Chapter 279 No Choice But To Let Go
Kathleen sighed heavily.
Why are they all asking this?
In her worry, she said, “Can you stop hurting yourself this way, Samuel? If you continue this way, aren’t you just letting Old Mrs. Macari down? Along with Mr. Macari and Mrs. Macari?”
Samuel didn’t reply.
Frustrated, Kathleen pursed her lips anxiously. She was worried that he would rush out again if he happened to get agitated.
“Enough now, Samuel. You should treat your illness,” pleaded Kathleen as she furrowed her brows deeply.
“It’s incurable,” rasped Samuel coarsely. He continued, “After I regained consciousness, I hired an extremely well-known doctor and got him to take a look at my condition. My illness started because of you. All will be well as long as you’re next to me. You’re the crucial element that helps to stabilize both my condition and my emotional state.”
Kathleen was stunned by his sudden declaration.
Am I really that important?
“Is there no other way?” she asked with a frown.
Samuel picked up on the difficult position that she was in and said, “I know. I can’t force you to do something you don’t want to. I’ll try my best to manage alone.”
At that, she descended into a moment of deep thought, and silence ensued.
Now that I think about it, I wonder if he overheard the things I said outside earlier. From his expression, I doubt that he did. That means he doesn’t know that I kissed Caleb yesterday in order to protect him. Well… So be it. I don’t want to explain myself anyway.
He took in her expression and picked up on the frustration she was feeling. As such, he didn’t pursue the matter any further.
He was afraid that she would have more reason to scorn him now that she knew he was ill.
He suppressed the unhappiness he was feeling and said, “Let me wash your hair for you.”
She nodded and grunted in agreement.
Following that, Samuel proceeded to meticulously and delicately wash her hair.
“How long will Tyson and the others need to come over?” asked Kathleen curiously.
“It’ll take them at least until tomorrow night. It all depends on when the storm blows over,” explained Samuel.
“This is an island, correct? Is there anyone else around?” she asked.
“Not at all,” he replied with a shake of his head.
She frowned slightly and probed, “What are you doing with an island like this?”
As he helped to wash her hair thoroughly, he said, “I was thinking that if it came to a point where I couldn’t get myself under control, I needed a place to isolate myself.”
Kathleen was stunned and repeated, “You planned to live alone on an island?”
He nodded in acknowledgment.
At that moment, Kathleen felt pangs of heartbreak and sadness wash over her.
She realized that she was what Samuel needed to treat himself. If he couldn’t find her, his emotional state would fluctuate perpetually, and he might just end up having to stay on the island.
“I’ll make sure to treat myself, Kate,” rasped Samuel reassuringly.
That said, he knew that there might not be a point or much use to all the treatment.
“I’ll find a doctor, so please don’t hate me. Will you?” pleaded Samuel desperately in his low voice.
Kathleen felt a sharp pain straight through her heart before she finally replied, “All right.”
He was delighted upon taking in her response. He stated, “Your hair’s done. Is there anything else you need help with?”
“Don’t go too far now. Haven’t I ended up in this state all because of you?” puffed Kathleen angrily.
He was taken aback and paused for a moment before he stated, “I’m sorry.”
She faintly asked, “Do you have another copy of the key?”
“What key?” asked Samuel with a deep frown.
“You locked Nicolette in the underground prison. I went to find you earlier to get the key, but you threw it away,” explained Kathleen impatiently.
“Nicolette’s here?” asked Samuel as his brows knotted in surprise.
Kathleen gazed at him strangely and asked, “Don’t you both share the same set of memories?”
He said hoarsely, “He can see my memories, but I can’t see his.”
She didn’t know how to respond to that revelation and instead maintained her silence.
He promised, “I’ll do my best to make sure he doesn’t appear anymore.”
He had become very careful with his mannerisms and the way he conducted himself. He was sorely afraid that he would reveal the explosive side of himself and scare her away. That was something he wanted to avoid at all costs, as he didn’t want to detect the slightest bit of fear or terror in her eyes when she looked at him.
However, with that revelation, Kathleen was fully convinced that Samuel hadn’t heard what she had said previously.
“Let Nicolette go, Samuel. She’s lost both her legs. It’s more than enough torture for her already,” stated Kathleen grimly.
“All right. I’ll listen to you,” replied Samuel obediently. However, he added, “That said… I only have one key.”
She was rendered speechless.
He quickly added, “You don’t have to worry about it. I’m sure Tyson and the others can come up with other methods of getting her out when they arrive tomorrow.”
“That’s good then,” replied Kathleen with a sigh of relief.
“Are you done? I’ll carry you out,” he asked.
She raised both her arms as a preliminary test before she replied, “It seems like I’ve gotten some of my strength back.”
He looked intently at her with a tinge of disappointment in his eyes.
“Hand me the bathrobe,” instructed Kathleen.
However, he didn’t move and merely looked at her with a pitiful expression on his face.
She held her forehead in exasperation as she conceded and said, “Fine. Help me put on my bathrobe, then carry me out.”
Samuel grunted in acknowledgment and gleefully nodded.
He grabbed the bathrobe and helped to drape it over her lithe frame before he lifted her into his arms and carried her out.
Outside, the storm continued to rage on relentlessly.
Kathleen took that in and worriedly asked, “Do you think Nicolette will freeze to death down there?”
“I can lower the sluice and allow the seawater to drain away,” stated Samuel coldly.
Truth be told, he didn’t want to do so at all. However, he guessed Kathleen wasn’t willing to let Nicolette meet her end at a place like that.
“Go on and do it then!” implored Kathleen. She continued, “Why didn’t you say so before?”
“Well… You didn’t ask either,” he replied solemnly.
She wasn’t too pleased by that and remarked, “You’re done for if Nicolette meets her end here, Samuel.”
However, he put on a nonchalant expression and fully conveyed how he didn’t care one bit.
She explained, “You know as well as I do that Zachary wants to have a kidney transplant, as he thinks his current kidneys aren’t doing well. Once Nicolette leaves this world, that would be the same as shredding all hope that Zachary has. I doubt he would let you get off unscathed after that.”
A cold look flashed across his eyes as he countered, “Do you think they have the ability?”
He clearly didn’t care.
She grabbed hold of his black bathrobe and demanded, “Hurry up and drain the water away now. Do get me a fresh set of clothes as well.”
“All right,” he replied with a nod.
With that, he turned to leave, and Kathleen finally let out a long sigh of relief.
Samuel headed down underground and drained the water away. Soon enough, Nicolette emerged drenched to the skin, trembling non-stop. As she wrapped her arms around herself in a futile attempt to preserve her warmth, she glared at Samuel and exclaimed, “Why don’t you just get rid of me now and be done with it?”
“If it weren’t for Kate, you would still be soaking in the midst of all that seawater,” countered Samuel coldly, and he turned to leave.
He couldn’t be bothered to engage in any form of conversation with Nicolette.
Not Kathleen again! Curse her! Once I get out of here, I’ll absolutely need to find a way to deal with her!
Samuel then went to the kitchen and prepared two warm cups of ginger tea.
He carried the cups over to the room and handed one of them over to Kathleen.
She received the cup with both hands and felt the warmth that emanated from the cup immediately spread throughout her body.
He took a seat next to her and the pair sat in silence just like that.
After some time, she faintly began, “Samuel—”
However, he quickly interjected, “You don’t have to persuade me anymore. I’ll head back to receive the necessary treatment. I promise that this won’t happen ever again.”
“Really?” probed Kathleen gently as she looked at him.
He nodded solemnly.
“That’s great then,” replied Kathleen with a slightly coarse whisper. She added, “Samuel, I hope that you’ll continue to live decently in the years to come. Truth be told, you being like this places a substantial burden on me as well. This might be me being selfish, but I feel terrible when you’re in this state. I’m trying my hardest to leave the past in the past and live my coming days in peace. Please don’t be like this again, all right?”
His handsome and elegant face turned slightly pale as he agreed and said, “Okay.”
Even though he agreed that easily, he knew there was little to nothing he could do about it. If he truly did end up going out of control, he would inevitably end up in such a state once more. There was no way out of that conundrum he faced.
The way Samuel saw it, the only way he could dream of returning to having a semblance of a normal life was to have Kathleen by his side at all times. There was no alternative solution, especially since he just so happened to like her that much.
However, despite all that, he had no choice but to let her go. The pain he felt was immense and utterly unfathomable by others.
