After Divorce, I Ruled Their World

An Unlikely Shelter

Chapter 5: An Unlikely Shelter

A cold smirk touched Alex’s lips. A gun? These fools had no idea who they were dealing with. The rage and pain from Vivian’s betrayal and the humiliation he had been swallowing for years? They all needed an outlet. He needed to pour out these negative feeling. These men were just unlucky enough to be in his way at this time.

The leader, seeing that Julian won't budge, and with a cold smile on his face, he wondered what fucking audacity Julian must have to be smirking at this critical moment! He tightened his finger on the gun, ready to pull the trigger when Julian moved immediately. It was so fast that at one monet, Julian was tanning opposite them, but in the next, he is in front of the man, his foot connecting with the man’s wrist with a sickening crack. 

The gun clattered to the wet pavement. Before the man could even cry out, Julian grabbed him by his jacket, lifted him with a strength that surprised even himself, and slammed his body into his two companions. All three men went down in a tangled, groaning heap.

The fight was over before it began because as the leader had seen that Julian was so string and that despite his lanky build, he was strong for his size, concluded that Julian was no ordinary man! The braveness vanished from their faces, replaced by pure terror.

 “Please! Don’t hurt us! We’re sorry! We’ll go!” they begged, scrambling backwards on the slick ground before stumbling to their feet and fleeing into the darkness of the bush.

Julian didn’t even have the time to watch them go. His anger faded as quickly as it had come, leaving him empty again. He turned to the woman, his voice softening. “It’s okay. They’re gone.”

He reached out to help her up, but as she lifted her head, he froze. Her face was flushed a deep, unnatural red. Her skin was hot to the touch, and her eyes were glazed, struggling to focus.

“Th-thank you,” she slurred, her body swaying. “I… I don’t feel right. They must have… put something in my drink earlier. Please… help me.” Her eyes, full of a desperate trust, locked with his for a second before they rolled back into her head. She collapsed forward, and he caught her easily, her small frame feeling so, so fragile in his arms.

There were many feelings Julian had felt in his lifetime, but panic and fear wasn't one of them. The feeling that this was bad…it made the hairs in the back of his neck stand. He checked her pulse. It was racing. She had been drugged, and judging by her state, it was potent. He knew enough to understand this was a medical emergency.

“Hey. Hey, stay with me,” he said, tapping her cheek gently, but she was out cold. There was no time to waste. Cradling her carefully, he pulled out his phone with his free hand and dialed Nathan.

“I need a car at my location. Now. And prepare the penthouse suite at the Orion Hotel discreetly.” His voice was cold and businesslike. All the grief and emotions he had felt, he had pushed them to the side. Now, the CEO was back, not his weak self. 

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In the quiet luxury of the hotel suite, Julian worked calmly, carefully and efficiently. He had sent the staff away. This was a private matter. He knew a lot that staffs usually gossiped or something, so he didn't want news of this going out to the paparazzi. The woman lay unconscious on the large bed, her red and hot skin trembling on the bed. 

He had studied many things on his rise to the top, including old, reliable field medicine. Bloodletting was a crude but effective method to purge certain toxins from the bloodstream before they could cause organ failure. It was a risk, but the alternative which was letting her body shutting down was simply unthinkable to him.

The scene was intimate, but not romantic. His body was tense as he focused on rescuing this woman. His hands were steady as he made small, precise incisions, the dark, tainted blood welling up. He worked with a quiet intensity, wiping away the traces and applying clean bandages. The red marks left on her skin looked dramatic, but he knew they were just evidence of the life-saving process. When he was done, he pulled the blanket over her to keep her warm and sat in a chair nearby, watching over her through the night like a guardian.

The first thing Iris felt was a deep confusion. Then, as she opened her eyes, a deep panic rushed through her. This was not her room. The plush, unfamiliar surroundings of the hotel suite sent a jolt of terror through her. She sat up, her body aching, and looked down at her body. 

Red marks. They were everywhere on her arms and chest. Her mind, still foggy, jumped to the worst possible conclusion. A sob caught in her throat. The men in the cemetery… they must have…

She felt big panic of terror rush through her when she thought she had been violated. It made her nauseous and also overwhelmed her. Just then, the bedroom door opened. A tall silhouette stood there. Without even seeing his face clearly, a surge of pain and anger filled her.

“You monster!” she screamed, her voice raw with pain. She grabbed the heavy crystal vase from the nightstand and hurled it at him with all her might. “You rapist!”

Julian sidestepped the vase easily. It shattered against the doorframe with a loud crash. He didn’t look angry, just tired. He let out a long, helpless sigh.

“Calm down,” he said, his voice low and steady. “And use your head. Try to remember what really happened last night.”

His voice… it cut through her hysteria. She blinked, her vision clearing, and finally saw his face properly. The strong jaw, the concerned eyes… it was him. The man who had fought off those thugs. The one who had made her feel safe for a tiny moment before everything went dark.

The fight drained out of her, replaced by a flood of hot embarrassment. “It’s… it’s you,” she stammered, her cheeks burning. “I’m… I’m so sorry. I thought…” But then the rest of the memory came back. The dizziness, the feverish feeling. The drug. Her eyes widened in a new kind of fear. “I was drugged. Did you… did we…?” She couldn’t even finish the sentence, her face pale with dread.

Julian sighed again, this time with a hint of frustration. He walked to the door and called out, “Nsthan. Bring him in.”

His subordinate entered, followed by an older man with a medical bag. Both men greeted Alex with a respectful “Sir,” before the doctor moved straight towards Iris.

“Miss, if I may?” the doctor said gently. Confused but compliant, Iris extended her wrist. The doctor took her pulse, checked her eyes, and examined the small bandages on her arms.

A few moments later, he turned to Julian. “You handled it perfectly, sir. The toxins have been purged. She just needs rest and to keep the wounds clean and dry. There will be no lasting effects.”

Julian nodded, a slight weight lifting from his shoulders. He picked up a glass of whiskey from the sidebar, took a sip, and turned back to Iris.

“You were drugged with a powerful substance,” he explained calmly. “You begged me for help. I brought you here and performed a bloodletting procedure to get the poison out of your system. That’s all. The red marks are just from that. Nothing else happened. You have my word.”

Relief washed over Iris so powerfully it made her dizzy. Tears of shame and gratitude welled in her eyes. “I… I don’t know how to thank you. And I’m so sorry for the vase… and for calling you… that.”

He waved a hand in a calm, dismissive gesture. “It’s fine. I understand. You were scared.” He set his glass down. “Now, where do you live? I’ll have Nathan drive you home.”

The question seemed to shake the last of her composure. Iris looked down at her hands, her shoulders slumping. A deep, sad sigh escaped her lips. 

“Home?” she whispered, a sad smile touching her lips. “I… I don’t have one to go back to. My home has been gone for a long time.”