Is this destiny?

~ China, a private hospital in Ganzhou District ~

Sarah is in the lounge on the fourth floor of the private hospital, waiting for Master Hollow's surgery to end.

She just ended her talk with Aiden. Somehow, he is clingier and more protective than usually. She is missing him a lot, but so far he was able to keep his cool, and now she could hear the longing in his voice, and it made her miss him more. The black ring on her left index finger is reminding her that they are apart.

Sarah noticed this change in Aiden's behavior since they got married. Her guess is that this is because they are finally married, and he fears that it will fall apart… especially if the Eastern European families find out, but there is a big chance that they know already and that makes it dangerous.

The Army of Chaos is growing, and Sarah and Aiden are getting stronger as well, but it's still not good enough.

Additional pressure is coming from the information they found on the servers of the Shadow Ravens, that Voronins have their eyes on Aiden from the beginning. If this is true, it means that Aiden learning those skills was not random. And this would change things because that also means that someone from that family knows about him. But why didn't they make their move? Is it possible that just how King was eyeing Sarah and her sisters independently for his own agenda, another person is watching Aiden from the Voronin family? Anything is possible.

Sarah sighed. She knows that Aiden fears how Oscar and Elanor were aware of this, and he fears it so much that he refuses to talk about it. But Sarah is familiar with the feeling of parents keeping secrets, and she would not be surprised if this turns out to be the case with Whites as well. After all, they are a family full of secrets.

Why does it seem that the closer Sarah and Aiden are, the dangers around them are increasing and are enveloping them tighter?

"Mrs. Black? … Mrs. Black?"

Sarah was pulled out of her daze when the person calling for Mrs. Black stood one step away from her. It took her a moment to remember that she is Mrs. Black. That is an alias she used last year in Vegas when she met with Mr. Wang, so that is how she introduced herself now.

"Yes?", Sarah responded.

"I am Dr. Lee. I operated on your friend."

Sarah looked at the doctor expectantly. "How did the surgery go?"

"The procedure was a success. The bullet is removed, and the wounds are closed. However, he lost a lot of blood and his life is still in danger. We did what we can, and now it's up to him. We should know if his vitals are stable within the next forty-eight hours. Your friend is transferred to a private room, and you can visit him in about ten minutes. A nurse will come and get you."

Sarah bowed slightly. "Thank you, Dr. Lee."

…

About twenty minutes later…

Sarah is sitting on a sofa in the VIP room where Master Hollow is resting. The nurse explained to Sarah that the anesthesia wore off, but Master Hollow is weak, and it might take time for him to wake up.

Based on the nurse's troubled expression, Sarah understood that there is a possibility of him not waking up. That matches the doctor's update that Master Hollow's life is still not out of danger.

Now that she looks at the old man, Sarah contemplated how long should she stay here? Probably two days, until he is stable. What if the old man does not wake up in a week? Or a month? Will she stay here for such a long time? She shook her head. No. Aiden will finish his thing and come and get her. He said that he will find her, and she believes him.

If Master Hollow is not awake by then, they will arrange to transport him to LA Medical Center. And they can take his disciples with them as well. Sarah was happy with this idea. She remembered that the old man was not willing to come with them, but when he recuperates he can go back to his mountain.

She thought of contacting Aiden and to tell him the status, but she paused. He is off the grid. She can call the satellite phone which they found in the base of the poachers, but what would she say? If she says that the old man is out of the surgery and the procedure was a success, those are good news, but they don't know when he will wake up, and that makes the whole 'out of the surgery' news not relevant. She decided to hold off with calling.

Sarah decided to send Aiden a text message, and he will be able to receive it when he gets close to the helicopter which acts as a mini cell-tower. The strength of the signal will depend on the location, but usually, the messages will go through.

She came here in a hurry with her hiking backpack which is ready for a few days in a forest, and that means that she left her laptop behind. Ah, she would give anything for one minute of access to their helicopter and her devices which she left there.

Sarah stared into space for an unknown measure of time before getting up. She remembered that the lounging room has a mini-snack area where people can make tea and coffee, and there are three vending machines, and she decided to walk to the lounge and get something for herself.

When they arrived, a nurse told Sarah that she can make a call to request a meal, but this is more to get out of the room and to have a reason to walk somewhere because sitting in a hospital room with an unconscious Master Hollow and only heart rate monitor making sounds is suffocating. It reminded her of her being by Aiden's side when he was in a coma and unpleasant feelings surged forth. She needed a break.

Sarah stared at the options in the vending machine which offers beverages and snacks. A few of them had a familiar design so she figured that they are chips, Coke and Pepsi, but others were unknown to Sarah. All the writings are in Chinese, so she was studying the packages and trying to figure out what is inside. Of course, she can use Eve-lens for translations, but that will be too fast, and it's not like she has anything better to do.

Sarah decided to take them on one-by-one. Once she makes her guess what is in the package, she will buy it to confirm.

Sarah made her pick when she spotted a pair of female shoes behind her and based on the leg wiggling, the woman is standing there for a while.

"Do you want to use the machine?", Sarah turned to the girl and paused.

While facing the vending machine, Sarah saw the bottom half of the person behind her: a medium-sized heel and a knee-length pencil skirt. Now that she is facing the person, she can clearly see a business suit and it's a girl and… "Meili?"

Meili's face was arranged into a frown. "Why are you here?"

Sarah observed Meili's super-short hairstyle and eyebrows which are drawn with a pencil. It reminded her of their few days in Akmal's villa (now the base of the Army of Chaos). That was three months ago.

Sarah smiled. "Seeing you now, I am reminded of the fact that the world is a small place..."

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