C4 The Bullet Between Us

Rowan hadn’t expected to run into Vivienne here.

He had tracked his target to this neighbourhood, only to walk straight into an ambush.

The narrow streets twisted in every direction, packed tightly between old buildings. In the chaos, it was impossible to get his bearings.

He had planned to grab anyone nearby and force them to lead him to safety.

Instead...

He had run into Vivienne.

Strangely, the moment he saw her small face, an inexplicable sense of trust settled in his heart.

He lowered the gun slightly but didn’t put it away. His dark eyes remained fixed on her as he asked in a low, cold voice,

“What are you doing here?”

“I... I live here,” Vivienne answered honestly, unable to take her eyes off the gun in his hand.

A flicker of surprise crossed Rowan’s eyes.

A Virement daughter... living in a place like this?

The thought disappeared as quickly as it came.

His expression returned to its usual indifference.

“Take me to your apartment.”

Vivienne frowned and took a cautious step back.

“No.”

She wasn’t about to bring an armed stranger into her home.

Even if that stranger was Rowan’s so-called cousin.

A faint, dangerous smile curved Rowan’s lips.

“So that’s your answer?”

His voice dropped, calm enough to send a chill down her spine.

“Then I’ll tell my cousin his new wife has been sneaking around with me since the day she married him.”

Threatening her again.

Vivienne clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms. Her small face flushed with anger, but she had no way to deal with this shameless man.

After a few seconds of silence, she gritted her teeth.

“Fine. Come with me.”

They had spoken for less than half a minute.

The moment they turned to leave, two men dressed in black rushed into the alley.

“There! They couldn’t have gone far!”

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Rowan’s eyes turned sharp.

Without warning, he grabbed Vivienne’s wrist and pulled her into a narrow side alley.

Before she could even cry out, he pushed open the door of a nearby house and dragged her inside.

Both of them stood motionless.

The footsteps outside grew closer.

One pair... Then another.

Vivienne unconsciously held her breath. “They disappeared.”

“Search every alley!”

The voices echoed just outside the door.

Her heart nearly leapt into her throat.

Several long seconds passed before the footsteps gradually faded into the distance.

Only then did Rowan crack the door open and glance outside.

“They’re gone.”

He grabbed her wrist again and led her back out.

Vivienne’s heartbeat still hadn’t slowed.

She had no idea what kind of trouble this “Adrian” had gotten himself into.

But one thing was certain: now wasn’t the time to ask. The only thing she could do was keep moving.

The two hurried all the way back to Vivienne’s small apartment.

Standing at the door, Vivienne instinctively looked left and right to make sure no one had followed them before quickly unlocking it.

The moment they stepped inside, she shut the door and locked it.

She turned around. “What exactly did you—”

Before she could finish her question, Rowan’s tall body suddenly swayed.

Then he collapsed.

“Hey!”

Vivienne’s face paled.

She rushed forward and caught him just before he hit the floor. “What happened to you?”

She tried to help him up, but Rowan was far taller and heavier than she was. His solid frame barely budged no matter how hard she pulled.

Then... something warm coated her fingers.

Vivienne froze.

Slowly lowering her gaze, she saw her hand stained with blood.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Only then did she notice how unnaturally pale Rowan’s face had become.

He was dressed entirely in black, making it almost impossible to see the blood soaking through his clothes.

He had been bleeding the whole time, and yet... He hadn’t said a single word.

Rowan looked at her panicked expression and suddenly reached out to grab her wrist. The corners of his thin lips lifted slightly. “What are you afraid of? Don’t worry. If I die, at worst, they’ll make you bury me.”

His tone was calm and indifferent, making it impossible to tell whether he was joking or being serious.

Vivienne wasn’t in the mood to listen to him say such things. Remembering the gunshots she had heard earlier, she said anxiously, “Let go. I’ll get your phone and call an ambulance!”

Rowan’s expression immediately darkened, and his voice turned cold. “Don’t call an ambulance.”

Vivienne felt his grip tighten around her wrist. It hurt, and the cold expression on his face was so intimidating that she didn’t dare argue with him.

She asked cautiously, “Then... can I bandage your wound?”

Rowan ignored her question completely and ordered in a firm voice, “A blade. A lighter. A candle. Bandages. A towel.”

Vivienne immediately realised what he intended to do.

He was planning to remove the bullet himself.

Her expression changed as she shook her head. “No. You can’t remove the bullet by yourself. It could kill you.”

“Who said I was going to remove it myself?”

Rowan looked at her. His eyes were as deep as the night, like a dark whirlpool that could swallow a person whole with a single glance.

Just as Vivienne found herself almost drawn into those eyes, she heard him say calmly, “You’ll help me remove it.”

“What?”

Vivienne’s legs nearly gave out in fright. “I can’t!”

Although she disliked this man, she respected the value of life.

Even though her own birth had been nothing more than an accident caused by Celeste and Victor, and she had spent years in the Virement household being ordered around by Seraphina like a servant, she still treasured her life.

She didn’t know how “Adrian” could treat something as life-threatening as this so lightly.

But there was no way she was agreeing to it.

Rowan raised an eyebrow.

“Do you want to bury me?”

His tone remained calm and indifferent, yet it carried an unquestionable authority.

Vivienne’s face turned pale as she helplessly went to gather the things he had asked for.

She felt that her life had already fallen apart beyond repair the moment she married into the Devereux family.

How much worse could it possibly get?

She even found herself thinking, half seriously and half helplessly, that if “Adrian” really died while she was removing the bullet, it would not be too bad for her to bury such a beautiful man.

Vivienne tried her best to stay calm, but she still couldn’t stop her hands from trembling.

As she carefully used the blade to expose the edge of the wound, she kept glancing at “Adrian,” watching his condition.

She noticed that, apart from his pale face and the beads of sweat on his forehead, he showed almost no reaction.

Even his brows were only slightly furrowed.

If there was anything unusual... It was that he had been looking at her the entire time.

She could tell he was growing weaker, yet his gaze remained unwavering.

His eyes burned into hers with an intensity she couldn’t ignore.

Vivienne couldn’t help but say, “Don’t look at me.”

Rowan wasn’t nearly as calm as he appeared.

The pain from the gunshot wound and the excessive blood loss had pushed him to the brink of unconsciousness.

Yet somehow, whenever he looked at Vivienne, the pain seemed to ease.

“Don’t be nervous,” Rowan said softly, his voice calm but certain. “I won’t die. I trust you.”

Vivienne had never been trusted or valued like this before. She gritted her teeth and focused even harder on removing the bullet.

Vivienne felt as though an entire century had passed.

By the time she finally removed the bullet, she was drenched in sweat.

She washed the blood from her hands in the nearby sink before turning to Rowan with concern. “How are you feeling?”

Before today, her impression of “Adrian” had been nothing more than that of a shameless scoundrel.

But after helping him remove the bullet, she couldn’t help but admire him.

Throughout the entire process, he hadn’t cried out in pain once, nor had he lost consciousness.

She had only ever seen that kind of inhuman endurance in movies.

At the same time, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this man was wrapped in mystery.

The more she learned about him, the more frightening he seemed.

“Get me a pen,” Rowan said. Although his face was pale, his voice still carried an undeniable authority. “I’ll write down the medicines you need to buy.”

Vivienne took the list from him and went out to buy the medicine.

Afraid of attracting attention, she cautiously visited several pharmacies before finally managing to find everything on the list.

When Vivienne returned, Rowan noticed that she was carrying several plastic bags, each bearing the logo of a different pharmacy.

A faint, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

What a smart and kind woman. He could tell that Vivienne hated him very much. In other words, what she hates is “Adrian.”

She probably thought he was being chased by the enemy, so she helped him buy medicine for his injuries, fearing that it might be suspicious, so she ran to several stores to buy it.

Vivienne took out the medicine and crouched down in front of him.

“I’ll apply the medicine for you. If it hurts, just tell me, and I’ll be gentler.”

Rowan remained silent as she carefully treated his wound.

Just as Vivienne was about to stand up, he suddenly reached out, pulled her toward him, and captured her lips in a kiss.

Then, against her lips, he murmured, “I told you... no glasses.”