“Useful tools become weapons, but when they lose their utility, they’re discarded like trash.”

Hearing Tang Mi’s words, JR and Simon averted their eyes, the coffee in their mouths turning unbearably bitter. The sentiment of “when the rabbit dies, the fox grieves” resonated deeply with them. Arthur’s fate today could very well be their own tomorrow.

Yise opened his mouth, about to say something, when suddenly there was a loud “clang.” The diner door was pushed open.

Everyone’s breath caught in their throats. Though their faces betrayed nothing and their hands continued their previous motions, their dilated pupils and the taut muscles under their clothes revealed their heightened state of alertness.

Tang Mi looked toward the door in fear, silently praying, “Please, Arthur, don’t come in!”

But it wasn’t Arthur who entered. Instead, it was a young couple dressed in trendy clothes. The boy had his arm around the girl’s shoulder, whispering something with his head tilted down, the silver stud on his nose glinting under the light.

The girl laughed brightly, swinging a vibrant purple handbag on her arm. It bounced against her pale thighs peeking out from under her short skirt.

Just an ordinary couple. Everyone quietly exhaled in relief. It was normal for customers to visit during business hours.

The couple didn’t stay long, only finishing two cups of coffee before leaving. As they stepped out, the rain suddenly intensified.

“Damn it, I forgot to bring an umbrella,” the girl muttered. The boy smirked nonchalantly, taking off his jacket and holding it over their heads. Laughing, the two dashed into the downpour, like vibrant streaks of color under the dull gray sky.

Young love often carried an unbridled passion—reckless yet beautifully so. It made onlookers smile with envy, like sipping a warm cup of cocoa on a freezing day.

Tang Mi watched their retreating figures, her lips curving into a faint smile. But then she noticed Iser beside her, his eyes locked onto the couple’s now-vacant table with a sharp vigilance.

Following his gaze, Tang Mi saw something left on the table: the girl’s vibrant purple handbag. A faint, rhythmic beeping sound emanated from it.

*”Beep. Beep. Beep.”*

“It’s a bomb!”

Yise’s elbow smashed into the window beside him with a loud *crack*. He grabbed Tang Mi and pulled her through the shattered glass, both tumbling onto the cold, wet pavement. The rain lashed against her face as she hit the slick ground.

Flames erupted from the diner, accompanied by thick, acrid yellow smoke. Yet, the anticipated explosion didn’t come.

Tang Mi lay on the ground, pain radiating from her limbs where she had collided forcefully. The choking smoke stung her eyes and dried her throat, leaving her desperate for a gulp of fresh water.

But the danger wasn’t over.

A sharp screech of tires pierced the air. Before she could react, a powerful force yanked her up. The next thing she knew, she was thrown into the passenger seat of a car.

The vehicle jolted forward suddenly, then abruptly reversed. It swerved left and darted into a narrow alley.

Tang Mi’s body was thrown around like a loose leaf in the cramped space between the seat and the door. Clutching the armrest with difficulty, she tried to steady herself. Just as she raised her head, a commanding voice shouted beside her:

“Get down!”

At the same moment, a bullet tore through the air, striking the car’s right-side mirror. Glass shards sprayed everywhere, narrowly missing her cheek.

But Tang Mi wasn’t terrified. She already knew who was sitting beside her.

Arthur.

He had finally come back.

Although their reunion was rushed—so rushed she didn’t even have time to get a proper look at him—his calm voice gave her an overwhelming sense of reassurance. It was just like the time they had fled through the jungle together.

But feelings were one thing; reality was another. Bullets continued to rain down on them, shattering both the rear and front windshields.

In the chaos, Tang Mi saw Arthur pull out a gun. Yet every time he tried to fire back, he had to abandon the attempt to keep control of the steering wheel.

“Switch seats, I’ll drive!” Tang Mi shouted in a low voice. Using the car’s sway for momentum, she leaned left and grabbed the steering wheel.

Arthur crouched low, sliding behind her back toward the right. In a flash, the two switched positions with astonishing speed, their coordination flawless.

By this point, the car had already sped onto the sea bridge. Because of their mid-speed seat exchange, the car veered into the left lane, heading straight for an oncoming container truck.

Tang Mi angled her body, lightly tapped the brakes, and spun the steering wheel rapidly. Then she slammed on the gas. The car swerved sharply to the right, barely dodging the massive truck. Just as they were about to crash through the guardrail, Tang Mi released the accelerator, quickly turned the wheel left, stepped on the gas again, and corrected the direction.

The car’s rear end skidded dangerously, grazing the right-hand guardrail. The pursuing vehicle behind them wasn’t as fortunate—it failed to evade in time and collided head-on with the truck. With a deafening “boom,” the smaller car was flung into the air, plunging into the icy ocean below, creating a massive splash.

“That was an awesome drift! Have you had professional training?” Arthur exclaimed in amazement.

“I’m a rally racing champion!” Tang Mi replied. At that moment, their car squeezed between two smaller vehicles. She ducked her head, gripping the wheel tightly as the sides of the car scraped against the others, sparking violently. It mirrored the rush of adrenaline pumping through her veins. Amid the ear-piercing screeches, she heard someone yelling for help. Behind them, the bullets still hadn’t stopped.

“Shit! Don’t make me shoot at my own people!” Arthur growled, snapping off the safety of his gun. Leaning out of the car window, he swiftly pulled the trigger. *Bang! Bang!*

The pursuing car swerved wildly, skidding off the road, crashing into a guardrail, and flipping over into a nearby field.

“Make a U-turn ahead and cut through the fields toward the harbor,” Arthur instructed, his voice tinged with pain. Once comrades, now enemies—it didn’t matter who won; the situation was anything but satisfying.

Like pawns on a chessboard, soldiers fought and bled under the manipulations of unseen players, never truly understanding why they battled.

“This isn’t your fault, Arthur,” Tang Mi said, placing her hand over his.

The car made a sharp U-turn, then swerved left, plunging into a wheat field.

The stalks bent under the car’s tires, collapsing in waves ahead of them. In the heavy rain, it looked like rolling tides. The black car weaved through the field like a battered but defiant fish, tearing through the storm and rushing toward the dark horizon.

—

Nightfall, a fisherman’s hut by the harbor.

Tang Mi sat by the fire, holding a hairdryer to her damp hair.

October in Alaska was freezing. Although it hadn’t snowed yet, the rainy nights were colder than any snowfall. The wind crept in through every crack in the window, stubbornly claiming every corner of the room. The fisherman’s hut, with its basic fireplace and lack of central heating, chilled to the bone, making even her marrow feel frozen.

A warm hand took the hairdryer from her. A solid, reassuring body pressed against her back, dispelling the bitter cold. Arthur lifted her hair gently and said, “Let me do it.”

His fingers slid through her black hair, lifting and releasing it in meticulous, rhythmic motions. His slightly warm fingertips tickled her scalp, making her squirm a little. Through the hum of the hairdryer, she could feel the steady beat of his heart against her back. The sound resonated with her own, creating a soft harmony that echoed within her.

Back when they had vacationed in a small town, Arthur often dried Tang Mi’s hair for her. Once, she had teased him with a frown, “You’re so good at this—have you practiced on other women before?”

He glanced at her reflection in the mirror and gave her a mischievous grin. “No. I used to have a golden retriever. Bathing and blow-drying it was regular practice.”

Tang Mi had jumped up in mock outrage, lunging at him to choke his neck. But he effortlessly caught her wrists, flipped her over, and pinned her against his chest. Smiling, he kissed the corner of her lips and said, word by deliberate word, “I’ve never helped anyone else—”

Gripping his wrist, she was swiftly overpowered as he pinned her beneath him with ease. He leaned down, capturing her lips in a forceful kiss, his voice laced with intensity as he murmured between breaths, “I’ve never dried a woman’s hair—unless she was my wife.”

Those words, spoken so long ago, still echoed vividly in her mind like an indelible mark on her soul. Tang Mi could still recall Arthur’s smile and the gentle touch of his lips at that moment, so genuine and tender it felt like a sweet poison she couldn’t resist. But now, she had to reject this overwhelming tenderness and sever the connection between them. Logic had to overpower the craving that ran through her veins. She had to let him go—for his sake.

As Yise once warned, she was Arthur’s fatal poison, destined to destroy him.

“You shouldn’t have come today,” Tang Mi said, pulling herself away from him. Her voice was devoid of emotion, though her throat felt dry and tight.

She noticed his grip on her hair tighten briefly before loosening. His breath brushed over the crown of her head, slightly uneven, but his tone remained steady. “After all this time apart, that’s the first thing you have to say to me?”

“We shouldn’t meet again,” Tang Mi insisted, her gaze cold as she turned to face him. “It’ll only harm both of us.” She tried to pull her hair free from his hold, but his hand clamped down forcefully.

“You’ve said ‘shouldn’t’ twice. Then tell me—what *should* be done? Should drugging your fiancé and running away repeatedly be what’s right? All because you believe I’m a danger to you?” His piercing eyes narrowed, his grip tightening on her hair as icy frustration radiated from him.

The pain in her scalp was sharp, but it was nothing compared to the ache that twisted in her chest. She forced herself to maintain a mask of indifference and whispered through gritted teeth, “Arthur, I’ve thought this through. What we had was just a fleeting lapse in judgment. You were nothing more than a distraction during a monotonous journey. Now, I’m clear-headed. I can’t marry a man without roots, one who lives a life fraught with danger. These past few days have been terrifying, nearly costing me my life. So leave. Leave me, and never come back.”

Arthur slowly released her hair and took a step back, his gaze fixed on her. His face darkened, the shadows under his eyes accentuating his exhaustion from days of pursuit. The veins on his arms and jawline strained as his composure threatened to snap.

If he’d been suppressing his anger before, now he was teetering on the edge of an eruption.

Tang Mi knew the dangers of provoking Arthur’s fury, but she reminded herself of her resolve. “Protecting him is more important than loving him,” Caroline’s advice replayed in her mind. If Arthur could muster the courage to leave MI6 for her, then she could find the courage to walk away for his safety.

“Are you sure that’s the truth? You have three seconds to reconsider your answer,” Arthur warned, his voice low but menacing. His tense posture resembled a coiled spring, his sharp gaze like an arrow aimed straight at her heart.

“Yes. It’s the truth. At this moment, I have no reason to lie to you,” Tang Mi answered firmly, her tone brisk. But she failed to notice the pallor of her face and the trembling in her eyes, which betrayed her resolve.

Arthur chuckled darkly, his hand brushing over her head and down her cheek before resting on her shoulder. His touch was deceptively gentle, but his words carried an edge. “Darling, now you’re scared and regretful? Isn’t it a little too late?”

His expression shifted abruptly, tenderness dissolving into savage anger. Bloodshot eyes blazed with pain as he pushed her to the ground, pinning her beneath him. His lips descended with brutal force, his kiss an outlet for the storm of emotions raging inside him. It was as if he sought to drown her in his despair and drag her heart out from behind its cold façade.

If the end of love was the abyss of hatred, then he was determined to plunge into its depths with her.

Tang Mi struggled fiercely, clawing and biting at his shoulders and arms, leaving bloody trails that didn’t seem to faze him. Her resistance only fueled his ferocity as he tore at her clothes with reckless abandon. His hot breath and wild, intoxicating presence seeped into her skin, igniting a chaos within her that mirrored the fireworks exploding in her mind.

Her resistance faltered. He knew her body and soul too well, and against him, she had never emerged victorious. What frightened her most was her body’s treacherous response—she needed him, craved him even.

Gasping for air, she fought to escape the fire consuming her, but her weakening resolve was like melting toffee, unable to hold its form. Sensing her hesitation, Arthur’s movements softened, his lips brushing her ear and neck with deliberate gentleness. When he heard a faint whimper escape her lips, he looked into her eyes and smiled. “Your body is more honest than your words. You love me, Tang.”

Arthur’s voice jolted her back to reality. This wasn’t the outcome she had intended. The thought of MI6 agents or assassins lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike, sobered her. Her resolve hardened again. She shoved him away and curled into the corner, her voice breaking with pain. “No, Arthur. You don’t understand. MI6 won’t let you go. No matter where you run, they’ll find you.”