Never Failed, But I Chased Him Relentlessly

Chapter 4

Ruled as an accidental injury, Celeste was ultimately exempted from prosecution thanks to Valeria's forgiveness and her own poor mental state. She settled the matter with a simple monetary compensation.

Valeria's injuries were severe. She had sustained multiple fractures and internal organ damage, requiring prolonged bed rest.

Dominic came every day. Sometimes he sat for a while; other times, he merely stood at the doorway to look inside. They exchanged almost no words. Valeria either closed her eyes and pretended to sleep or stared vacantly out the window.

That was until late one night. Valeria was sleeping lightly due to her pain when the sound of the door being gently pushed open jolted her awake. It wasn't the steady rhythm of a nurse's rounds.

A tall figure with somewhat bizarre, uncoordinated movements staggered over to her bedside. The moonlight illuminated the face of a man grinning idiotically, a string of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth.

"Pretty... lady..." the man mumbled, reaching out to touch her face.

A heavy, putrid stench hit her like a wall. Valeria felt her hairs stand on end. She tried to scream, but her injuries only allowed a raspy, breathless wheeze to escape. She desperately wanted to press the call bell, but her movements were sluggish due to her immobilized arm.

The man lunged at the bed. His sour-smelling mouth closed in as one hand groped blindly at her face while the other tore at her blanket.

"Get away from me!" Valeria used every ounce of her strength to turn her head and evade him. Her voice finally tore from her throat in a shrill, terrified scream. "Help! Somebody help!"

The man giggled. His strength was startlingly immense as he nearly pinned her down.

Just in the nick of time, the ward door was pushed open again. Celeste stood at the doorway holding a small video camera. A gentle yet incredibly vicious smile played on her lips as she recorded the horrifying scene on the bed.

"Valeria, don't be afraid," she said softly, her voice like a viper flicking its tongue. "This guy just likes you. Don't worry, he'll take good care of you. When your dad sees this video, he'll definitely be relieved to know his daughter doesn't forget to have fun even while confined to a hospital bed..."

In that instant, Valeria understood everything, and the realization left her cold to the core.

It was Celeste! She was the one who let this lunatic in! She wanted to ruin her, and she wanted to use this footage to provoke her father!

Extreme terror birthed an immense surge of strength. Valeria struggled desperately with her immobilized arm until her fingertips finally brushed the call button and pressed down hard.

The piercing alarm echoed instantly throughout the ward, alarming everyone outside. The deranged man seemed startled by the noise and paused his movements.

Celeste's expression changed. She muttered "useless" under her breath, hastily put away the camera, and quickly slipped away. The mentally ill man also seemed to regain some clarity; he looked around blankly before staggering out after her.

A nurse rushed in and flicked on the lights. She saw Valeria's hospital gown half-torn open. Valeria was as pale as a sheet, trembling violently and uncontrollably, her eyes wide with scattered, pure terror.

"Ms. Winslow! What happened?"

Valeria's teeth chattered so hard she couldn't form a complete sentence. She could only shake. The nurse hurriedly called for a doctor, who quickly administered a sedative.

It wasn't until noon the following day that she managed to recover slightly from that overwhelming dread and nausea.

Early the next morning, Dominic arrived. Valeria had been awake all night, her eyes red and swollen.

"A psychiatric patient broke in last night," she rasped, staring blankly at Dominic. "It was Celeste. She let him in. She wanted to... she even wanted to film a video to provoke my dad."

Dominic locked his brows tightly, looking down at her. "Valeria, I know you are harboring anger over Celeste hitting you and about your father. But you cannot make wild accusations like this. That patient really did wander over from the psychiatric ward. The incident has already been investigated and deemed an accident. Even if Celeste has made mistakes, she would never do something so malicious. You cannot slander her like this just because you want revenge."

His tone carried a sense of helpless reprimand, as if asking, How did you become so unreasonable?

Looking at him, Valeria suddenly lost all desire to explain. Cold wind howled through the gaping void in her chest.

"You don't believe me?" Valeria's heart sank inch by inch, plunging into a freezing depth. "Dominic, I was the one lying in that hospital bed, almost assaulted! Instead of investigating Celeste, you come here to accuse me of framing her?"

"I'm not doubting you," Dominic said, his tone rather stiff. "I'm saying we need to look at the evidence. Celeste is in poor health and she's timid; she couldn't possibly do something like this. You were likely overly frightened and started making negative associations. Don't overthink it. Just focus on recovering your health first."

Valeria looked at him and suddenly didn't want to speak another word. Saying anything was useless. In his heart, Celeste would always be the weak and fragile one who desperately needed protection. Meanwhile, she, Valeria, was the strong one—tough enough to endure anything, and perhaps even vindictive enough to frame someone out of sheer hatred.

She released her grip, turned her face away, and looked out the window. "Leave. I'm tired."

Right at that moment, Dominic's phone rang. He glanced at the screen and walked over to the window to answer it. Valeria couldn't hear the specifics of the call, but she saw Dominic's back suddenly stiffen, his phone nearly slipping from his grasp.

He slowly turned around. His face bore an unprecedented pallor and... panic? He looked at Valeria, his lips parting, but no sound came out.

An ominous premonition instantly seized Valeria's heart, even stronger and more suffocating than the terror from the night before.

"What's wrong?" she heard her own dry voice ask.

Dominic walked over to the bed and tried to hold her hand, but she dodged him. His hand froze in mid-air as he spoke, his voice trembling with an unbelievably heavy weight. "Valeria, you need to stay calm. Your father... this morning at the detention center. He suffered a sudden heart attack. Despite emergency resuscitation efforts, he passed away."