Shrouded Seascape

Chapter 599: Wounded

"Let's go, Jasmine. Let's hurry home," Donna said. The tense atmosphere in the air was making her worried about her daughter.

It wasn't just them. The others on the street had also noticed the red mist. Soon, the bustling street turned desolate and eerily silent.

The two women hastened their pace toward their homes when a gust of wind streaked through the air.

Jasmine instinctively looked up. "Donna, look! There's someone flying in the air! He's in a police uniform!"

"Don't look up! We could get into trouble if they get upset about our stares!" Donna's face grew grave with anxiety, her steps quickening into a jog.

Fortunately, their homes weren't far from the factory. After about fifteen minutes of jogging, they finally reached their familiar neighborhood.

Their frayed nerves calmed down upon returning to the familiar neighborhood.

Jasmine's face was beaded with sweat as she leaned against a wall and panted heavily. Her face was flushed red from the exhaustion. Gasping between breaths, she remarked, "I... can't walk...anymore. This is too... tiring. I should... definitely... save up... for a bicycle.

The "intense" physical activity was unprecedented for Jasmine, who weighed close to a hundred kilograms.

Donna smiled. She was about to respond when a nearby garbage bin that was almost as tall as an average human suddenly shook violently and toppled over.

The lid fell away, and a bloody right hand flopped out onto the pavement.

"AHHHHH!" Donna instinctively screamed in shock and hurriedly clapped her hands over her mouth.

"Jasmine, hurry, let's go!" Donna didn't care what that was. She dashed toward her home.

The moment Donna entered her house, Nene looked up from her homework. She flashed a radiant smile at Donna and greeted, "Mommy, you're back!"

Terrified from earlier, Donna's hands trembled as she locked the door. Then, she scooped Nene up swiftly and rushed toward the basement.

The heavy metal door was yanked open to reveal neatly arranged supplies of fresh water and food. Donna had specially spent a large amount of money to painstakingly prepare this refuge.

Ever since the previous crisis on the World's Crown, Donna had been assuming the worst. Now, it seemed like her preparations had come in handy, especially with what she had encountered today.

"It's not me...not my family too. He can't go to the doctor; he—" Before Jasmine could complete her sentence, a bloody hand slammed on the door, pushing it open with immense force.

A young man stumbled into the room. He had wounds all over his body and collapsed weakly onto the carpet in the living room.

The young man had striking blue eyes and a prominent high nose. He still looked rather handsome despite his pale face.

"Please... treat me. Hurry. I'm bleeding out... I can't hold on much longer."

The young man beckoned with a finger, and the wooden stick in Donna's hands began to decay rapidly, dissolving into a puddle of sludge on the floor.

With tears streaking down her face, Jasmine hurried into the house. She helped the young man up from the floor and cradled him in her arms. "Donna, please save him quickly! He's really going to die!"

Donna knew that she was supposed to report this to the nearest police station. However, the young man's eyes were filled with a menacing threat; she didn't dare to move an inch. She didn't want to end up with the same fate as the stick.

"I don't want to die, and I don't want to hurt anyone either. Please, help me. Just take pity on me and bandage me up a bit. I'll leave right away after that," the young man pleaded weakly.

Donna cast a brief glance in the direction of the basement and gritted her teeth. She then turned and ran to grab her first-aid kit.

The only thing she could do now was to satisfy the young man's demands and make him leave as soon as possible and as far away from her daughter as possible.

Donna didn't know much about first aid treatment. All she could do was sprinkle some hemostatic powder on the hideous, gaping wounds and clumsily wrap them in bandages.

Yet, despite her shabby first-aid skills, the young man's wounds stopped bleeding, and color seemed to be slowly returning to his face.

"Do you have any food? I'm starving, thank you," the young man raised another request.

Soon, a simple dish of banana chips with fish sauce was placed before the young man. The next moment, both Donna and Jasmine were taken aback by his voracious appetite. Donna had placed at least a kilogram worth of food in front of him, and he wolfed down the food one mouthful after another.

Sensing the gazes of the women beside him, the young man's face flushed a slight hue of red, and he slowed down. "Sorry. I've been hiding in the ventilation ducts for three days to escape from them. I didn't have any food or water during those three days."

Her eyes bloodshot from the crying, Jasmine nodded in agreement. "Yes, earlier, he was even eating the banana peels from the garbage bin."

Donna glanced at them but didn't speak a single word. She stood to the side with her head down. She didn't trust the young man at all. If he weren't a bad person, why would the police be after him?