6
It was midnight. Raina was asleep. The clock on the wall ticked steadily.
Stefan had just finished speaking with the doctor. He sank onto the sofa, exhausted. For some reason, his right eyelid wouldn’t stop twitching. Raina had been through a shock; she had almost lost the baby. Stefan had cancelled all his work to stay by her side.
For three whole days.
Now, in the quiet, a sudden pang seized his chest. A face materialized in his mind.
Mindy.
Stefan squeezed his eyes shut. For a moment, he couldn’t parse the complex emotions swirling within him. He thought he loved Raina, but looking at the woman in the hospital bed, his heart was a placid lake. He thought Mindy was disposable, but in the quiet of the night, his longing for her was growing into a tidal wave.
He pulled out his phone and opened his chat with Mindy. The last message was from two weeks ago. A
smiley face from her. And a simple “Thank you.”
She had wanted to go for Japanese food. He had put it off for days, then suddenly felt like company and had
chosen her. He remembered she had looked beautiful that day, wearing light makeup. During the meal, even though he had refused the wasabi she offered, and many other things he didn’t eat, Mindy had remained
cheerful.
She was always so well-behaved, so understanding. She had played the subordinate role in their relationship almost to the point of being subservient.
Seven years. Unconsciously, Mindy had been with him for seven years. Longer than he had ever been with
Raina
Stefan knew perfectly well that Mindy was a suitable wife. He was used to her presence. But looking at the chat log, which had been silent for three days, his expression darkened.
Had he been too harsh the other day? Had he scared her?
Stefan looked down, typing a message: “Have you learned your lesson?” She shouldn’t have used Raina to
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Chapter 2
test his feelings. Things that don’t bend, break. He hoped Mindy would understand that one day.
Before he could send it, a call from his assistant came through.
“Mr. Goldberg, the police officer who took Miss Lin’s place as a hostage… she didn’t make it.”
00:04
Stefan’s mind was cluttered with a dozen other things. His tone was impatient. “Find her family. Give them two hundred thousand and be done with it. It’s a police officer’s job to save people. Do some PR, make sure none of this splashes back on Raina.”
The assistant hesitated. “Sir…”
“Is there something else?” Stefan asked.
“Uh, Miss Crawford-”
“Speaking of Mindy…” He turned on the television, casually instructing, “Buy Mindy a gift. Have it delivered when she’s on leave. A necklace or a watch, whatever you think is best.” After all, she had cried so pitifully the other day. For the first time, he found he didn’t mind the thought. He was going to marry her eventually,
wasn’t he?
The television flickered on. Mindy’s picture appeared on the screen.
His gaze rested calmly on the words “Mindy Crawford,” “stabbed multiple times,” and “sacrificed” all lined up
together.
For a few seconds, the meaning of the text didn’t register.
Until his assistant’s trembling voice came through the phone.
“Mr. Goldberg, that’s what I was trying to say. Miss Crawford… she died in the line of duty. Did you… not
know?”
“She… was the officer who was sacrificed.”
