Chapter 869

The nurse was visibly stunned.

Her gaze fell on Evelyn's face, scrutinizing her. "The Black Boss fancied you?"

Evelyn nodded.

The nurse's brow furrowed tightly. "That man is truly bizarre."

Evelyn nearly couldn't suppress the twitch at the corner of her mouth.

She recalled that saying online—don't feel inferior for being normal among a group of abnormal people.

She suppressed her emotions and looked at the nurse and the soldier behind her.

The soldier appeared casual, but his attention remained firmly locked on them.

Evelyn knew clearly that if her story didn't match Alexander's, a bullet would pierce her skull the next second.

Her nerves were stretched taut.

The nurse examined her for a few more moments. "Which country are you and Sterling from?"

"China."

This point couldn't be falsified.

Habits and ingrained ways of thinking were impossible to fake.

She and Alexander had agreed on a strategy: a little false information mixed with a lot of truth.

Hearing "China," the nurse's eyes flickered. "China? Then why didn't you just escape back to your country? China is famously tough on this sort of thing. Everyone knows that."

Evelyn gave a bitter smile. "No chance. Our phones were all confiscated. We couldn't even call for help. We could only steal a small boat to escape. Sterling was shot in the leg. Where is he now? How is he?"

The nurse replied, "He lost a lot of blood, but he's received a transfusion. He's out of danger."

She paused, then suddenly asked, "I heard you and Mr. Sterling are childhood sweethearts?"

Evelyn's heart tightened.

The story she and Alexander had prepared was that they were university classmates.

The nurse was testing her.

Evelyn shook her head. "We were classmates... but if you really think about it, we did know each other from a young age. We grew up in the same town. Both our parents were teachers at the same school. Teachers love comparing their children's grades. I heard his name constantly growing up."

The nurse's eyes lit up. "I understand! My mom is a teacher too!"

Evelyn smiled slightly. "He had the best grades among all the teachers' kids our age. It was more of a... distant admiration, I suppose. Never thought we'd end up at the same university. Being from the same hometown, we always traveled together for the start and end of term, so..."

She lowered her head, feigning shyness.

"How romantic," the nurse sighed. "You must love each other very much, to end up in such a situation."

Evelyn remained silent, her eyes downcast.

But the nurse suddenly spoke again. "Yet Mr. Sterling said you've known each other since childhood. He also said he secretly went to see you once."

Evelyn's head snapped up. "What?"

The nurse covered her mouth, laughing. "He said his parents mentioned you, he got curious, and sneaked a peek at you. Said he liked you even back then. Also said he worked so hard to get into the same university... for you."

Evelyn was speechless.

Alexander could fabricate this kind of secret crush storyline?

Why hadn't he told her?

Was it to elicit a shocked reaction from her now? Or something else?

Being separated made them too vulnerable.

She couldn't tell if the nurse's words were yet another test.

Evelyn's jaw tightened, her fists clenched until her knuckles turned white.

After a long moment, she finally spoke. "He must be lying to you. I don't remember him. In high school, everyone was buried in their studies. Who had time to pay attention to others? We weren't even at the same high school."

The nurse's smile deepened. "He noticed you even when you weren't at the same school? Wow, Mr. Sterling's secret crush came true?"

Evelyn frowned. "Impossible. Sterling back then was just a bookworm. His family was well-off. He wouldn't have noticed someone like me."

The smile vanished instantly from the nurse's face.

"Is that so?" Her voice turned cold. "But that's exactly what Mr. Sterling said. So, which one of you is lying?"

Click.

The soldier chambered a round in his rifle.

The dark, hollow muzzle pointed directly at Evelyn's forehead.

"Talk! Who are you two, really?"