My Child and I Married a Billionaire

With that, Damien began organizing everyone to board the helicopter, starting with the women and children.

Everyone’s first thought was Grandma King, who was the oldest and in the worst condition. They all deferred, urging her to be the first to go up.

Only then did Damien’s gaze fall upon Cecelia Archer.

He hadn’t seen her in over a month, and she was as thin as ever.

Whether it was from the lack of sunlight or being soaked in the water for too long, she was as white as a sheet of paper.

She was dressed from head to toe in a black padded jacket, still not completely dry. As she warmed herself by the fire, steam billowed off of it.

Her body and face were covered in patches of half-dried yellow mud.

Her hair had grown quite a bit since he’d last seen her. It had probably come loose from being drenched in the water, and now it was a tangled mess scattered over her shoulders and stuck to her face, making her look like a refugee.

And yet, her features remained delicate, youthful, and sharp.

Especially those large, glistening, dark eyes. When they met Damien’s gaze, he instantly felt that his month-plus of mental preparation had been for nothing.

In an instant, she had stolen his soul all over again.

Worried Grandma King wouldn’t make it, Cecelia had spent the entire night rubbing the old woman’s limbs and occasionally performing CPR. She was too exhausted and cold to share Damien’s complex feelings.

When she saw everyone looking over, she tried to stand up while holding Grandma King.

But where would she get the strength? Her legs were cold, stiff, and numb. She tried to get up once but couldn’t, and the two of them flopped back down with a THUD.

Everyone rushed over to help them up. When Damien saw the puddle of water where she had been sitting, his heart ached as if pricked by a needle.

"Grandma, someone’s here to rescue us. You go up to the helicopter first, and they’ll take you to the hospital."

Cecelia tried to hand Grandma King over to the others, but the old woman clutched her clothes and wouldn’t let go.

"No, I don’t want to go."

After last night, she was terrified of the torrential rain outside, and even more so of the behemoth in the sky.

"I’m not going! I’m not going! Luna, don’t let go of me."

"Don’t be afraid. It’s a helicopter. It’s fast and safe. You’ll be fine."

"No! I’m not going! I’m not going!"

She was like an insecure child, clinging to Cecelia and refusing to let go no matter how she tried to coax her.

Cecelia didn’t dare force her. "Why don’t we let the others go up first? She’s old and has never seen a helicopter before. It’s normal for her to be scared. I’ll try to talk to her some more."

Damien had no choice but to arrange for the others to go first.

However, the others were scared too.

With the heavy rain and strong winds, the rope ladder dangling in mid-air was incredibly difficult to climb. The rescue process was agonizingly slow.

Damien summoned every ounce of patience he possessed. Secured by a rope, he hung by the window, taking person after person, hoisting them up with all his might. Facing the rain, he encouraged them and taught them climbing techniques.

Several helicopters took turns, and after what felt like an eternity, everyone was finally aboard.

Everyone except Cecelia and Grandma King.

RUMBLE!

A clap of thunder echoed as the downpour intensified and the gale-force winds raged.

Cecelia heard the sound of a wave crashing, and the next second, the classroom door was forced open by the water. The flood surged onto the second floor.

"Grandma, look! The water is right here! We have to get on the helicopter right now, or we won’t survive! Be good. Let them tie you to him, and he’ll carry you up. You’ll be safe."

Cecelia coaxed and persuaded until she finally managed to pull Grandma King over to Damien.

Grandma King had been watching everyone board for a while and had also been observing Damien. She realized he was a strong, young, handsome, and very trustworthy young man.

"Alright, I’ll go then. You be careful by yourself and come up quickly."

"Okay, you go on. As soon as you’re up, I can go too."

The two of them worked together to strap Grandma King to Damien’s back.

It took Damien nearly twenty minutes, but he finally got her safely onto the helicopter.

After several hours of hard work, having transported dozens of people, he was so exhausted his limbs were trembling. He felt like screaming.

But as he sat in the helicopter doorway and looked at Cecelia standing alone by the window, looking so small and frail, he gritted his teeth and slid back down.

They looked at each other through the curtain of rain. Cecelia watched his face, so drenched he could barely open his eyes, and saw his lips turning pale. She realized, from the bottom of her heart, that Damien Vaughn was an incredibly responsible person.

’Given his social standing and wealth, he really didn’t need to be here in person today.’

Damien silently tied the safety rope around her and helped her get to the rope ladder.

Cecelia didn’t dare look down. She summoned every ounce of courage she had and stepped onto it, but she just couldn’t do it. She couldn’t.

She had a severe fear of heights, and at that moment, the wind and rain suddenly picked up. The ladder began to spin wildly in mid-air. Forget climbing—she was too scared to even move.

RUMBLE!

Another clap of thunder rolled by. The pilot shouted anxiously down to Damien.

"President Vaughn, we have to go now! The helicopter is in extreme danger if we stay!"

Damien watched Cecelia, who was dangling in the air like a leaf, completely unable to climb. He gritted his teeth, leaped from the windowsill, and lunged toward her.

A huge jolt threw them outward, the ladder swinging violently like a trapeze. Cecelia felt like her soul had left her body.

"AHH!!"

Damien held her tightly in his arms, one hand gripping the rope ladder, the other wrapped around her waist.

"Don’t be afraid! I’m with you! We’ll be there soon, just hold on a little longer!"

Then he looked up and shouted with all his might.

"Go! We’re not coming up! Just go!"

The helicopter began to move, and the two of them, like martial arts actors in an action movie, dangled from the rope ladder, twisting and swaying in the air.

For someone with acrophobia, there was nothing more terrifying in the world.

Cecelia wanted to be strong, wanted not to be a burden to Damien, but fear was something beyond her control. Even with her eyes closed, she could feel the weightlessness, the world spinning around her.

She gripped the ladder with one hand and clutched Damien’s clothes with the other, burying her face in his chest as if she wanted to merge into his very bones.

"Ah! This is terrifying! Ahh!"

Although her entire body was cold and stiff, after being pressed against him for a while, she could feel a trace of his warmth.

Damien was an extreme sports enthusiast who went skydiving to relax. To him, this height was like walking on solid ground.

He hadn’t seen Cecelia in so long, and he loved this feeling of her clinging to him.

’To be honest, despite my exhaustion, I kind of wish this would last a little longer.’

Amidst Cecelia’s shrieks, they were delivered to the rooftop of the county hospital.

The moment her feet touched solid ground, Cecelia’s heart finally returned to her chest.

But due to inertia, she still felt like the world was spinning.

After clinging to him for so long, Cecelia tried to let go of Damien, but the moment she did...

Damien quickly pulled her back. "Don’t move. Why are you trying to act tough?"

Her head was spinning and her stomach was churning. Cecelia didn’t dare move again, letting him hold her in public.

The helicopter slowly landed, and people disembarked one by one. Someone came to help them with the ropes, but Damien still didn’t let go of Cecelia.

People came and went around them, chattering all at once. She didn’t know how long he held her, but eventually, the whole world faded until only the sound of the wind and rain remained. Then, Damien swept her up into his arms.

"Close your eyes. Don’t move. I’ll carry you down."

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