Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rwan Vale 173

Chapter 173 

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Shepard pulled the rope as hard as he could, the rough fibers digging into his palms and leaving bloody lines behind. 

Thankfully, it finally came loose. He quickly pulled open the sack. Inside, just as he’d hoped, it was her, the girl who haunted his dreams: Briana. 

Shepard summoned every bit of strength he had, rescuing Briana from the sack and lifting her up as he swam desperately toward the surface. 

Briana slowly opened her eyes, catching sight of Shepard through the haze. 

‘Is this heaven?‘ Briana wondered to herself. ‘Or is it just a dream before I die?‘ 

She ached to reach out and touch his face, but her hands were cruelly bound behind her back. All she could do was gaze at him, her heart full of longing. 

Shepard was swimming with all his strength, struggling against the water, but there wasn’t a trace of surrender in him. 

He noticed Briana watching him, so he looked back at her. Their eyes met. 

‘She’s still awake. She’s still alive,‘ Shepard thought, relief flooding through him. Some of the panic in Shepard’s heart faded away. 

‘Just a bit more, Briana. We’re almost there. Hang in there with me,‘ Shepard urged himself, refusing to give 

1. up. 

A bunch of people dove into the water all at once, and soon started to come into Shepard’s view. 

With their help, Shepard and Briana finally made it to the surface. Air rushed into their lungs. 

Shepard let out a long, relieved breath, finally able to breathe freely. Once they were safely on shore, the first thing Shepard did was hold Briana close, cradling her in his arms. 

“Briana? Briana?” he called softly, his voice trembling with worry. He gently patted her cheek, trying to wake her up. 

“Can you hear me? Talk to me, Briana,” he pleaded, his heart pounding. Briana’s lips and face were ghostly pale, almost white as a sheet. 

Olivia stared in disbelief. “Briana was actually in the water? Were they really trying to drown her?” 

Shepard didn’t have time for Olivia. His only focus was getting Briana to wake up. 

Seeing Briana completely unresponsive, Shepard quickly lay her flat on the ground and started CPR, desperately giving her mouth–to–mouth in a frantic attempt to bring her back. 

After a tense moment, Briana suddenly choked and coughed up a mouthful of water, her whole body shaking 

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as she gasped for breath. 

Her eyes fluttered open, damp hair plastered to her cheeks. The wind whipped past, biting cold, making her shiver uncontrollably. 

Seeing this, Shepard, without hesitation, draped his jacket over her shoulders and pulled it snug, trying to warm her up. 

He wanted to hold her close, but he was drenched himself, just as cold and wet as she was. 

Shepard just looked at her. A rush of gratitude flooded him. He’d almost lost her, but now she was safe in front of him. 

He’d nearly lost her forever. He might never have seen her again. The thought sent a chill straight to his heart. 

“Briana…” he whispered, his voice barely above a breath. 

Briana blinked slowly, her mind gradually clearing. 

She froze for a second when she saw Shepard, then glanced at Olivia and froze again. 

After a couple of seconds, she suddenly sat up, but the movement made her head spin, and she collapsed limply back into Shepard’s arms. 

“Go save Henry,” Briana kept repeating, her voice shaking with panic. “Hurry, you have to help him. Nothing can happen to him.” 

Olivia crouched down in front of her. “Briana, where’s Henry?” 

“He’s at the bottom,” Briana said, pointing at the river. “They threw him in. He’s really badly hurt, bleeding so much. Please, pull him out and get him to the hospital, or he won’t make it. How could he die just to save me?” 

Olivia was so mad that she was practically stomping her feet. “Who does stuff this evil? Are they even human?” 

“Hurry, hurry, get Henry out of the water. If you wait any longer, he’ll die. He’ll get swept away downstream,” Briana pleaded, her voice shaking with panic. 

As Briana spoke, tears kept rolling down her cheeks. She felt hopeless, yet eerily calm. She was so weak at that 

moment. 

Shepard held her close, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes with his thumb. “They’re already pulling Henry out. Just hold on a little longer, okay?” 

Briana looked at him, worry etched on her face. “When you were underwater saving me, didn’t you see Henry? He was in a different bag. They threw him just a few minutes before me.” 

“I didn’t see him, Briana,” Shepard said, his voice strained. 

“Really? Are you sure? You didn’t see any other bag down there?” Briana pressed, her voice trembling. 

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“Yeah,” Shepard nodded. “I only saw this one. Lopened it, and you were inside.” 

20.ouchers 

“Thank goodness it was her.‘ Shepard thought, a rush of relief washing over him. “Thank goodness I found her first‘ 

Otherwise, it would be Briana. Everyone was scrambling to rescue, not Henry. 

Deep down, Shepard knew his thoughts were selfish, but he couldn’t help it. 

Thank goodness my Briana’s safe, he thought, his heart finally able to breathe. Briana burst into tears, her cries echoing in the air. 

Her entire body trembled as she gripped Shepard’s sleeve with all her strength, her tears falling one after another like pearls slipping off a broken string, some soaking into the strands of her hair, others pooling in Shepard’s palm. 

“It was Eric,” Briana sobbed, her voice shaking. “He sent people to kidnap me and bring me here. They wanted to violate me, then toss me in the river to drown me and erase all traces. 

“Thank God Henry showed up just in time. They were about to rip my clothes off when he burst in. They had to stop everything and move me to the woods instead,” she said, her voice trembling. 

“Henry was all alone. He didn’t stand a chance against them. They had sticks, knives, and hammers… They kept hitting him over and over. He was covered in blood,” Briana cried, her voice breaking. 

Just thinking back to that moment sent chills down Briana’s spine. She took a deep breath and glanced over at the shore. The shore was crowded with people. 

Everyone was desperately searching for any sign of Henry. Boats were out there, too. 

Several people were already rowing out further, heading for the deeper part of the river. 

With night falling and everyone scrambling in a panic, the rescue was chaotic and slow–going. Still, everyone was giving it everything they had. 

Briana watched everything unfold, her heart heavy and silent. After a while, she suddenly whispered, “If Henry dies, then I don’t want to go on living either.” 

Shepard looked at her, his eyes filled with a complicated mix of emotions he couldn’t even name. 

‘Has Henry already captured her heart completely?‘ Shepard wondered, a pang of jealousy twisting in his chest. 

‘Yeah, he has,‘ Shepard thought, the truth hitting him hard. ‘Who wouldn’t fall for a guy who’d risk his life to save you? Wasn’t that exactly how I fell for Vivian because she saved me?‘ 

Briana’s feelings for Henry were just like the way Shepard once felt about Vivian. He could see it as clear as day. But honestly, Briana’s love for Henry ran even deeper, even more real than he ever did. 

After all, she and Henry had always had something special between them. They’d been drawn to each other from the very start. 

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At that moment, Shepard finally understood. His chapter with Briana had truly ended. She no longer belonged to him, and any hope for a future together was gone. 

His regret came too late; there was no turning back. As soon as Henry was found and woke up, she’d go straight to his side. And Shepard… It was time to let go. 

“Briana,” Olivia said softly, giving her hand a gentle pat. “Don’t overthink it. Henry’s going to be totally fine, I swear. Let’s just wait a little. He’ll be found soon and rushed to the hospital, I promise. 

“But what about you? Are you sure you’re okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Maybe you should get checked out at the hospital first. Don’t forget. You’re still pregnant, Briana.” 

At the mention of her pregnancy, Briana’s lashes fluttered, a subtle sign of the storm of emotions swirling inside her.