Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph
Chapter 76 I Am Someone Who Brings Misfortune to Others

I hadn't been catching any Z's lately. When I finally rolled outta bed, the sun was just peeking over the horizon.

The second I cracked my eyes open, sleep was a no-go. I wanted to get up, but Ethan had his arm draped over me. Didn't wanna wake the guy, so I just laid there, still as a statue.

In the dim light sneaking through the window, I stared at his hand. It was all banged up, swollen with a bunch of cuts, raw flesh showing and everything.

No way those were from a simple fall. The more Ethan kept stuff from me, the more it gnawed at me. He had to be hurting, 'cause even in his sleep, his fingers twitched now and then. I had my back to him, no clue what his sleeping face looked like, if he was showing any signs of weakness.

My heart kinda ached, so I leaned in and gently blew on his hand. No idea how long I did that before he turned me over.

Ethan propped himself up, grinning. "What are you up to?"

He must've caught me in the act. I gently picked up his hand and asked, "Does it hurt?"

Ethan smirked, all mischievous. "Nah, but a certain area is a bit swollen, it needs to settle down."

Just as my heart started racing, he pressed my hand to his private parts. "Feel that?"

I was both embarrassed and annoyed, shaking off his hand and sitting up to get outta bed.

Ethan laughed and grabbed my hand from behind. "Babe, no rush for breakfast, let's catch some more Z's."

No matter how much he teased, the tension in my chest wouldn't ease up, especially since today was the third day.

A pair of arms wrapped around me from behind, his warm chest pressing against me.

I said, "Please stop, I'm gonna make breakfast."

"Hold up!" Ethan's tone suddenly got serious.

I had no clue what he was up to, so I just sat there. Suddenly, I felt something cool around my neck. Looking down, I saw a pearl necklace.

I recognized it as the one that had been sent for repair. I was surprised. "So you picked up the necklace?"

Ethan turned my shoulders, smiling as he looked at me. "From what you said, you went looking for it?"

I didn't think it was embarrassing to go back and look for it, but I still felt a bit awkward. I lowered my head and said softly, "I couldn't bear to lose it, after all, it's expensive."

There was no response for a long time after I spoke, and when I looked up, I saw he was unhappy. For some reason, I suddenly couldn't help but laugh.

When I laughed, Ethan's tense face relaxed and smiled.

The bedroom lights were off, with only the dim light from outside coming in. He sat cross-legged on the bed, and I sat on the edge.

He took my hand, interlacing our fingers, gently rubbing my palm. "I've found that now I'm neither straightforward nor decisive. Even I feel unfamiliar with myself. Going back to pick up something I threw away with my own hands. In the past, indecisiveness was what I despised the most, and now I've become that kind of person. It's really strange."

Ethan's tone was slow, with a hint of self-mockery at the corners of his lips.

We were both changing unknowingly, but in opposite ways. I had always been indecisive, yet I hoped to become more decisive one day.

I heard footsteps outside, passing by the door and going downstairs. It should be Jason getting up.

Jason usually got up early; it was a habit. But soon, the footsteps came back, and there was a knock on the door.

Ethan, wearing only underwear, went barefoot to open the door. I was in my pajamas, so I didn't avoid it either.

When the door opened, Jason, standing outside, looked past Ethan at me, his face serious.

"Come out for a moment," he said to Ethan.

I sensed that something might have happened, so I quickly changed out of my pajamas and followed them downstairs.

They weren't in the living room, and the villa door was open. I went outside and found Ethan furiously tearing down things stuck to the wall.

Staring at the wall, my mind felt like a bomb had gone off.

Arthur couldn't wait to take action before the three days were up. I stood frozen, my vision filled with Ethan's tense face as he angrily tore down the photos, like he was tearing the skin off an enemy.

Jason stood at the villa door, frowning.

It wasn't just the wall of the villa. Given Arthur's current crazed state, he might have plastered them all over the city.

I had no dignity left, and neither did Ethan. All of this was just because of Arthur's revenge.

Ethan tore down half of them, then made a phone call. After the call, he continued tearing until the entire wall was clean.

In less than half an hour, a car stopped in front of the villa.

Dennis hopped out, popped the trunk, and hauled out a bunch of woven bags, lugging them inside. "Mr. Windsor, don't sweat it. The crew's quick. We got all the photos. We even nabbed a dude with a bag full of 'em, caught him in the act. I scared him with a trip to the cops, and he spilled that someone paid him to do it."

He dumped the bags on the ground, and photos scattered everywhere.

By now, it was full daylight, but the weather sucked-no sun, just a gloomy, overcast sky, matching Ethan's mood, cold and grim.

When Ethan got worked up, he'd reach for a smoke, but even his lighter was giving him grief. After a few failed tries, he chucked it across the yard.

Dennis handed him a lighter, and Ethan finally got his cigarette lit.

I had been standing there, silent and still. I walked over and took the lighter from Ethan's hand. He looked at me, surprised.

I squatted by the sack, gathered the photos Ethan had ripped down into a pile, picked one up, and lit it. Then I used that burning photo to set the whole pile ablaze.

A bonfire roared in the middle of the yard. I stared at the flames, my teeth nearly grinding to pieces. I couldn't even feel the heat on my face.

Suddenly, a hand pulled me up and moved me a few steps away from the fire.

Ethan looked at me, his previous agitation gone, now calm in his eyes and tone. "Don't worry, I'll remember this grudge today, and I'll get back at Arthur sooner or later."

Ethan's calmness was scarier than any outburst. He didn't ask about the photos, just stood by me unconditionally. A sense of guilt grew in my heart.

"Your dad was right, I really am someone who brings bad luck to others," I said miserably.

Ethan suddenly hugged me tight, my chin hitting his solid collarbone hard. I didn't feel any pain, just a strong sense of protection. His fierceness in protecting me was especially moving. The pile of photos and the sack were all burned to ashes.

Ethan told me to rest up at home and not to worry about anything, then left with Dennis.

Before heading to work, Jason mentioned there was bread and milk on the table. But I didn't touch any of it. As soon as they left, I grabbed a cab straight to Grace Hospital.

On the way, I kept thinking about how I should get back at Arthur. I wanted to curse him out, maybe even have a crazy fight.

I had lost too much; I wasn't afraid of damaging my image and dignity anymore. Just imagining those scenes made my blood boil. But when I got to the OB-GYN department, I was told that Arthur had already resigned. I immediately took a cab to Arthur's apartment.

When I got to Arthur's door, I couldn't wait for the door to open after ringing the bell, so I started pounding on it, all my anger in my fists.

I pounded for a long time, and just when I thought he wasn't home, the door suddenly opened. But it wasn't Arthur who opened the door, it was Vivian.

My first thought was, 'They haven't divorced yet?'

Vivian was in pajamas, her hair a bit messy, clearly just out of bed, looking half-awake.

She was startled to see me, then a faint smile appeared on her face. "Are you looking for your ex-husband? You're at the wrong place. This house doesn't belong to him anymore; it's compensation for my emotional distress." "Sweetie, who is it?" A man's voice came from inside. Then, a shirtless stranger walked up behind Vivian, pressing against her back as if I didn't exist, his hand reaching around her.

"Who is she?" The man asked, resting his head on Vivian's shoulder, staring at me.

Vivian smiled seductively under his teasing. "My ex-husband's ex-wife."

I had no time to watch them flirt in front of me, so I immediately turned and went downstairs. I realized Arthur might be planning to escape, but had no idea where he would go. When I got downstairs, I quickly took out my phone and called Emma.

A cold, emotionless female voice quickly came from the other end. "Sorry, the number you have dialed is no longer in service."

Overnight, Arthur had done the thing that could shock the entire city and then disappeared.

Maybe he had planned his escape long ago, so he dared to act so ruthlessly.

I thought, 'Where could he run to? Could he disappear from the face of the earth?'

As Ethan said, this grudge would be settled sooner or later.

On the way back, I suddenly received a text message from Arthur. I opened it and, after reading it, started trembling all over.