“You’re the one who’s losing,” Sonia had said.
The words lingered in the air for a long time… like a dense fog, it shrouded the room.
The tension was palpable.
But Kelvin raised a surprised brow, though he didn’t respond immediately.
His gaze remained locked on Sonia, a mix of emotions flickering across his face.
It came and went so quickly that it almost felt imagined.
Sonia’s heart thumped hard in her chest.
Her lips parted a few times but the words stuck to her throat.
She didn’t want him to misunderstand, but even if she tried to explain, she was at a loss for the best choice of words.
Things were already this complicated.
Saying more might only make it worse.
Moreover, she wouldn’t want to make it more complicated.
Just when she was at her wits’ end, Kelvin let out a soft, almost amused breath.
“Losing?” he repeated quietly.
It wasn’t clear if he was tasting how it sounded or imagining what it felt like, losing.
Or maybe he was weighing both.
But for Sonia, her heart thumped hard against her chest in trepidation, unsure of the response she wanted to hear from him.
Kelvin leaned back slightly in his chair, his gaze still fixed on her, but this time… there was something deeper flickering in his eyes.
“Why stare at me that way? It’s not like I am wrong,” Sonia forced herself to speak when she felt that strong gaze on her face.
Though her sight was still blurry, her ears were alert for any sound, and her skin kept tabs on where she had been stared at.
Kelvin chuckled.
“Do I look like someone who makes decisions blindly?”
Sonia didn’t answer, and she couldn’t.
She had barely known Kelvin, even though she had tried to analyze his personality and temperament and probably failed.
But he doesn’t look like a person who makes blind and unprofitable decisions.
Otherwise, how would he have known that it was safer to move her to his house rather than let her stay in the hospital?
And more surprising was how he had orchestrated it all so flawlessly that it was never noticed.
And that goes to say, he had a reason why he went to such lengths, but then why?
The next moment, her heart fell as she thought of something.
A bitter smile curled her lips.
“How would he notice when he only had Cyndi to focus on?”
And he certainly wouldn’t have bothered about her corpse, nor did he go to the morgue for a supervisory visit.
Then talk about Kelvin—Sonia swallowed; she hated to admit he was truthfully right.
But it was there, as clear as day.
Everything about Kelvin screamed control and calculation.
Sonia felt uneasy about it, and the dread of whatever plot she had been swooned into clutched tight on her chest.
And if he says he isn’t losing, then he was certain he wasn’t losing.
But what did he want from her?
What is his plan, and how was she involved in the plan?
As a doctor, it can’t be he wanted her organs?
She shook her head in disapproval.
“I am sure he wouldn’t have bothered about my life and death,” she mused.
But the next moment, she felt a chill rush down her spine.
What if he was preserving her life until the right time?
Sonia chided herself; she wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out that way, because everything she knew about her life seemed to have been rewritten.
Kelvin leaned forward again, resting his elbows lightly on his knees.
“If I say I want you,” he continued calmly, “then it means I’ve already considered every possible outcome.”
“And most importantly, I don’t make losing bets, and for you… I don’t bet.” His voice was steady.
Too steady, that Sonia felt fear curl in the pit of her stomach.
Her fingers tightened unconsciously against the bedsheet at the confidence in his voice.
Sonia only had one conclusion stuck in her mind.
She had long been a pawn in someone’s game.
Her lips parted slightly, then pressed together again before she finally spoke.
“Why?” she asked.
Kelvin’s brows drew together faintly.
“Why what?”
“Why me?” her voice wavered, but she didn’t stop.
“Why would someone like you… want someone like me?”
She let out a hollow laugh.
“A broken woman… with one foot already in the grave. No assets, no ground-breaking wealth, and no earth-shattering title.”
Her hand clenched weakly.
Her voice softened.
“So what exactly are you gaining from me, or do you just want to…?” she paused slightly.
She couldn’t bring herself to say it out; the truth might be more painful than she might have thought.
Otherwise, she would have asked if he just wanted to harvest her organs when they have recovered.
“Why don’t you finish what you wanted to say?” he said softly.
Sonia shook her head.
“There’s no need.”
Kelvin stared at her for a long moment, his expression unreadable.
But Sonia wasn’t the same; she had her fingers twisting against the other, a habit she always displays whenever she is nervous about something.
Kelvin stood up; the chair scraped softly against the floor.
For a second, Sonia thought he would leave.
But instead, he stepped closer to the bed.
Close enough that she could feel his presence even without seeing him clearly.
“You talk as if you’re already finished,” he said quietly.
His voice was serious and weighty.
“Who told you that you’re broken?”
Sonia let out a faint, bitter scoff.
“My body did.”
Kelvin’s jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
“And your body is always right?” he countered.
She didn’t respond.
Because she didn’t know how to.
.
The world she has been living in for the past six months didn’t give her any chance to make a choice.
He exhaled slowly, as if restraining something.
“You’re not my loss, Sonia,” he said, his tone firm.
“If anything…”
He paused for just a fraction of a second.
“…you’re the only thing I’m willing to bet on.”