Chaos erupted instantly. Guests screamed and ran to flee in all directions.

The first thing Archie did was to shield Cassie firmly behind him.

Jonathan's target was clearly Archie. He aimed his gun squarely at Archie's heart.

But no one noticed that Vivian had moved.

As Jonathan pulled the trigger, Vivian, driven by her instinct, lunged forward to shield both Archie and Cassie.

A gunshot rang out.

Warm blood gushed from the wound in her chest, staining her white uniform crimson.

A searing pain shot through her, and, with her body growing limp, she collapsed.

As she fell, she saw the shocked expression on Archie's face and a mix of emotions that flickered in his eyes.

But that flicker of emotion on his face quickly disappeared because of Cassie's sobs.

Amid the chaos, a stray bullet shattered a nearby champagne tower. Shards of glass flew in all directions, and one of them grazed Cassie's arm. She let out a sharp cry.

The moment he saw the blood on Cassie's arm, his face paled. He turned and pulled her tightly into his arms, then urgently said, "Are you okay, Cassie?! Don't be scared!"

Archie's bodyguards quickly regained control of the scene.

Holding Cassie in his arms, he strode past Vivian, who lay in a pool of blood, and shouted at his assistant, "Get a car here! To the hospital! Now!"

He never looked at Vivian again the entire time.

As if she were nothing but a stranger, thin air, or a speck of dust.

Lying in the cold pool of her own blood, Vivian watched his resolute and ruthless retreating figure and suddenly laughed.

So bitterly that tears streamed down her face.

Even if she died for him, he wouldn't even spare her a single glance.

She loved him so pathetically and laughably.

Her consciousness was fading. Just before she slipped into darkness, she seemed to hear some distant shouts. "Hurry! Someone's been shot! Call an ambulance!"

"She's bleeding a lot..."

...

In the hospital, Archie waited anxiously outside the emergency room where Cassie was being treated.

The doctor soon came out. "Miss Fuller only sustained superficial wounds, but the blood loss has left her quite weak. She has Rh-negative blood, and the blood bank is currently low on supply of this type of blood. A transfusion is necessary for her to recover quickly."

"Take mine," Archie said immediately. "I have the same blood type."

"You've consumed alcohol today, Mr. Palmer, so you can't donate," the doctor said with a troubled expression. "Besides, she needs at least 400cc."

Just then, Archie's assistant rushed over with an ashen face. "Mr. Palmer, Mrs. Palmer... I mean, Vivian has been brought to this hospital, too! She was shot. And she is in emergency surgery right now!"

Archie's previously dim eyes suddenly lit up. He grabbed the doctor's arm, his tone commanding, leaving no room for argument. "Then take her blood, now! Take 400cc... No, 800cc! Make sure Cassie comes to no harm!"

The doctor was stunned. "But Mr. Palmer! That patient was shot in the chest, and she is fighting for her life. Drawing that much blood from her would kill her!"

"I said, take hers!" Archie's eyes were fierce, like a beast in wrath.

Outside the emergency room, the red status light that had been glowing all night finally went out.

The doctor removed their mask and said wearily to their colleague waiting at the door. "The bullet was out. It was just one millimeter from her heart. We managed to save her life."

The doctor's colleague asked, "What about the patient? I heard they forcibly drew blood from her..."

"She is temporarily out of danger, but..." The doctor sighed, their expression grave. "The patient was four weeks pregnant. But, because of the gunshot wound and the massive hemorrhage from the forced blood draw... we couldn't save the baby. And because of the severe blood loss and the bullet's impact, her uterus was badly damaged... It will be very difficult for her to have another baby in the future."

A few minutes later, Archie's assistant, Liam, hurriedly arrived at the nurses' station. "Excuse me. I wonder how Mrs. Vivian Palmer is doing."

The nurse looked up from a stack of files, glanced at him, and handed over a few reports.

Liam took the documents, glanced at them, and his eyes widened in shock.

He immediately grabbed the report and ran toward Cassie's private room.

Inside the room, the atmosphere was cozy and warm.

Under the bright lights, Archie sat by the bed, head bowed as he carefully peeled an apple for Cassie.

His slender fingers held a silver fruit knife with practiced elegance, the peel falling away, unbroken.

Cassie leaned against the soft pillows, her face pale from her illness, yet wearing a faint, contented smile as she watched his handsome profile.

The hospital room door slammed open with a bang as Liam stormed in.

Archie's hand paused, and the half-peeled apple fell to the floor.

He looked up, his deep eyes full of irritation at Liam's interruption, his voice icy. "What's the rush?"

Cassie was startled, glancing timidly at Liam.

Liam was panting heavily, his lips trembling as he handed the reports to Archie respectfully, his voice sharp and hoarse with fear. "It is Mrs. Palmer..."

Archie's brows furrowed tighter. He had no interest in hearing about Vivian. He looked at Cassie again, his tone instantly soft. "Did I scare you?"

"No..." Cassie replied. But Liam was agitated. He wanted to shout but feared Cassie might hear, so he leaned in close to Archie's ear and whispered anxiously, "Mrs. Palmer... had a miscarriage! Because of the blood drawn! The doctor said she can never have children again!"

Time seemed to freeze at that moment.

The gentle expression on Archie's face stiffened as he slowly turned his head to Liam.

Archie's gaze fixed on Liam's face as if he tried to pierce Liam with his gaze.

The fruit knife slipped from his hand and clattered loudly onto the polished floor, the sound unbearably harsh as it echoed through the silent room.

He carefully replayed Liam's words in his mind.

Those words hit him like bullets, mercilessly shattering all his thoughts into pieces.

His mind went blank, and he could only hear a sharp ringing in his ears.

He couldn't believe that Vivian had been carrying his child when he gave the order to draw her blood.

"What's wrong, Archie?" Cassie nervously tugged at his sleeve.

But Archie seemed not to hear.

He shot to his feet and, for the first time, roughly shoved Cassie's hand away with his composure lost, so forcefully that Cassie even gasped.

Without looking back, he crazily rushed out of the ward, heading toward the general ward area where Vivian was.

All he could think about was that he had to see her right now.

Cassie stared blankly at his retreating figure. She had never seen him so panicked and acting so crazily before.

She suddenly felt he had become utterly unfamiliar, even... somewhat terrifying.