Devil's Prisoner of Love by Prefer

When Julian and the others entered the room, they found the assassin K bleeding heavily from both hands. His clothes had been stripped off, leaving only a towel wrapped around his waist. Vortex had been meticulous-true to the nature of a killer, every minor oversight could lead to disaster. He wasn't afraid for himself; there were still innocent people on board. Vortex had already conducted several thorough searches, even inspecting assassin K's most private areas multiple times.

Julian strode forward and kicked K hard. "Did you kill her?"

The kick wasn't light. K was sent sprawling to the floor. "I only tampered with the railing," K gasped. "It was Ivy who killed her."

As they'd suspected, K confirmed their theory. However, no matter how hard they pressed him, K refused to reveal who had hired him. Vortex tried searching his phone for clues, but it was brand new. Assassins had their habits-working in such a dangerous profession meant that if caught, a phone could easily become damning evidence. The phone was blank, carrying no personal information or traces that could lead to anyone else in their line of work.

"I don't need you to say it. I already know who it was," Julian declared, his voice cold and deliberate, each word like a sentence of judgment. "Whether it's you or him, you'll both pay for what you've done."

K was arrested, but Aurora's body was still missing, and Ivy had also disappeared without a trace.

"Not finding her might be a good thing," Nick said, trying to console Julian. "She could've been saved by a passing ship. That's how you met her back then, isn't it?"

K's confession confirmed their fears-Aurora had fallen into the sea. But this time was different. Back then, Julian had been the one in the water, and he could swim. Aurora, however, couldn't. She was terrified of water. If Hayden hadn't saved her in time back then, she wouldn't have survived.

let himself think otherwise. He clung to the hope, however faint, that she

we'll all help you," Nick assured him. "I believe she has

everyone else to disembark. For most, it had been merely a false alarm. They were free to go home, soak in a bath, and wake up to a new day. But for Julian, it was anything but over. He was the

was cleared, Julian donned a diving suit and plunged into the sea repeatedly. Nick, worried something might happen to him, had no choice but to accompany him. Meanwhile, Vortex directed the remaining crew to continue

If his body gave out and he failed to resurface, what then? She also felt for Nick, who tirelessly dove alongside Julian,

there. We have professional divers for this.

the ocean often left no trace for days-how could they expect to find a single person? It was like searching for a needle in a haystack. But she couldn't bring herself to say it. She didn't believe Aurora was truly gone either.

said hoarsely. "I know

lips are turning blue," Irene shot back. "Julian, I know you're worried, but what's done is done. If someone rescued her, she wouldn't still be in this

glanced at Nick, who was in no better shape than him. But Nick understood the pain of losing someone you loved. If going through this helped ease Julian's torment, then he

rationality finally breaking through.

soak in a hot bath and eat something. We have plenty of people searching. You need to take care of yourself. If Little Bunny

the bath, but sleep wouldn't come. Instead, he held one of Aurora's nightgowns tightly in his arms, clinging to it as if it were her.

confession, the incident happened around nine o'clock. The ship had only been sailing for about an hour, so the search area is relatively small. We've sent so many people to look, and the fact that we haven't found her is the best possible news. This area is usually busy with passing ships. There's a good chance someone rescued her, which is why we can't find Little Bunny. She's probably resting somewhere right now, and when she recovers, she'll contact you. But if you don't take care of yourself, what will she think if

him. Julian began eating, though mechanically and without care for what was on his plate or how it tasted. He was numb.