Chapter 192 - The Islet Mystery 8

Shiela felt she lost her mind in fear as she realized that the exploding sound came from a gun. Everything came too fast then she could think as the boatman jumped overboard a second after the loud sound shattered her senses. She got horrified in seeing him jump and when she realized she was being left alone in the boat. Her mind couldn't process what she should do next until the man shouted at her.

"Jump down and save your life! That man on the shore shoots us!"

Suddenly, she couldn't understand what was happening and without using her mind, she dived into the water and swam as fast as she could. For what seemed like eternity, she summoned all her strength, coupled with her racing heartbeats until exhaustion slowed her down. She remembered that during these times, what would surely work on her was using her mind over the body. However, no matter how much her brain had released a surge of adrenaline, her used up energy and strength gave way.

As each minute passed, she felt her breathing getting more difficult and shallower and her heartbeats getting louder. She started to panic and all her efforts to survive ended futile. She tried to float on her back to relax and regain strength but her fear made her body heavier until lifting a limb got difficult.

When she felt her faintest hope had blown away, she started to concede and whispered a silent prayer, entrusting her life to the hands of the Almighty. Then she tried to draw in the last, thin air she could manage before allowing the gravity of the water to pull her down. As her heart was about to collapse due to extreme fatigue, vague images of her father and of Ryan flashed in her mind. The sharp cry of her baby when the doctor separated him from her played in her ears. Her last ounce of tears then made its way into her eyes before she lost her consciousness, mingling easily with the waves as it pushed her down to her fathomless grave.

Shiela woke up to the force of arms encircling around her, pushing at intervals into her abdomen making her gag and throw up the water out of her stomach. After some more pushes, she started to cough the water out of her lungs and eased her breathing a little. She heard a man's voice, calling out her name but her mind was too groggy to tell who he was.

"Baby, please, hold on! Don't scare me!" the man spoke in her ear and it seemed like a sound of music from the depths of the sea.

Shiela then felt a cupped hand slapping her back for a long while and more water came out from her lungs and stomach until exhaustion took her consciousness once more.

"Shiela! Shiela! Please, sweetheart, wake up!"

Shiela realized later on that the voice was of Ryan and she felt relieved that she was safe in his arms. A few minutes ago, she had resigned to the reality of death, but hearing him now, made her glad. Why did he shoot them and what makes him change his mind and saved her in the end? She wanted to think harder but her mind was too exhausted to ponder.

Ryan picked her up after giving her first aid on the shore, placing her head on his shoulder while an arm supporting her thighs. He strode fast towards the house and she heard a commotion. With her eyes closed and her strength drained, she could barely recognize the cause of the chaos. Everything seemed to be a dream.

"What's happening?" she heard a shrill voice which she knew was aimed at them.

"Is that Shiela? Oh, my, what's happening?"

Soon an almost simultaneous questioning deafened her ears but despite their terrifying queries, she was too tired to open her eyes.

"Get me, Jullien. I want her to check on Shiela. Where the hell is she?" Ryan's panicked voice rang in her hears.

Jullien. Suddenly, her name sounded like a spirit of ammonia, waking every fainting cells in her system to life. She stirred and tried to wriggle out from Ryan's arm.

"Shiela! Thank God, you're conscious already!" Ryan exclaimed happily, raising her chin.

"Put me down, please!" came her hoarse and weak voice but instead of releasing her, Ryan pulled her closer to himself and pressed her face to his.

"You don't know how much you scared me! How are you feeling now?"

Before Ryan could answer, Mrs. Lopez, interrupted him and asked in a terrified voice, "Ryan, did I hear a gun? What's happening? We're all scared to death!"

Gun. Explosion. The loud combustion shattering her mind. With an inner instinct telling her, she looked down at his side and there was indeed a pistol attached to a holster.

"Neil put me down! You're bringing a gun! It scares my mind away!"

Ryan chuckled and murmured, "You're so afraid of a gun but you are not thinking about dying when you just go away with a random man you don't know at all? "

"Ryan, you might accidentally pull down the trigger!"

"I'll put it down later."

"No!"

Seeing Shiela's shivering and her horrified expression that her pupils seemed to dilate due to fear, he pulled the gun out of its holster and threw it away. Only when Shiela saw that it was already far away, did her quivering stop.

"Baby, are you sure you're okay now?" Ryan asked with an extremely worried face, brushing her dripping hair away from her face with one hand."

"I want to rest," she mumbled.

"Sure but I want to be sure you're okay. I'll have Jullien check on you."

"No," she exclaimed, her wide eyes emphasizing it, "just let me rest."

"Sweetheart, Jullien is a doctor..." Ryan was about to convince her further but Shiela cut her off.

"You should have allowed me to die rather than... " Shiela stopped, her jealousy was showing already.

Heaven must have seen and heard her when Jane stepped in and offered. "Ryan, let me check on her, instead. I'm also a doctor."