Stolen By My Billionaire Brother-In-Law-Chapter 18: Countdown

Azrael stood frozen, the phone still pressed to his ear, his heart pounding in his chest. He frantically dialed the number again, but the call went straight to voicemail.

"Track this number!" he demanded, passing the phone to Callum.

Before Callum could react, the phone rang again. He quickly answered and placed the call on speaker. Azrael moved closer, and even the officers leaned in to listen.

"This is from New Polins Hospital," the doctor greeted them, asking them to hurry over quickly.

Callum’s eyes widened in shock. How the heck did she end up so far away? The hospital was located miles away in the south while they were here in the northern district.

Meanwhile, Azrael’s eyes darkened, and his chest tightened. New Polins. The very place where she had died, where he had failed to save her. The memory struck like a hammer, fear flickering across his face.

"Azrael!" Callum called in confusion. He gently shook his shoulder, causing Azrael to snap out of his trance.

Azrael spun around and rushed over to their car. The chauffeur moved away, and he climbed into the driver’s seat, while Callum hopped into the shotgun seat.

As Azrael pressed on the pedal, Callum cursed, fumbling with his seatbelt. He shot a wary glance at the madman behind the wheel, clutching the belt tightly. "Slow down!" he hissed, but his friend seemed to care less about his life and only increased the speed.

They raced through the streets, breaking every possible traffic rule. By the time they reached the hospital, Callum looked ready to pass out. Azrael rushed inside the building, forcing Callum to run behind, nearly losing him in the maze of sterile white walls and buzzing corridors.

"Wait!" Callum panted, sliding through the elevator doors just before they closed. He frowned as Azrael pressed the top floor button as if he already knew where Rivana was.

"Did the doctor text you the address or something?" he murmured, taking out his phone to text his team to hurry over. His phone was with him right now and he checked through it but didn’t find anything from the doctor.

"We should have inquired at the front desk! We don’t even know where she is-" Callum shut his mouth when the devil glared at him, all set to punch him if he spewed another word.

Once they reached the floor, Azrael followed his gut and walked in the direction of room 104. Callum trailed behind with a deep frown. But as they reached the room and slid past the door, his jaw dropped.

"Rivana!" Callum gasped, staring at the woman on the bed and then at Azrael. How did he know she was right here? Was it some kind of love telepathy?

The attending nurse noticed them and approached. "I will bring the doctor," she said with a polite bow before hurrying out of the room.

Azrael walked over to the bed and stood beside Rivana. Reaching out, he gently caressed her cheek, as if reassuring himself that he wasn’t dreaming. A sigh of relief escaped his lips, something he had been holding for what felt like an eternity.

"Mr. Dynar," the doctor soon entered and greeted him. Looking at Rivana, he added, "Don’t worry. She was shocked and exhausted, which caused her to faint during the call."

Callum sighed in relief and scratched his brow. "But who brought her here?"

The doctor shook his head, equally confused. "We have no idea either. A cleaner found her in this room while doing rounds." It was as though she had magically appeared here and that was even more confusing.

"And the first thing she asked after waking up was to call you guys," the doctor added, recalling how she had fallen unconscious midway through the call.

Callum frowned even deeper, just like the doctor, he didn’t understand anything. But Azrael put the puzzle together. He protectively sat on the edge of the bed, clutching her hand as if afraid she might vanish again.

Rivana stirred at the sounds, her eyelids fluttering open. She blinked a few times, making sense of her surroundings. Azrael moved closer and helped her sit up.

"Are you alright?" Azrael asked, his voice tinged with worry.

Rivana stared at him, her mind clouded with confusion. Then, like a tidal wave, the memories came crashing down—the near-death experience, the explosion, everything, and that she had almost died again. Her emotions overwhelmed her all at once, and without thinking, she pounced on him, tears breaking free.

Azrael staggered slightly but quickly wrapped his arms around her. Rivana buried her face in his chest, her tears dampening his shirt. She clung to him, his warm embrace healing her turmoil.

Azrael’s jaw tightened, his heart aching at her sobs. He hated seeing her cry, be it in the past or now. Caressing her back, he scolded, "You are not dead! Stop crying."

Callum facepalmed at his bluntness. With such an EQ, he would never be able to make her fall in love with him.

Surprisingly, Rivana nodded, her sobs quieting. She pulled back slightly, sniffling gently. Azrael reached out, brushing away her tears with his thumb.

Everyone smiled at the scene while Callum watched with his mouth wide open. Leaving a resigned sigh, he decided to speak, unable to hold back his curiosity. "How did you end up here, Rivana?"

Azrael groaned and glared at his stupid friend, questioning if it was really necessary right now.

"I-I..." Rivana stammered, her mind a mush. The last thing she remembered was closing her eyes, bracing for yet another tragic end. But just as the fire roared toward her, something yanked her away, throwing her into what seemed like a suffocating abyss.

When she opened her eyes again, she was here, lying on a hospital bed. The memory felt fragmented, like a half-remembered dream, and even she couldn’t make sense of it. How could she explain something that sounded so ridiculously unrealistic?

Rivana swallowed hard, feeling everyone’s gazes on her. Taking a deep breath, she narrated a story, "I jumped out of the car just in time and set it to auto-drive to distract my chasers. Luckily, a doctor friend was on her way, and I came here with her."

"Oh," Callum nodded, and even the doctor believed it to be true.

"Who is the doctor? We should go and thank her." Callum asked, only going one more step closer to his death.

Azrael glared at him, wishing to ask the doctor to stitch his lips. At his murderous glint, Callum shut his mouth with a scowl.

"She had an important surgery. It would last for 10 or more hours," Rivana lied smoothly. "I don’t think we will be able to see her."

"Oh, okay." Callum nodded in understanding.

Rivana sighed in relief as none pressed further on it. The nurse then realized something and stepped forward. "We found this beside you, ma’am. I kept it since it looked precious."

A pocket watch? Rivana accepted it with a frown. It was round and intricately designed with delicate engravings and a shimmering finish. She curiously opened the latch. Instead of numbers, a faint mist swirled beneath the glass. Slowly, the haze began to shift, condensing into bold, inky letters.

[1 year 364 days]

Rivana didn’t understand it at first, but then her eyes widened in shock. That was exactly the number of days until her second anniversary, the date she lost her life. Was this a countdown to her death?

Confusion and fear flashed across her face, her heart gripped with dread. Her hands trembled slightly, her mind racing like a mad horse. Does that mean she was bound to live for just these many days?

Even Callum moved closer, trying to peek at the watch, thinking Rivana had a thing for antique pieces. But Azrael, who had seen the inside, felt his heart race again, darkness clouding around him that the air in the room thickened.

Without a second thought, he snatched away the pocket watch and threw it away, surprising everyone. The nurse gasped at his action, glancing at the shattered pieces.

Rivana looked at him in shock, her eyes wide with confusion. Before she could question, Azrael suddenly pulled her into a hug. His grip on her tightened protectively, causing her to hitch at the intimacy.

"Don’t worry. Even if I have to tear this world apart to protect you, I’ll do it," Azrael murmured, his voice a soothing balm to her worries. Pulling her even closer, he added, "No one. Nothing can take you away from me this time, Rain."

The warmth of his embrace and the comfort of his voice eased Rivana’s spiraling panic. But deep down, a doubt daunted her. Could they really defy a fate that seemed already sealed?