan, if you dare say it's none of your business again, I'll turn LoseDemon upside down."

His threat hung over her like a blade.

She lowered her lashes, fingers absently tracing the edge of the blanket. Scorpion wouldn't leave marks if he wanted to torture her.

"Speak!" Ethan slammed his palm against the nightstand, rattling the IV stand.

"You already know the answer," she said, lifting her eyes to meet his with unsettling calm.

The air froze.

A nurse pushed the door open, flinching at the tension.

"This IV will take an hour and a half." She stole a glance at Ethan's sharp profile, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Press the call button if you need anything."

Ethan didn't even blink.

The nurse hurried out, cheeks flushed, muttering under her breath, "Handsome but terrifying..."

Evelyn bit her lower lip as a dull ache spread through her abdomen.

"Mr. Sullivan." Her voice was barely audible. "Could you call the nurse?"

If not for the bandages, she'd rather suffer in silence.

Ethan pressed the call button without looking away from her flushed ears.

When the IV finished, Evelyn tried to sit up.

"Stay down!" The nurse pushed her back. "Do you want your stitches to tear?"

Evelyn retreated under the covers.

In the hallway, Colin hesitated.

"I'll get some air." She tactfully turned away.

The sound of wheelchair wheels faded.

"The surveillance was wiped," Colin murmured. "Seven dead in the VIP room, but it's been hushed up."

Ethan's knuckles whitened. "Find former staff. Money is no object."

Back in the room, Evelyn stared blankly out the window.

"A busy man like you shouldn't waste time here."

"Saturday," he sneered. "So you don't disappear again."

She closed her eyes.

On discharge day, sunlight made her squint.

At the villa, her phone buzzed.

A message from Vulture: [Did Scorpion find you?]

Her fingers hovered before typing: [We crossed paths.]

[Be careful! That lunatic never lets go!]

She paused, then typed: [You knew Scorpion was among the survivors that mission, didn't you?]

The typing indicator flickered with no reply.

Her final message: [The real mission wasn't to kill Scorpion. It was to lure him to me, wasn't it?]