After a long period of crying while the two were locked in an embrace, Alisa finally calmed down. Her heart started to warm up again, but she didn't share anything yet to Sylvia. The latter didn't force her to. She was afraid that Alisa would break down again if she remembered what kind of horrifying things she had experienced last night.
"Do you want to go home now?" She asked.
Alisa slowly nodded. The doctor examined her one more time while Sylvia was busy processing the bills in the reception desk. She would have to pay her later for the expenses, though. It's not like she lacked money right now. She also didn't want to strain their relationship with something as trivial as money. That was just how Alisa was.
She remembered that her car was left in Velvet Rose last time. Contemplating upon what to do with it, Sylvia came back to the room again and saw her being emerged in her thoughts.
"What are you thinking about, Lissy?"
"I just remembered that my car was still on the club's parking lot. What should I do?" She looked a little anxious. The car was quite expensive and she didn't want to buy another one again.
"Don't worry. I already arranged for someone to drive it back home with us. I'll be driving you back so you can rest while on the way, okay?"
"Sorry for making you do all of this. I have troubled you."
Sylvia was momentarily surprised before letting out a chuckle and then took her hand gently. "Silly, I am your friend. Whenever you are in trouble, I'll always be there for you."
"Have you always been this naïve? People would take advantage of your kindness, you know?" Alisa frowned.
"Oh, please. I can know you're not that kind of person. Otherwise, you would have already taken advantage of me the first time we met when you saved me."
"That makes sense. Alright, I'll be in your care for today. Thanks." She finally let out a smile. She was glad she had found a reliable person she could share her burden with. It felt so gratifying this time that all her hard work previously had paid and she earned something priceless.
The two girls were busy making small talks as they went inside Sylvia's Mercedes Benz and drove off. They didn't notice that there were two different parties looking at them from afar. One was Jude Arnor, who had been tasked to watch Alisa's every movements. He picked up his phone and contacted Raphkiel. The call went through and he spoke in a somewhat confused tone.
"It's me, my dear cousin. I don't really understand what that woman has done to you. She was just acting all normal and she was definitely not pretending about collapsing to the hospital. Moreover, isn't she the hero of the battle in the Western Battlefront? I'd be dead if I get found out by her."
"Just keep on watching her unless you want your salary deducted. She might be hiding something else. Also, investigate what happened last night. Someone was probably targeting me."
"Alright, you don't have to scare me just to get the job done." Jude sighed in frustration and hung up the call. He then drove his car and followed Sylvia's car secretly in a far distance.
On the other hand, the other party, who was a strange man wearing dark sun glasses, also called his employer. "Boss, the woman was taken away by the same companion she was with yesterday. It seemed that the one who took her was none other than Sylvia Jiang, the young miss of the Jiangs."
Steve's angry voice echoed through the phone while accompanied with the sound of a glass shattering. "Damn the Jiangs! How dare they interfere with my plan?! Were they the ones who helped that bitch escape?"
"I'm not sure. Somehow, the surveillances in the club were all intentionally smashed so I couldn't find a footage from last night."
"Observe that little girl for a little while longer. I have to get my hands on her and punish her severely for humiliating me!"
"Got it." The man put down the phone and drove off to follow them.
While Sylvia was busy driving, Alisa had dozed off in the front passenger seat. Her body was still sore from what happened last night and made her feel sleepy. She also didn't have the mood to enjoy the surroundings of the small metropolitan city right now, which made her even drowsier.
While sleeping, her consciousness drifted towards a dream she had been seeing time and time again. She found herself standing in a place where a man, who had the same hair color as hers, called her gently with a warm smile. She couldn't hear what he was saying but she knew what he was trying to tell her.
'Alisa, you're going to grow into a fine young woman like your mother.'
She grinned widely and ran towards her father to give her an embrace. However, before she could touch him, he suddenly vanished and Alisa was back into a place full of smokes and fires everywhere. Several gunshots could be heard from a distance and stray bullets would occasionally fly in random directions. Some people were hit by eat and dropped dead before Alisa's own eyes. She looked in horror as she watched their blood flowing out of their bodies into the ground. She was scared. She couldn't move her body as she was petrified from the intense fear she was feeling. Tears fell from her eyes as she desperately searched for her father.
"Daddy, where are you?!"
"Alisa!" A man's shout from a distance reached her ears.
She turned around and her eyes lit up as she saw her father running towards her to get her to safety. Unfortunately, she was in for another horrific shock as she helplessly watched her father getting pelted by a torrent of bullets, boring several bloody holes on his body.
"No!" She screamed hysterically.
Her father finally reached her but he collapsed on top of her. He was still alive but barely breathing. With one final struggle, he tried to reach out on her daughter's face as his eyes were becoming dimmer, smearing her face with blood.
"A...lisa... You have... to be... strong... just like... your mother...'
"Daddy!" Her loud screams were brought into the waking world as her eyes opened and she was jolted awake by the nightmare that had been plaguing her. Sylvia was given a slight scare that made her stepped on the brakes immediately.
"Lissy, you gave me a scare. Are you alright?" She looked at her worriedly and saw that she was drenched in cold sweat.
"S-Sorry, I had a terrible nightmare. Please go on."
"Are you sure? We could stop for a while."
"No need. Let's go."
Sylvia nodded and restarted the car. Alisa was slightly embarrassed of herself. Her other persona truly had been making her feel clumsy and a mess lately. She had never been like this in her past life. She let out a sigh and stared outside through the tinted window of her side. She didn't want to go back to sleep anymore. She was afraid that she would once again see the bitter memories that she had locked away deep within her heart and cause her to become more vulnerable than ever. She had to be stronger. Yes, just like what her father said, she had to be stronger...
"Just like mommy..." She softly muttered under her breath. Her voice was barely audible that Sylvia didn't hear it.
After a full hour of riding the car, the Alisa was finally back in her residence. The three maids she was supposed to test were still there and no one had resigned after a day had passed. They all stood at the entrance and greeted her respectfully. She was surprised that she actually forgot about them. With a little embarrassment appearing on her face, she blushed and pretended to cough.
"I see that you have been diligent with your work. You three pass the test. You're all hired."
The three were elated to hear the good news and they bowed in thanks to her, which made her feel awkward. Alisa hurriedly waved her hands in front of her to stop them. After all, she was no elegant young miss from a reputable family and Sylvia was still here with her. "Please raise your heads. You don't have to do this. I'm just fine with you working hard on your tasks."
"Thank you, Miss Hayworth!" They spoke in unison with their voices filled with warmth and gratitude.
"Alright, get back to work. I'll be heading to bed—" Before she could finish, she noticed two pairs of eyes watching her from a distance. One was just looking at her with calmness while the other one was hostile to her. She then changed her words quickly. "Sylvia, how about you stay here for a while? Ladies, please entertain my friend here for a moment. I'll be right back."
"Where are you going?" Sylvia asked her with a surprised look.
"I'm just going to walk outside for a moment to feel the fresh air. I'll be back shortly so stay here."
"Okay." Sylvia nodded and she was led by the maids to the sofa for a chat while the others went to get snacks and tea.
Alisa looked at them with a smile for a moment before turning around. Her expression was replaced with a murderous one, with a slight hint of madness gleaming in her eyes. She was close to snapping. Ever since that thing happened, she had no way to vent out her anger. Now that a suitable target had appeared, she would take her time slowly to exact her revenge against them.
"Fine then. If you want to play with me, then I'll be kind enough to show you a fate worse than hell." Her eyes were dripping with a dreadful killing intent that could be felt from several meters away, which made the two people from different parties paralyzed in fear.