The young soldier's forehead was drenched in sweat. His teeth had bitten so hard into his lip that it bled. Even so, he forced a smile at her.
"I'm fine, Dr. Hart. Take your time. It doesn't hurt."
Serena drew in a slow breath, steadying her wrist as she continued stitching. Beside her, a nurse handed over fresh gauze and muttered angrily.
"Dr. Hart, Dr. Lockwood knows you just recovered from pneumonia, and you're six months pregnant. How can he still dump all these patients on you? Amy Bennett only felt a little nauseous this morning, and Dr. Lockwood has been hovering around her all day, bringing water and medicine. Meanwhile you're here working yourself to the bone. That man seriously has no conscience..."
"Focus on the patient first." Serena cut her off, her hands never pausing.
Only after the final stitch was done did Serena suddenly turn her head and start coughing.
She had been holding it back the entire time she was stitching. Now that the cough broke free, it sounded so violent that even the people beside her felt uneasy.
When Serena finally forced herself to calm down, she opened her palm. A smear of bright red blood lay stark against her skin.
So the pneumonia had left complications after all, she thought with a quiet sigh.
Voices outside suddenly grew loud, as if people were arguing. Serena quickly wiped the blood from her hand and stood up.
The moment she stood, Maya Bennett pushed the door open and rushed inside. Her brows were furrowed, her cheeks flushed bright red with anger.
"Serena, Fiona Carter just came again. She says Amy has a stomachache and wants you to go check on her. That's ridiculous. What does Amy's stomach have to do with you? Serena, you need to stand up for yourself. Don't let Amy walk all over you."
Maya looked so furious that the corners of her eyes had turned red.
Serena kept working as she listened, a numb smile tugging faintly at her lips. Hadn't Amy already won? Logan Lockwood practically wanted to grind Serena into the dirt just to place Amy on a pedestal.
She could barely remember what Logan had been like three years ago.
Back then, Logan had still been the son of the Lockwood family.
Countless well-born women had dreamed of marrying into the Lockwood family. Yet Logan had chosen her, the daughter of an ordinary professor. He had pursued her for three whole years. When she applied to volunteer in the war zone, he signed up without hesitation and followed her there.
The entire Lockwood family opposed the idea. Richard Lockwood, Logan's father, had been so furious he smashed a cup on the floor.
"Do you have any idea who you are? Going to a place like that is suicide!"
But Logan had only said one thing. "Serena's dream is my dream. Wherever she goes, I go."
For that, he broke with his family and gave up the bright future they had planned for him, choosing instead to come here with her, to a land torn apart by war.
Whenever he looked at her back then, his eyes shone with unmistakable adoration.
Which was why Serena still couldn't understand how the man who had loved her so fiercely back then had turned into this.
Serena had come here with Logan, and in the beginning, everything had been fine.
That was until three months ago, when Serena left with the second medical team to provide aid to other tribes.
Half a month later, she finally returned, filled with joy at the thought that she would soon reunite with her husband after weeks apart.
What she never expected was that the first thing waiting for her would be her husband's tribal wedding.
By the bonfire, Logan stood dressed in traditional tribal attire while Amy wore a red veil. Under the witness of the tribal chief and the gathered villagers, the two were performing the wedding rites.
Serena had been a mess at the time. It was scorching hot, and she should have been drenched in sweat. But the moment she saw that scene, it felt as if someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over her head. She stood frozen in place, unable to react for a long time.
When Logan saw her, he hurried over in panic and pulled her into a corner to explain.
He said Amy's father had saved his life during a rebel attack, and the old man's final wish before dying had been for Logan to look after his helpless daughter.
He said the marriage was only a temporary solution. A way to repay the debt.
He said once the relief mission in the war zone ended, he would give Amy a sum of money, make proper arrangements for her, and return home with Serena. The one he truly loved was still Serena.
And Serena believed him.
What she did not expect was that a month later, Logan would kneel in front of her and beg her to grant him one request.
He said he had already married Amy and could not walk away from his responsibility. He wanted to give Amy a child, a child who would become her only support in the future.
He begged Serena to understand. He begged her to accept it. He promised the child would never appear before her. In the end, Logan looked at her with nothing but disappointment in his eyes.
"Serena, can you be a little more reasonable?" Logan said. Then he slammed the door and went to take care of Amy.
Only later did Serena learn that when Logan had knelt before her that day, Amy had already been two weeks pregnant.
At first Serena had been devastated, then sickened, and finally numb. The day she learned Amy was pregnant, she made a decision. The moment she returned home, she would file for divorce.
"Serena?"
Maya's voice pulled her back to reality. Serena snapped out of her thoughts, stepped forward, and gently ruffled Maya's hair. She smiled softly to reassure the girl who had followed her around like a little shadow ever since Serena arrived at the tribe.