His Regret Can’t Bring Us Back Chapter 03
He wasn’t alone.
Anastasia, unconscious, was leaning against him.
Both of them were soaked through. Their clothes clung together so tightly that there was almost no space between their bodies.
Nicole looked at them for only a second before calmly turning away. “It’s nothing.”
Sebastian frowned and forced down the strange feeling rising in his chest.
He walked to the chair and tried to set Anastasia down, but the woman in his arms let out a weak sound and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. “Don’t go…” Her brows furrowed with unease as she buried her face against his neck.
Sebastian’s expression changed at once.
He gave a soft cough and quickly pulled away from her. “Nikki, Anastasia only did that because she passed out. She must be dreaming about Eunice.”
Nicole nodded, her tone flat as she replied, “I understand.”
Sebastian choked on her calm response and instinctively added, “Her family is gone. I was worried something might happen to her, so I brought her here. Tomorrow, I’ll send her away.”
He glanced around the room and frowned. “Where’s Duncan?”
Nicole went still. She lowered her eyes, hiding the grief in them. “He’s studying at his teacher’s house.”
As she spoke, she stood and moved her washbasin, clothes, blanket, and pillow into the woodshed.
Then, she picked up all the photos of her and Sebastian and threw them into the stove. The flames surged up at once.
“Nikki, what are you doing?”
Sebastian went pale with shock and reached into the fire to save the pictures.
But the flames forced his fingers back and quickly swallowed the photos whole.
Nicole watched in silence. Only after confirming that every picture had burned to ash did she turn toward the woodshed.
“Nicole!” He grabbed her wrist tightly, his eyes trembling. “What is this supposed to mean?”
Her voice turned cold. “Captain Crawford, please watch yourself. In front of outsiders, we’re not husband and wife.”
Nicole glanced at the ashes in the stove and continued, “These things shouldn’t have existed in the first place.”
“But—”
The woodshed door closed softly.
The words he hadn’t finished were forced back down his throat.
Irritation sparked in Sebastian’s chest and sat there like a lit fuse.
So Nicole had just left him in the same room with another woman and didn’t care at all?
But soon, a resentful cry rang out. “Sebastian! Why did you save me?”
Anastasia woke up, and in the next breath, she tried to kill herself again.
Sebastian had no choice but to look away from the woodshed. He crouched beside her and tried to coax her gently.
She was overwhelmed and gripped his wrist hard. “Sebastian! Give Eunice back to me!”
His lips pressed together. His voice was hoarse. “I can’t.”
She suddenly leaned forward and kissed him on the lips.
Sebastian stood up on instinct.
“Don’t pull away!” Anastasia immediately frowned. “Captain Crawford, you can’t give Eunice back to me, and now you can’t even do this one little thing for me?
“I thought since you jumped into the river to save me, you cared about me at least a little!”
He froze in place and let her do whatever she wanted.
In the yard, Nicole stepped out to dump the water from washing her feet and saw everything.
She also saw the indulgence in his eyes.
Her face showed nothing, but her thoughts were a mess.
Years ago, Sebastian had been drugged during a mission.
He had cut open his own thigh to stay conscious, then held on until he found Nicole.
His kisses were frantic and clumsy, and his tears were scorching. Every touch shook her to the core.
Back then, he had been barely conscious, yet every thought in him had belonged to her.
Now, he knew exactly what he was doing, yet he was still letting himself fall deeper.
Nicole turned around and shut the door.
Late that night, a strange smell jolted her awake.
Nicole opened her eyes as a violent wave of dizziness and nausea hit her.
It was carbon monoxide.
The thought sent a chill through her body.
She quickly covered her mouth and nose, got out of bed, and shoved at the door, only to find that it wouldn’t move. Something outside had blocked it firmly shut.
How could this be?
The woodshed had no windows. If this went on, she would suffocate inside.
Suddenly, noise came from outside.
Through the narrow crack beneath the door, she saw Sebastian stand up while holding his head.
“Sebas…”
She tried to call him, but more carbon monoxide flooded into her mouth and nose. All she could do was slap the door again and again.
He seemed to hear something. He turned his head and hurried over.
Nicole’s pupils widened slightly as she used every bit of strength to pound on the door.
But in the next second, he bent down, lifted the sleeping Anastasia, and rushed out.
He didn’t even look toward the woodshed.
In that moment, Nicole suddenly laughed.
She laughed so hard her whole body trembled, and tears spilled from her eyes.
Every exit was sealed. The air around her grew thinner and thinner, and her mind began to blur.
In her despair, she used the last of her strength to crawl forward and grab an ax used for chopping wood.
Then, in the final second before she blacked out completely, she raised it high and brought it down hard on her own calf.
