Echoes Of a Forsaken Heart

On a rocky outcrop a few dozen meters away, a white figure lay still.

Hamilton swam towards the shape with hastened strokes.

But as he neared, he slowed his pace, an uneasy feeling settling over him.

There, on the edge of the rocks, was a woman, as still as the dead. Just last night when he left her, she was perfectly fine. Now she lay there, breath seemingly stolen from her lips.

Hamilton always thought of himself as bulletproof. But fear, a stranger to him, now gripped his

heart.

His hands trembled as they wrapped around the woman’s waist, pulling her close to his chest.

The tape that had been cruelly stuck to her mouth must have loosened in the sea, and the ropes binding her hands had come undone. Her hands bore the raw marks of a desperate struggle.

Only when Hamilton cradled her did he realize the biting cold. No warmth left in her body.

His eyes fell, and for the first time, a fragile vulnerability touched his pale face. His lips were a tight line, and after what felt like an eternity, he shakily reached out to check for her breath. Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

Only coldness met his touch.

His eyes that had hidden all emotion now reddened in an instant.

He laid her on the rocks, performing CPR with a frenzied urgency.

The others who arrived on the scene wore grave expressions.

1

Alden stood in the chilly seawater, his entire body trembling.

Ryan watched for a moment before stepping forward. “Let me try.’

But Hamilton roared with bloodshot eyes, “Get lost!”

Ryan tried again, only to be held back by Alden.

No one would be allowed to touch Natalia when Hamilton was like this.

Time ticked by mercilessly.

Just when hope seemed a distant memory, Natalia coughed. Hamilton froze, then quickly pulled her into his embrace.

His voice shook as he whispered, “Natalia.”

Her consciousness was a blur. The roar of the sea filled her ears, that sense of helplessness engulfing her once more.

This might be it, she thought.

12:06

Dying now wouldn’t be so bad, but she wasn’t ready.

At 28, on her birthday no less, she had life yet to live. She didn’t want to be a footnote in the

vast ocean.

At the moment she hit the water, she fought. Her wrist was dislocated, pain searing through her, but she wrenched it free from the ropes. She tried to swim for the surface, but tha

water consumed her breath.

At that moment, she was back in the sea ten years ago. The day Hamilton saved her on the beach.

And now, she gave that life back to him.

It seemed fitting. She owed him nothing more.

Exhaustion was taking her, but then she heard her name.

“Natalia.”

Her brow furrowed, and her eyes slowly opened.

Upon seeing the man before her, tears fell freely.

“Hamilton,” her voice trembled. “We’re even now.”

Hamilton couldn’t make out her words, but reached down to lift her.

Natalia instead clung to Ryan’s wrist. Without words, her action drained her remaining strength.

Yet Hamilton understood immediately. His fleeting joy at her resuscitated breath vanished without a trace. Stunned, he watched her hand on Ryan’s wrist, pale to the point of

transparency.

“Natalia.”

In an instant, Hamilton’s eyes were bloodshot with fury.

Yet Natalia only looked to Ryan, her eyes brimming with tears and pleading.

Ryan exchanged a glance with Hamilton, then carefully picked up Natalia.

Hamilton’s anger surged, his face darkening as he moved to take her back, but Alden suddenly wrapped him in a tight embrace.

“Bro, please! Natalia can’t handle this. We can’t delay anymore. Please!”

“Let go,” Hamilton’s voice was ice, but Alden refused to release his grip.

Hamilton’s fist met Alden’s face without mercy. “Alden, if you weren’t my brother, you’d be dead now!”

With that, he blocked Ryan’s path. “Give her to me.”

12:07

Ryan faced Hamilton. “Hamilton, the last person who deserves to touch her right now is you!”

Hamilton’s punch was swift and full of rage. “Ryan, I’m telling you. Give her to me!”

Ryan stood firm. Then Dawson spoke up. “Give her to me.”

Taking Natalia in his arms, he strode towards the car.

Hamilton, momentarily stunned, followed suit. Ryan wasted no time, driving them towards the hospital.

Throughout the ride, Natalia fell back into unconsciousness, tears falling silently.

Hamilton’s fingers quivered as he wiped them away.

“Give me a blanket.”

At his command, Ryan handed over a blanket, which Hamilton draped over Natalia.

His hand paused as he touched her limp wrist, a suffocating pain rising within him.

What had she been through?

Orpheus!

A violent rage surged through Hamilton.

“Protecting your woman is a man’s duty. Don’t wait till she’s gone to regret.”

Dawson’s words cut through the tension.

Hamilton’s frown deepened, but he remained silent, his gaze never straying from Natalia’s pale face.

They arrived at the hospital.

Taking Natalia from Dawson, Hamilton rushed into the ER.

Handing her over to the doctors, the scene felt eerily familiar. He stood there, lost in the chaos of his thoughts.

“Where the hell were you? Why weren’t you there for her?” Ryan demanded,suddenly from behind him.

Hamilton remained silent, his gaze fixed on the emergency room doors.

Ryan’s mouth twitched, but he held back any further words.

The doctors had finished their examination; in addition to water in her lungs, she had multiple bruises and scrapes.

Scarlett had somehow caught wind that Natalia had fallen overboard. She rushed over, only to see Natalia pale and motionless on the hospital bed, which brought tears to her eyes instantly.

She turned to Hamilton, her voice quivering with concern. “How did she fall into the water?”

12:07

Hamilton’s lips formed a tight line, and he stayed silent.

Scarlett’s eyes, reddened with distress, shot daggers at Hamilton.

“It’s you again, isn’t it? Why do you always let Natalia get hurt? Don’t you know her body’s already been through enough with that accident? She can’t have kids because of that! Hamilton, why do you treat her this way? What has she ever done to you? If you don’t love her, just let her go, please! I’m begging you!”

Hamilton looked down, pulling out a soggy pack of cigarettes from his drenched jacket, glanced at it, and tossed it into a nearby trash can.

It took a while before he finally spoke, his voice as cold as ice. “What happens between me and Natalia is none of your business.”

Scarlett couldn’t hold back anymore.

“Jerk! You’re the one who insisted on keeping her by your side. Is this how you treat her? Hamilton, you’re nothing but a lowlife, a dog! You’ll get what’s coming to you!”

Hamilton watched her rant with an icy stare.

When she finished, he let out a cold laugh. “Are you done? If you are, get out! Don’t disturb her rest!”

Before Scarlett could retort, Alden had already pulled her out of the room.

Ryan had gone to drop off Dawson.

In the hospital room, it was now just Hamilton and Natalia.

Hamilton sat by her bed, gripping Natalia’s hand tightly. She was right there before his eyes, and yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that she might slip away from his world at any moment.

Natalia started to run a fever. She seemed to be in discomfort, tears streaming down her face.

Hamilton wiped her tears away, his fingers stiff and clumsy.

It was after an eternity that he finally murmured, “I’m sorry.”