76 76. The Savior

Paula didn’t have time to balance herself. She was about to hold on, but all she could hold on to was a wall. Her left fingers gripped the wall in reflex but of course, it was in vain because the walls would always be flat, unable to support her body’s weight.

Her right hand tried to grab the stair railing. However, unfortunately, the steel railing was too far to reach. She could only helplessly grip the empty air.

That time, Paula would definitely fall. Fell for real. From three meters in height. What would happen to the baby if she couldn’t do something? That was all Paula was worried about at that time. She didn’t want anything bad to happen to her child-to-be. She couldn’t even see his or her face on an ultrasound yet.

“Help!” Paula couldn’t help but scream as she felt her body sway backward. She could only stare at Miyuki who didn’t even reach out to help her.

Perhaps, what was in Miyuki’s head at the moment, she would survive if Paula fell and died. Or, if Paula didn’t die, she could do something to Paula later and protect herself. What a wicked woman! However, what was it that a criminal could think of other than evil things?

Paula already felt that she would not be able to save herself. She could only close her eyes and pray. She hoped that a miracle would come for her and the baby. If not ... no! She didn’t want to think about the consequences.

One second, two seconds, three seconds .... Nothing out of the ordinary happened to Paula. The woman wondered.

Shouldn’t she have fallen by now? By now, her head should have hit the floor or stairs. Or maybe the rest of her body should have been in pain from the heavy impact. However, why didn’t she feel it? Was she dead? Did she transmigrate to another realm just as she hit the floor?

Maybe that’s what happened because at that moment, suddenly her sense of smell was filled with the thick scent of roses. Her body seemed to be supported by a hard but comfortable latex mattress. Before long, the faint smell of musk wafted into her nostrils over the strong smell of roses. A smell that was familiar to her nose, made her tempted to open her eyes immediately.

.....

When her eyelids were no longer closed, her sharp blue eyes began to adjust to the surroundings which looked a bit blurry. When the sight started to brighten up, Paula could see that she was indeed surrounded by shards of red and white rose petals scattered like a newlywed bed in a romantic movie.

Paula’s eyes looked straight up and saw Miyuki who could only widen her dark eyes as if they were about to burst out. That meant, she was still in the same place as before. Not to another world. Not in another realm.

Paula turned to the right side and could see the floor clearly, but her position was inches above the floor. A few seconds later, she realized that her body was in someone’s arms. A person who had a muscular body like a latex mattress embraced her tightly.

“Paula, are you okay?”

Those were the first words Paula heard. A familiar voice-William’s voice. It was then, Paula felt, that her head might hit something. How could she possibly hear William’s voice here?

“Baby, are you okay?” William’s voice asked again.

Paula felt the strong hands resting on her chest and stomach. Her fingers could feel the Rolex watch on the man’s left wrist. William did wear it.

“William? Is that you?” Paula asked in doubt.

“Right, baby! Are you alright?” William asked in a hoarse voice since Paula’s not-so-small body was on top of him.

Paula’s heart was pounding because she didn’t expect this to happen. It turned out that it was her husband who was there and helped her. God had sent a miracle to her and the baby in her womb.

Feeling overwhelmed by happiness, Paula squeezed William’s hand tightly. She was so happy that her husband came on time. She was so happy that she wasn’t hurt. She hoped the baby was safe too.

“William I lov-”

“Aaaakkhhh ....”

Before Paula had time to finish her sentence, an old man’s voice squeaked. Paula looked for the source of the moaning. However, she couldn’t find anyone around her other than Miyuki who was kneeling on the floor.

“You can kill me ...,” the old man’s voice groaned again, in Japanese.

No one moved. However, a moment later, Paula realized where the person she was looking for was.

“Get up ...” This time, it wasn’t just the sound but also the rebellious movement in the legs.

“Gosh! I’m sorry!” Paula immediately stepped away from William’s body, assisted by her hands resting on the floor.

historical

Paula hurriedly helped William to stand up. He looked a bit wobbling, maybe he sprained his leg while helping Paula earlier.

Now, Paula could see who the moaning man was. It turned out to be the janitor who had met her in the elevator a few minutes ago.

“Oh my God! I’m sorry!” Paula exclaimed as she helped the janitor to stand up. Paula turned to William and slightly blamed him for not realizing that they were both on top of another person’s body. A middle-aged man on top of it.

“I’m really sorry, sir!” said Paula, cleaning the man’s gray uniform. There was a lot of dust stuck to the fifteenth-floor stairs because the place was rarely cleaned to save on labor costs.

Paula felt very guilty that the man had to support William’s large body and also hers. She lowered her head several times and forced William to do it too.

“Paula, stop it! He always put his life at risk for the sake of work,” William grumbled. He was displeased at being forced to apologize so excessively.

Soon, Paula recalled Miyuki. She immediately turned around when she found Miyuki running towards the elevator. However, Miyuki’s eyes were wide-eyed anxiously when she saw the elevator moving up to the top floor-the fifteenth floor.

Two policemen were inside. Both of them moved swiftly to catch Miyuki who was still trying to run. Unfortunately, the stairs were blocked by Paula and the men.

Shortly after, the police brought Miyuki down for further processing, leaving Paula who was still confused by what had just happened to her. She was wondering who called the police because she didn’t. She was the only person in the building who knew about Miyuki’s crime.

Paula was indeed surprised when Miyuki turned out to be the mastermind of all these crimes. She also couldn’t believe it when she almost fell down the stairs. However, she was even more shocked by William’s sudden presence. Here, beside her.

Paula glanced at William but she looked away when William turned to her. William was no less awkward. He didn’t know what to say to Paula. The romantic scenario that Danica had prepared was ruined by an unexpected incident. William couldn’t remember any more of the lines he had to say.

Seeing the strange behavior of the two lovebirds, the middle-aged janitor immediately said goodbye. He didn’t want to be a third wheel.

“My job is done, young man! Don’t forget to complete the payment! Send the money to my bank account! I’ll wait until noon tomorrow,” said the janitor, patting William twice on the shoulder. “Good luck!” added the man as he winked at William. He then smiled at Paula as he waved goodbye.

Now, there were only William and Paula upstairs. The two looked at each other awkwardly.

“Can you explain to me?” Paula asked, looking at William with a mixed expression. She must not have realized that her face was beet red. “What is happening?”

“What do ... y-you want an ex-planation about?” William asked, stuttering. He was confused about what to explain to Paula.

Paula swallowed hard, trying to act casually to hide her happiness. “You knew that old janitor?” she asked, looking at William intently. However, because William’s eyes were currently staring at her with an unusual look, she immediately turned away-to keep her heart from beating too fast.

“He is ... the detective I hired,” William said, gulping out of fear.

“What for?” asked Paula, starting to get suspicious. Her eyes stared at William’s emerald eyes with a piercing gaze.

“I... asked him to help me investigate the problem at your family company,” William said dubiously. He really meant to help Paula. However, what if Paula was offended and angry?

“So you were the one who sent the envelope to my mailbox this morning?” Paula asked, squinting.

William nodded hesitantly. “Yes.”

“You also called the police here to arrest Miyuki?” Paula drew closer to William, stepping on the red and white rose petals that were scattered on the floor.

William nodded again.

“You also sent me a bouquet of roses and strawberry pralines, no?”

Before William could nod, he felt Paula’s cold palms on either side of his cheeks. Paula’s deep blue eyes stared fixedly at him. A second later, or maybe less, William could feel Paula’s soft lips on his.