Cherise's phone suddenly buzzed. It was a call from Damien.
She wrinkled her brows and answered the call while waiting to cross the road. "Why are you calling at this hour?"
"It's been a while since we last met. I'm slightly concerned." The man's deep voice on the other end of the line was slightly uneasy. "Did something happen?"
"Of course not!" Cherise retorted, her lips forming a pout. "Mr. Whitlock had some questions about my thesis, so I was explaining it to him."
"Alright, come home soon." On the other end of the line, Damien took a deep breath. "I have this strange feeling that something is about to happen. I regret not accompanying you."
Cherise pursed her lips. As the traffic light before her turned green, she checked for oncoming traffic. She started crossing the road while continuing her conversation with Damien. "Why are you suddenly being so timid and overcautious? I'm working at the research institute, and I'll be commuting here daily. What could possibly go wrong?"
A piercing horn immediately blared after she finished speaking. As she held her cell phone, her hand froze. She turned towards the noise and saw a black sedan honking and barreling towards her.
"Watch out!" Damien's frantic voice echoed in her ear. Cherise frowned and instinctively turned around. Beyond the black sedan speeding towards her, a red truck was heading directly for her.
The man's familiar hand yanked her aside in the nick of time as he hugged her and rolled to the side of the road. There was a deafening crash behind her as the cars collided.
Everything transpired so rapidly. Cherise was in a daze. She didn't know when Damien had arrived, and she was clueless as to why the two cars were hurtling towards her.
But amidst her confusion, she spotted Ursula across the street, clad in white. The woman nonchalantly put on her sunglasses and slid into a red Porsche. Cherise suddenly realized that this incident had something to do with Ursula.
She took a deep breath and instinctively turned to look at the two cars, but Damien covered her eyes. "Cherise, brace yourself. I have something to tell you." The man enveloped her in his arms, his breath slightly ragged. "Zachary was in the black sedan and was trying to rescue you."
Behind them, screams erupted. Someone had called the police, and the sound of ambulance and police sirens filled the air.
Cherise was nestled in Damien's arms, and his hands still covered her eyes. She leaned against him, resembling a lifeless puppet. "Is Zachary... alright?"
"He will be," Damien reassured her. "He's been transported to the ambulance for medical attention. Let's go with him."
"Okay." Cherise leaned into him, her voice barely above a whisper. "Damien, are you sure it was him? He told me he was only coming with his fiancée tomorrow."
"How could..." Her hollow voice was filled with sorrow. "It's impossible. He should still be abroad now..."
Damien embraced her. "Perhaps he wanted to surprise you." His deep voice was slightly hoarse. "He just called me and inquired about your whereabouts."
"After I informed him you were at the research institute, he abruptly ended the call. I thought he might have arrived early and intended to surprise you, so I rushed over. I didn't expect..."
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