Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

Abby traced a big arc in the air, looking more desperate than I'd ever seen.

Limping, I made a useless grab for the bridge railing, just in time to see her fall.

"Abby!"

Sophie didn't even have time to get up before she screamed and fainted right there.

Meanwhile, cops from both sides rushed to the middle of the bridge, pinning down Arthur, who'd been knocked out by a brick.

But just as Abby hit the ground, I saw a glimmer of hope.

A familiar figure burst out from the crowd and caught her.

He hit the ground hard from the impact, and people quickly surrounded him. I couldn't see much, but I could definitely hear Abby crying.

I squatted down, shouting excitedly, "Sophie, Abby's okay. Listen, she's still crying."

Sophie slowly came to, struggling to get up, mumbling Abby's name, and stumbled towards the bottom of the bridge, clutching the railing.

I forgot all about my sprained ankle and tried to follow. But the pain was so bad I almost tumbled down the stairs. Ethan caught me just in time, tossed his cigarette, picked me up, and carried me down the bridge in big strides. Traffic under the bridge had been stopped for a while.

By now, a big crowd had gathered, and Abby's crying kept reassuring me she was still there.

At first, I just thought the person who saved Abby looked familiar. When we pushed through the crowd, I realized it was Richard lying on the ground.

Abby was bawling in his arms, kicking and flailing, but she seemed okay.

Richard, though, had a scrape on his forehead, a bloody nose, and he couldn't get up. He just lay there.

Sophie cried out, "Richard, are you okay? Where are you hurt?"

She knelt beside him, looking worried and helpless, just crying.

Richard's chest was heaving, still in shock.

The crowd was buzzing, some calling Richard a hero, others worried about his injuries, saying he should be helped up, while some insisted he shouldn't be moved until they knew how bad he was hurt. Richard slowly turned to look at Abby in his arms. Unsure if she was hurt or just scared, he watched her cry intensely. Gradually, a smile formed on his face, a subconscious reaction he might not have noticed. "Richard." A familiar voice pushed through the crowd.

Linda saw Richard lying on the ground and screamed, rushing over. "Richard, what happened to you?"

Seeing Sophie squatting nearby and the crying child in Richard's arms, Linda seemed to piece it together. Her worried look quickly turned to anger.

The ambulance arrived fast. Someone mentioned that when the kid was hanging in the air earlier, they had already called 911.

As the sirens got closer, the crowd parted to make way.

Once the ambulance stopped, a bunch of doctors and nurses hopped out with a stretcher.

They picked up Abby, and when they put Richard on the stretcher, he cried out in pain.

Sophie yelled, "Richard!"

She rushed towards him but got shoved aside by Linda. "Get lost, jinx."

Sophie watched through tears as Richard was loaded into the ambulance, with Linda climbing in after him.

"Who's the child's mother?" asked the doctor holding Abby.

Sophie quickly stepped forward. "I am, it's me."

The doctor said, "What are you standing there for? Get in, she needs a full check-up too."

Sophie glanced nervously at Linda, who shot her a fierce look. She quickly lowered her head and carefully got into the ambulance.

I was worried and wanted to go too, but Ethan held me back. "You're hurt. What can you do if you go?"

The door quickly closed, and the ambulance sped off with its siren blaring.

Watching it leave, I kept wondering, in that critical moment, what drove Richard to rush out and save Abby?

Could it be the natural bond of blood between father and daughter?

Did this mean that deep down, Richard still cared about Abby?

That night, Ethan told me that Richard's exam results showed fractures in his right arm and shoulder, along with multiple abrasions. Abby had a minor fracture in her chest.

This was already a lucky outcome. Imagine if Richard hadn't stepped up, and Abby had hit the ground directly-the consequences would have been unimaginable.

As for the culprit, Arthur, I never expected him to come back with such a vengeful purpose in such an extreme way.

I thought his actions this time would be severely punished by the law. But Ethan said it didn't count as kidnapping. First, there was no extortion or ransom demand; second, there was no harm to the hostage. Abby falling off the bridge wasn't his intentional act. In the end, he was only sentenced to ten days of detention, which I thought was way too lenient.

However, ten days in detention meant he was going to lockup. This might be the roughest time he's ever had.

Bella told me that Zachary was back and had sorted out Leonard's financial mess.

I could tell Bella was pretty happy. Not sure if it was because Leonard's problem was fixed or because Zachary was back-probably both.

She said Zachary had booked a table for dinner that night and invited us to join.

I mentioned it to Ethan, thinking he'd pass, but to my surprise, he was all in.

That night, a lot of hotels were fully booked since it was Valentine's Day and everyone was out celebrating. Bella said she called around but couldn't get a reservation, so they settled for a French restaurant and could only get a table in the main dining area, not a private room.

Leonard was there too. He looked way better than he had in recent days. With the big issue resolved, his mood seemed to be lifting. Though I could still see he felt a bit awkward around Zachary.

When he was on top of the world, he probably never imagined the person who'd help him out of a crisis would be someone he looked down on the most.

At the table, Zachary played host. He stood up and poured drinks for everyone. I mentioned that Ethan couldn't drink alcohol, and Zachary got it, swapping it out for a soft drink.

We all raised our glasses and said, "Cheers."

Then Zachary specifically toasted Leonard, sincerely calling him "father-in-law."

Unlike his attitude on Zachary and Bella's wedding day, Leonard seemed a bit uneasy today and even stood up.

The guy in front of him was his son-in-law by status, and as an elder, he could've accepted Zachary's toast with ease. But he seemed really uncomfortable, probably feeling ashamed for having looked down on his son-in-law in the past. During the meal, Zachary mentioned he wanted to take Bella on a trip in a few days.

Bella tilted her head and smiled at him. "Where to?"

Zachary put his arm around her shoulder, his eyes full of affection.

"Anywhere, as long as you're with me." Zachary's words were simple but really touching.

I clearly saw Bella's gaze soften because of Leonard's words.

I sincerely hoped that the dark clouds in Bella's life would pass and she and Zachary would live happily together, free from all troubles.

After a while, I saw a few familiar faces walk in Oliver, Frank, and Jason.

I immediately felt uneasy.

Last time, Oliver saw the surveillance footage and noticed that Ethan was there but didn't help him when he was framed. This led to a fight and the end of their friendship. If he saw us dining with Zachary now, wouldn't he flip the table? Before I could think further, he had already spotted us.

Oliver had been talking to Frank. But the moment he saw us, his face darkened, and he looked at us with a sinister gaze.

Jason seemed to notice his gaze and followed it, spotting me first.

I saw Oliver trying to walk over. But Jason held him back, pulling him to another table farther away.

Because of a large pillar blocking the view, no one at our table saw Oliver and his friends.

I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that as long as Jason was there, he could probably stop Oliver from acting impulsively.

At the same time, I hoped our dinner would end soon.

But Bella was in a great mood today, chatting non-stop.

About half an hour later, Ethan had already smoked several cigarettes.

Suddenly, I saw Oliver walking straight towards us with a bottle of wine. Jason and Frank tried to pull him back, but he shook them off. Ethan looked up and saw him, remaining calm.

Oliver, as if not seeing Ethan, walked straight over and placed the wine bottle on the table with a thud.

"What a coincidence!" he said with a cold smile.

It seemed Oliver had already had quite a bit to drink.

Bella, who had been leaning on Zachary's shoulder, sat up and looked at Oliver, her expression no longer as relaxed.

No one at the table spoke, looking at him as if he were an unwelcome guest, making the atmosphere quite awkward.

Oliver slowly poured himself a drink and said with a smile, "I'm here to wish you all a happy Valentine's Day. What, not welcome?"

After a moment of silence, Zachary filled his own glass, raised it towards Oliver, and said, "Same to you," before downing it in one gulp.

Oliver, with a cold smile, glanced around the table. His gaze barely lingered on Ethan, as if he didn't know him at all, but finally settled on Leonard. Leonard was sitting closest to him. Oliver took Leonard's glass and poured him a drink.

Leonard's face was full of awkwardness, but he still raised his glass, looking both embarrassed and sincere, and said, "You saved my life this time. Thank you." Oliver, with one hand in his pocket and the other swirling his drink, let out a cold laugh.

"Do you think a simple 'thank you' can make everything right?"