Love Unspoken

Chapter 1204

When Quinn got back, Alexander was already up, sitting by the fire and staring hard at the cave entrance. "Where'd you go?" he asked.

Quinn glanced at the perilla in her arms and plopped down in front of him. "Feelin' any better?"

"Still kickin'," he said, his eyes roaming over her bare shoulders, checking her out from top to bottom.

Quinn caught his look and grabbed a coat from him to cover up, blocking his view.

Alexander chuckled. "You think I can do anything to you in this state?"

Quinn paused for a sec, ignored his comment, and started crushing the perilla to slap it on his wound.

He was still a bit feverish, and after she applied the stuff, sweat beaded on his forehead.

Quinn said, "You need to rest up. We'll talk when you're better."

Alexander suddenly hugged her. "You goin' out to hunt to feed me?"

Quinn was a bit taken aback. She could barely hunt; she was more likely to end up as some wild animal's dinner. "I'll figure something out. Just let go of me first," she said.

"I'm cold," Alexander said, tightening his grip.

Quinn tried to take off the coat she was wearing, but he stopped her. "Don't take it off, or I'll get turned on."

"Things are so messed up right now, and you can still get turned on?" Quinn said, feeling a bit speechless.

"If you keep your clothes on, I won't get turned on," Alexander remarked.

In the end, Quinn didn't take it off. She was afraid that before Alexander did anything, she wouldn't be able to handle it herself, especially since the medicine's effects hadn't worn off yet. After a while, she pushed Alexander away, stood up, and said, "I'll go collect some firewood. Rest up."

She walked out of the cave and started gathering firewood nearby to avoid running out like the previous night. She piled several stacks at the cave entrance.

Meanwhile, Walter had been in the village for two whole days without making any moves.

Sean had gone out and returned to find him still sitting at the entrance, sipping tea like he had all the time in the world. Sean couldn't help but step forward and ask, "Didn't you say you were gonna find Alistair? Why are you still sittin' here?"

Walter glanced at him and smiled faintly. "What's the rush? Alexander ain't coming out anytime soon. Why are you all so antsy?"

Sean sneered. Of course, he was anxious. He wanted to find Alistair ASAP, partly to stop him from escaping and partly 'cause he feared Alexander might not wanna come out after staying in the forest too long. "It's none of your business. If you're not gonna find him, then don't stay here," Sean said irritably.

"In that case, I won't stay here," Walter said slowly.

Then he patted the wrinkles on his pants, stood up leisurely, walked past Sean, and got into his car without looking back.

Sean stared blankly at the car. Did he really leave?

The others exchanged puzzled looks, not quite getting what Walter was up to.

After a moment, Sean realized what was happening and quickly ran to his car. "Follow him."

The car drove on the bumpy road, followed by several other cars. Walter turned his head slightly and looked through the rearview mirror.

He chuckled.

Sean kept following him, from the dirt road to the paved road, and then along the paved road for a long time.

As they approached the bustling area, Sean got a message on his phone.

He opened it and saw it was from an unknown number: [You bringing so many people 'cause you're afraid Alistair won't notice you?]

Sean was stunned and instinctively looked at the car in front of him.

He had been bringing a lot of people these days, but they never managed to catch Alistair, partly because of this reason. However, if he didn't bring enough people, he was worried they wouldn't be able to handle Alistair and his crew.

So it was a bit of a dilemma. Bringing people could easily alert Alistair, but not bringing enough people could mean they couldn't win a fight.

He thought for a while and finally decided to send everyone back. But before he could give the order, another message from Walter arrived.

Walter: [Have them split up and act separately. Don't stay together.]

Chapter 1203

After a short walk, the fire in her hand fizzled out, leaving just some glowing embers. It was still tough to see, but hey, better than pitch black.

She crouched down, using the faint light to scrounge up some dry branches. While gathering firewood, she accidentally brushed against a few bugs, which totally freaked her out. She patted her chest, taking deep breaths. Even though she was scared, she kept searching for firewood under the trees. There wasn't much else around, but there were plenty of dry branches. She quickly bundled them up and hurried back. Once inside the cave, she felt a bit more at ease.

She let out a long breath, dropped the firewood on the ground, and noticed a few centipedes and some other creepy crawlies in the pile. Gritting her teeth, she grabbed a stone and smashed the centipedes that crawled out, then tossed the other bugs straight into the fire. While burning them, she kept glancing over, worried her noise would wake Alexander.

But honestly, she wasn't being quiet, and Alexander didn't wake up.

Usually, he'd wake up at the slightest noise, but now he was out cold.

Quinn hesitated for a sec, then carefully walked over to him, squatting down and reaching out a finger to check his breath. He was still alive.

She let out a sigh of relief, but before she could pull her hand back, her wrist was suddenly grabbed.

Looking up, she saw Alexander still had his eyes closed, just holding her hand.

A force pulled her wrist, and she fell into his arms, where he held her tight.

"Cold, let me hold you for a while," he croaked.

Quinn stayed still, pressing against his chest and listening to his steady heartbeat.

The fire beside them crackled, and she could smell the bugs burning.

The fire was about to die out again, so Quinn had to break free and toss in more firewood.

She glanced back at Alexander, his brows furrowed, and his forehead still sweaty.

Quinn walked back, reached out to touch his forehead, and found it still burning hot.

But he said he was cold.

She gritted her teeth and took off her clothes to cover him. She still had a dress underneath, though it was pretty torn up.

Since there was no one else around, she took off one sleeve and tied the torn dress into a few knots, barely covering her chest.

The firewood she had collected burned out, and it started to get light outside, making it barely possible to see.

Quinn grabbed a dagger and headed out again.

Finding food was a no-go; she was on the hunt for herbs. Besides mugwort, she didn't recognize much else. She pulled up a lot of mugwort and found a cluster of perilla on her way back. Quinn was kinda excited; perilla seemed useful and maybe better than mugwort.

She dropped the mugwort and ran over, cutting a big bunch of perilla with her dagger. She even thought about taking the whole cluster back.

But as she pulled aside the vines, a black-and-white snake coiled in the grass, making her face go pale. She dropped the vines and stumbled back.

She tripped over something and fell to the ground.

She watched the snake slither out of the grass, her limbs weak. The perilla she had picked fell, and she didn't dare move, instinctively gripping the dagger.

Quinn was ready for a life-and-death showdown with the snake, but to her surprise, the snake ignored her and slithered away.

She let out a sigh of relief, trembling as she got up from the ground. She then picked up the fallen perilla and, not daring to take more, hurried back with what she had.

Chapter 1202

By the flickering firelight, Quinn finally noticed how pale Alexander looked-way paler than he had been earlier.

Alexander grabbed her hand and pulled it away from his forehead. "I'm good. Just gotta sweat it out."

His voice was weak, and even his coughs sounded feeble.

Quinn squatted down to check his wound.

In this weather, it probably wasn't a cold; more likely, his wound was infected and causing a fever. If that was the case, they were in deep trouble.

She untied the cloth strips on his body. The wound on his arm looked the same, but there was a swollen area on his back, the deepest part of the wound, showing signs of pus. "Your wound's infected," Quinn said, worried, glancing at him. "What do we do? Got any disinfectant in your pocket?"

Alexander shook his head, a bit amused. "Nope, you really think I carry everything in my pockets, huh?"

"So, what now?" Quinn asked.

"I won't die," he said, looking at her again. "Are you worried about me, or worried you won't get out?"

Quinn opened her mouth, ready to say the latter, but when she saw the serious look in his deep eyes, she held back.

Unlike his usual teasing, this time he was dead serious.

So she swallowed her words.

Alexander stared at her for a long time, and when he didn't get an answer, he looked away and tossed some firewood into the fire.

"Don't worry. I won't die that easily. Even if I do, I'll make sure you get out first," he said calmly.

Quinn's eyes flickered. She lowered her head and was silent for a moment before suddenly getting up and heading out.

Before she could leave, Alexander grabbed her wrist. "Where you going?"

"I'm going to get some water to boil. You got salt, right? We can use saltwater to clean your wound." She added, "I'll be right outside, not going far." It was late, and she didn't dare go far.

Alexander let go of her.

Quinn went outside, dug some soil near the spring, and made a makeshift pot. There were a few banana leaves in the cave, almost dry but still usable. After cleaning them, she lined the pot with the leaves, filled it with spring water, and brought it back to boil over the fire.

She tore a piece of the bedsheet, washed it in the water, and then poured the remaining half bottle of salt into the boiling water.

"You used it all up. What are we gonna eat?" Alexander asked.

"Who cares about eating when your life's on the line?" Quinn soaked the cloth in the water for two minutes, then took it out to clean his wound. He seemed really weak now, sitting quietly without his usual teasing.

Quinn cleaned his wound over and over until the water was completely cool, then she put down the cloth.

She asked Alexander, "Feeling any better?"

Alexander smirked. "It's not that quick."

Quinn pressed her lips together and draped the remaining piece of the bedsheet over him. "Then rest for a while. I'll tend the fire."

Alexander leaned against the cave wall, watching her with lowered eyes.

"And you say you don't care about me," he said.

more wood into the fire, not wanting

the firewood was almost gone. She glanced back at Alexander, who had closed

it because of the fever or the heat from the

should make him feel better,

went outside. It was pitch dark, and she couldn't see anything. She started to get nervous as soon as she stepped out. But the fire was almost out. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, grabbed a match, and ran out of

Chapter 1201

when a drop of dew splashed on her face. She shot up, touched her face, and sighed in relief when she realized it was just dew. This forest had

noticed Alexander was nowhere to be seen. She was lying on a pile

a moment of confusion, she started looking

she spotted him coming

some banana leaves,

walked into the clearing, dropped his haul,

nodded and glanced at the stuff

"I just scouted the way and found the direction of the cave. Let's eat first before we head

the cave, Quinn felt a bit more at ease. Being in the cave

bloody one. They had cooked a lot of wild veggies yesterday, but they weren't filling at all. He handed Quinn a rabbit leg,

they packed the

trekked through the forest, they ran into a bunch of unfamiliar

without realizing it. When the forest darkened, Quinn finally saw the familiar cave, which felt

the ground, exhausted. After two days away, the cave was still

sky outside, unsure of how long they had been

she couldn't help but ask Alexander, "Can we really

turned to look at Quinn, and said, "After

are you asking this

question. After we get out, can I see you again?"

Quinn fell silent.

her seem ungrateful, she couldn't bring herself to

we won't get out," Alexander

stunned. "What

after we get out, why should I risk my life to scout the way out?"

again. She had indeed seen how

her lip, thought for a moment, but still didn't know what to

was also

tiring day, she leaned against the

her eyes and saw Alexander sitting by the fire, adding

suddenly became alert and sat up straight.

of branches to the fire. The blazing fire lit up the cave, and even from a distance, Quinn could feel the heat. Yet he said he was cold, which was

a fever?"

Chapter 155

of fortune did our village strike? Is there a demolition?

snapped back, "There were no renovations or payouts! The people in our village work hard and earn their living honestly, unlike your family, who just got lucky and picked up a stray daughter. You contributed nothing yet still managed to

to how the family had

family. Before that, they

their feelings towards Shawn's family were hardly positive. They openly scolded them for

scoffed, "We only received 50 million dollars. It's nothing close to a huge sum. That's not

was clear-he would extort even more

he said. "What did

"N-Nothing."

After all, he had already made a deal with Kayla. Once he got rid of

to himself, envisioning a time when these villagers who looked down on him would beg for his

the village were unwilling

he cast one last wary glance at Shawn. Feeling uneasy, he immediately called for his grandson and instructed, "Lucas, go find Felicia. Tell her Shawn is back in the village and making a scene. She should be careful. That

"Got it!"

little boy, quickly abandoned his toy car and sprinted toward Macey's

Fuller family had an old, dilapidated house in Alverton that had long been abandoned. Since Felicia had cut ties with them

had been living with

These were left over from breakfast, and Macey had tossed them in, knowing

the sweet potatoes was darkened from the heat, but once peeled, they released steam and smelled wonderfully sweet.

potatoes, he still felt hungry when he saw them in the hands

to him. "Here, this is for you.

his grandfather's instructions and reported, "Felicia, my grandpa sent me to tell you that Shawn is back and

else did

also said that brat

couldn't help

a couple of fingers. He was likely desperate, clinging to Kayla and trying everything

why

Chapter 154

were puzzled, thinking another outsider had arrived. However, when the car door swung open and a flamboyant figure stepped out, the onlookers exchanged glances and promptly turned

mischief. He was caught harassing young ladies and married women by the river multiple times, often leading to confrontations. Yet Howell and Tabitha, his parents, were utterly shameless. They not only failed to get any justice but were also experts at turning the tables

with disgrace. Naturally, the villagers preferred to keep

now, they were quick to steer

had risen above that of the villagers,

grabbed the nearest villager, ready to boast. But before he could say a word, the villager scoffed. "Make sure to take good care

face flushed

the car was

a sports car, but Lance seized

en

"You group of frogs in a well, you dare to look down on me? Do you

had grabbed, who was actually Cody, shot him a cold glance and retorted, "What status? What's the status of a

as Shawn's hand was wrapped in thick bandages. Two of his fingers

remark, Shawn's face twisted with rage.

one responded

as he spat out, "That little brat thinks she's

he was typically kind-hearted, he wasted no time before slapping Shawn across the face. "You bastard! Just start

the slap, his eyes glinting with malice. Just as he was about to retaliate, other

chief, looked furious. His expression was a mix

to explode, but

I.ne

much had changed in the village. Behind the village lay fields abundant with.

repaired their homes. There were even numerous construction projects underway, depicting a scene of vibrant prosperity. Shawn stood there, dumbfounded. Was this still the impoverished village

Chapter 153

twisted emotions threatening to erupt. She managed to hold back her anger, though just barely. "Arnie, my foot hurts. Can you carry me over there?" she

Moreover, Kayla had traveled such a long way to get here; it was impossible for her to

with it, yet Kayla insisted that she had injured it in

her face was pale and pitiful. It made it hard for Arnold to turn her

"Get on

beamed, her joy evident as she jumped onto his back. She wrapped her arms

carried Kayla back to

them, but the students participating in the training program couldn't help but

to the village, Arnold originally intended to have the village head find another family for Kayla to stay with. However, with all the other families' houses already full and Kayla stubbornly refusing to be separated

only one

doctor checked Kayla's foot and confirmed it wasn't serious. Feeling relieved, he placed her on the bed and turned

en

and I'm scared..." Arnold had been planning to find a separate place to stay.

facade as

still insisted, "You get some rest. I'll be in the living room. If you

anger that threatened to

the thorn in her side,

fierce determination. She called Shawn, her voice low as she snapped, "Why haven't you arrived yet? It's been two days! Have you gotten everything prepared? Don't you want the rest of the

as if he were driving. "It's

felt a sense

invested was considerable. As long as Shawn's actions bore fruit, it would

Chapter 152

bother to find

the shock of the night before. Clinging tightly to Arnold's waist, she looked up at him with teary eyes and said, "Arnie, I

think." However, the words were caught in his throat, and he ultimately swallowed them. Instead,

Felicia scolded him that he realized his concern was causing him to lose focus. The terrain looked frightening, but

it was too late

that if she let go, he would disappear. Her pitiful appearance made it difficult for him to reject

incident rushed over to see the commotion and caught

have rushed

absent from college for a long time and wasn't on the list for this training program. She had only gotten wind of the situation because her good friend, Olivia, had

couldn't help but smirk. Although she felt some resentment toward Kayla

who could make Felicia's life

getting into a car accident. Thankfully, you're okay. Otherwise, wouldn't Mr. Lawson

it. He shot her a

scared. She began to pick up on

that something had happened over the past few days. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so distant and lost in

she followed Arnold's gaze and was taken aback to find that he was

hung up on

she spoke, Arnold seemed to tune her out

asked, "Arnie, who are you thinking about? Is

Arnold. He immediately denied it, his voice filled with resistance as he replied, "Don't

initially wanted to

man's excessive attention toward a woman, even if he verbally claimed not to like her, often indicated that he had begun

Chapter 151

Ruben, she asked, "Ruben, what caused

family's dedicated drivers. He was always on standby and had years of driving experience, so it was unusual for

Felicia, Ruben replied, "Ms. Felicia, good morning. Yesterday, Ms. Kayla urged me to drive her to Alverton. I wasn't familiar with the road and mistakenly followed the

but she had also taken out her frustration on him by kicking his seat while he

the slope. From their perspective inside the vehicle, it felt like they were hanging over a precipice, so they didn't dare to move. Even when their phone fell at

it, the angrier he became. If it hadn't been for Kayla distracting

many hurtful things. She declared that he wasn't fit to be a driver for the Fuller family and that she would

he would have wanted

reflected on this, he tightened his grip

pushed him too far, he had evidence to

Felicia didn't pry further.

saved, the villagers felt relieved and

tried to leave but was stopped by Felicia. "Mr.

She walked

to Arnold and saw

up to

he was tightly embracing

was crying. He

they had

back,

and turned his attention to Felicia. "What is

was cold as she

at

she let

Felicia stood her ground.

around Felicia's age who was studying in another city. Any daughter would be upset if she found out her father had been treated this

an apology; it wasn't like she was asking for a

Arnold had regained his composure. Regardless of the circumstances, these villagers had