Scarlett ran across the corridor, then stopped. She looked back as she breathed heavily. She ran back inside Room 13 and searched it frantically. She ran to the bed and grabbed her bag. She looked at Sheldon, who still clutched at the wound futilely. Bright red blood soaked his clothes, his hands, and the ground around him.
Scarlett felt nauseous from the smell of Sheldon's blood. She wanted to vomit but covered her mouth and ran out. She glanced down the hallway, saw no one, and kept running anxiously.
When she reached the reception, she noticed the receptionist was attending to a hotel guest and nobody paid attention to her. She ran toward the hotel entrance and immediately slowed when she saw the two security guards outside.
She walked away as if nothing had happened, but if the security guards had looked closely, they would have noticed her hands were stained with blood and trembling.
"Young Miss, the rain is pouring down heavily," one of the security guards called out, sounding concerned. "Are you still going to walk in it, or will your driver be here soon?"
Scarlett didn't look back. She swallowed hard.
"Don't worry. I can take care of myself," she said, and kept walking in the heavy rain until she reached the front of a convenience store.
Her phone rang. As she reached into her bag for it, she noticed her bloody hands.
She dropped her bag abruptly and began washing her hands in the rain like someone possessed. She scrubbed with every bit of energy she had.
Coincidentally, Leo was inside the convenience store. The front was made of glass, so he could see through it clearly. He watched her washing her hands and realized she was scrubbing off blood.
He looked at Sheldon's tall hotel, then back at Scarlett. A "something is wrong" expression crossed his face. He bought a bottle of water and an umbrella, paid the cashier, and stepped outside.
As Scarlett continued scrubbing aggressively, drenched in the rain, Leo opened the umbrella and held it over both of them. He gently poured water onto her hands.
Scarlett didn't look up. She kept scrubbing, almost frantically.
Leo stopped pouring.
"Why did you stop?" Scarlett snapped, furious.
"It's clean already," Leo replied.
Scarlett looked at her hands and saw that they were truly clean. She calmed down.
"It's on your face, though," he muttered. She grabbed the bottle from him and poured the rest of the water over her face to rinse it.
A few seconds later, she looked up at Leo. "Is it still on my face?" she asked, pointing to her face.
"No," Leo answered, "but there are bruises on your face."
Scarlett bit her lower lip and stared at the ground.
Her phone rang again. She flinched violently. Leo placed a steady hand on her shoulder to calm her.
Scarlett held her breath, tense and scared.
Leo slowly reached out and brushed her wet hair aside with surprising gentleness. Scarlett looked up into his face. Leo met her eyes with a calm, gentle gaze.
"You look unsettled," he said. "You have to calm down."
He stopped speaking, reached into her bag, pulled out her phone, and handed it to her. He also gave her the umbrella, then turned and walked back into the convenience store.
Scarlett stared after him for a moment, then answered the call.
"Scarlett, where are you?" Ivy asked, worried.
Scarlett stayed silent, staring at the empty, rain-soaked street.
"Scarlett?" Ivy called again.
"I got mugged on the street by a group of boys," Scarlett said calmly, though tears rolled down her cheeks. "I don't even remember their faces anymore. They showed me no mercy, but I'm fine now. Just a few bruises."
"What?!" Ivy exclaimed. "Where are you right now? How did you end up on the street? What about Mr. Sheldon?"
"Mr. Sheldon called late saying he had a meeting and couldn't show me the surprise, so I decided to walk home."
"Oh my God, why would you walk? Our house is far from his hotel," Ivy said, sounding serious and worried.
"I guess I felt like walking today," Scarlett replied. She wiped her tears, but more fell. "Anyway, I'll be coming home tomorrow. I'm sleeping over at Ted's tonight."
"But you're wounded and it's raining—how…?"
"Ted's mum is a doctor. She'll take care of me. Bye."
Scarlett hung up quickly.
The moment the call ended, she bent down. The umbrella slipped from her fingers and clattered to the ground. She burst into loud sobs, then covered her mouth as the rain continued beating down on her.
At the hotel, Room 13 was now crowded.
The ambulance had arrived and carried Sheldon's lifeless body away. Some hotel guests had gathered and were talking among themselves. Mr. Cole looked confused. Then some police officers appeared.
The officers showed Mr. Cole their IDs.
"Who reported the dead body?" one of the police officers asked.
"I reported it," Mr. Cole answered, "but one of the hotel staff saw him first."
"Okay. Where is the hotel staff now?"
"She left just now."
"Can you describe her?"
"No… she was wearing a white nose mask and the hotel staff uniform."
A woman in a hotel staff uniform slipped out through the back emergency exit. She removed the white nose mask, tied her hair into a ponytail, and flipped a small flash drive between her fingers. A smirk curved her lips as she walked away.
-Who is the woman with the flash drive??
Comment your theories! I read every one 👀