Serene returned to the house she had previously bought and carefully cleaned it.
She threw out everything that belonged to Ivan.
She told Joseph about the transfer order and asked him not to tell Ivan.
Joseph still agreed out of guilt and arranged a three-day leave for her according to procedure. Serene stayed in bed for all three days.
On the third day, the door was kicked open.
Serene frowned. Her previously suppressed temper flared up.
"What are you doing here?"
Her expression turned unfriendly. Ivan also had a dark look on his face as he rushed forward to grab her wrist.
"Where are you taking me?"
She could not overpower him and shot him a glare instead.
Ivan's dark eyes sharpened.
"Serene, did you threaten Wendy?"
She lifted her eyes and carefully tried to understand what he was getting at.
Ivan looked serious and angry.
The man who once sided with her without question had started to be biased toward someone else.
"What did she tell you?" Serene asked.
"She said if she does not go back, you will make her life impossible in the unit," Ivan said as he stepped closer. His fist whooshed past her ear and slammed hard into the wall. "Serene, who gave you the courage to do that?"
She looked at him in disbelief.
"Ivan, you were actually going to hit me for her sake."
She looked into his cold eyes and felt like she had fallen into an icy cave.
"I did not do it," she said calmly. Her voice was steady with no emotion.
Ivan's face darkened. His grip on her wrist tightened.
"Wendy is kind. She would not lie."
Serene laughed out loud. Tears slid down the corner of her eyes without her noticing.
The man she had loved for so many years had ended up hurting her the most.
"So, you think I am the one lying to you."
Ivan said nothing. He only stared at her coldly and dragged her wrist toward the door.
"Serene, Wendy needs to recover. You will have to bear with it for now."
He brought Serene to a storage room and locked her inside without caring about her struggle. Outside the door, Ivan looked guilty.
"Serene, after this mission ends, I'll submit the application. We will get married and live in peace.
"Just don't bully Wendy."
Serene lowered her head. Tears welled up at the corners of her eyes. The wounds on her arms that had not healed yet began to hurt again.
"Ivan, I am hurt too," she said.
Ivan frowned and replied instinctively, "Serene, stop making trouble.
"You are physically strong. How could you get injured?"
Serene gave a bitter smile and watched him leave.
She really was in pain. If Ivan had looked carefully, he would have seen the blood at her lips.
But he did not care.
Her past with Ivan felt like a dream that had already shattered beyond reach.
She let out a self-mocking scoff and slowly fell into a deep sleep.
When she woke again, she was in a bed in the infirmary.
Before she could think further, she was taken away by Ivan's subordinates.
"Where are you taking me?"
Serene frowned and struggled hard.
They brought her to Wendy's hospital room.
Wendy was leaning in Ivan's arms, looking frightened.
Her hand gripped his collar tightly as she curled closer for comfort.
And her fiancé was gently patting her back to calm her down.
Aksara