Fati replied instinctively before realizing the trap,
- Agreed, and I wa...
She stopped abruptly as if struck by lightning. Her eyes widened in shock, and she grabbed a pillow, holding it against her chest as a shield.
- What? What kind of condition is this? Have you lost your mind?
She cried. After a moment of silence, she snapped,
And this is the fourth condition!
Jaguar replied with a stone-cold face, showing he wasn't joking,
- I am in my full right mind, Fati.
She knew he was serious, but this request was insane.
- I will never agree to this!
- Then
He answered with cold determination,
- I will sleep wherever you sleep.
- Why are you doing this to me?
She asked, unable to believe him. He didn't answer, but inside, he was burning. Jaguar had stayed awake all night watching her shadow, enchanted by the feeling of her body against his for the first time. Now that he had tasted that feeling, the thought of her sleeping away from him was unbearable. In her arms, for the first time, he felt a desperate hunger to truly possess her.
Fati said with clear disapproval, staring at the paper in front of her,
- It seems you don't want me to perform the surgery on your grandfather. That's why you're setting all these impossible conditions, right?
Jaguar smiled at her thoughts. While he was burning with a desire to hold her, she thought he was trying to distract her from her goal. He said firmly,
- Think whatever you want. This is my condition, and it is mandatory. I will not compromise.
- Just tell me,
She asked, trying to understand,
- How will this help you? Do you want to keep an eye on me to make sure I don't do anything foolish?
- I won't answer your questions,
He replied, looking into her eyes.
- But I want to be sure of my feelings.
Fati hugged her pillow tighter, confused.
- Your feelings? What do you mean?
He looked at her mysteriously and said slyly,
- My feelings toward the surgery... of course!
Fati felt relieved and said,
- Fine, I agree. But on one condition: you do not come near me
- I won't,
He answered shortly. Jaguar was waiting. He wouldn't move; he would stay in his place and wait for her to be the one to come closer.
- Are there any other conditions you want to set?
Jaguar asked coldly. Fati hesitated. Everything had vanished from her mind; only the word "feelings" kept ringing in her ears like a warning.
- I don't remember now,
she whispered,
- But can I add more conditions later?
Jaguar stood up slowly, letting the fur blanket fall to reveal his muscles.
- Yes, you have total freedom,
He said. Fati looked away immediately, and her eyes caught the word "Mother" at the bottom of the page. She gathered her courage and asked without looking at him,
- Can I set one condition now?
- What is it?
He asked, his voice low.
- Can you find someone for me?
She requested. Suddenly, his tone turned angry.
- And who is this person?!
Fati quickly explained,
- I want to know the names of the servants who worked in my grandfather's house before I was born. Where are they now?
He asked in surprise,
- Why are you asking?
- My grandfather asked me to find one of them to deliver something,
She lied smoothly.
- Can you find all their names?
He frowned.
- That was twenty-six years ago. It's very hard to find them; some might be dead.
- It doesn't matter,
She insisted calmly.
- I want all their names and information, even if they have passed away.
Jaguar left her to her thoughts and went to shower. After a while, Fati entered the room and saw a suitcase that looked hauntingly familiar. Could it be? She approached with a trembling heart and entered the code; it clicked open. It was her wedding suitcase, untouched for years! But as she opened it, she was hit by a foul, "rotten" smell from being sealed for so long. She quickly shut it, feeling sick, and decided to have it cleaned later.
Next to the bed, she saw her old phone. she picked it up like a lost treasure; she needed to charge it to see her pictures with her late grandfather her only memories, which she had lost that night at the Palace. Tears streamed down her face as she remembered Jaguar's cruelty, how he grabbed her hair and left her grandfather to die alone.
At that moment, Jaguar walked out of the bathroom with only a towel around his waist. He found her crying on the edge of the bed. She didn't give him a chance to speak; she wiped her tears, grabbed her bags and her old phone, and said firmly,
- I'm leaving before you
She walked toward the door without looking back, refusing to give him even a single glance.
Jaguar stood in shock, watching her leave with the suitcase he had brought her. Her tears confused him was she moved by the return of her past, or was her anger stronger? He thought she might be running away, but he saw her other bag was still there. He dressed quickly and rushed out, but she was gone. He tried to call her, only to realize the bitter truth: he didn't even have her phone number. He ran his fingers through his wet hair, feeling a strange sense of loss for the first time.
Meanwhile, Fati was racing against time. She found the nearest laundry, opened her suitcase, and dumped everything into a basket.
- Wash everything,
She told the worker,
- And send the bill to this address.
She wrote down the address and added firmly,
- And clean the suitcase itself thoroughly, inside and out. The smell is unbearable
The worker gave her a small cloth bag for her perfumes and personal items. She gathered her things and headed straight to the hospital. As soon as she arrived, emergency cases started pouring in, giving her no time to think about her sadness or the past that was starting to haunt her again.
Fati was very late returning due to many emergencies; it was almost 11:00 PM. Inwardly, she was glad; after the morning's memories, she had no desire to see Jaguar. She decided to go to her office to rest, remembering she didn't have the entry code for the apartment anyway.
But when she opened her office door, she saw him. He looked exhausted, his shirt unbuttoned and his tie in his hand. He looked at her weakly and whispered,
- There you are... you finally came.
He picked up an envelope from the desk.
- Here is all the information about the servants at your grandfather's palace.
He stood up, his face red and covered in sweat. Between the lack of sleep, the morning chill on his wet hair, and the intense worry of not being able to reach her, he was broken.
He handed her the file. Fati opened it and scanned the pages, then suddenly stopped.
- There's a name missing... where is the name of Ro...?
At that moment, Jaguar leaned his head on her shoulder and whispered,
- I'm so glad I found you.
Then, he collapsed in her arms, lost to a severe fever.