He Does Not Deserve My Devotion-Chapter 42: Sleepwalking

Hearing the sound, Aiden Sinclair had a bad feeling and rushed out of the room to check.

Below the second-floor bedroom, a shattered vase lay in the rainwater, red rose petals scattered everywhere.

"Sir, if Miss Walsh knew you went out in the rain just to pick these flowers for her, she wouldn’t have thrown them away," Mrs. Lane said, trying to console him.

Aiden Sinclair closed the door. "Don’t tell her I picked them."

It rained all day. Nina Walsh stayed holed up in the bedroom, not making a single sound.

That evening, Aiden Sinclair returned to the bedroom after finishing his work. Nina Walsh had her face buried in a pillow, completely ignoring him.

He walked over and pulled back the covers. A pillow came flying at him. Nina Walsh stared at him, her expression a mixture of terror and defiance.

Aiden Sinclair sat down, his hand reaching for her foot. Nina Walsh tried to kick him with it, but he used the momentum to grab both her feet and hold them against his chest. Nina struggled in agony.

Her body thrashed about. Aiden Sinclair not only held her legs but pinned her entire body down with his own. He said resentfully, "If you don’t want this, if you want to leave, just say the word. I’ll let you go!"

Nina Walsh froze. The next second, she stopped struggling.

She lay flat on the bed, her vacant eyes staring at the ceiling.

Aiden Sinclair knew his goading tactic had failed. Nina Walsh now hated him completely.

He sat up, defeated, and picked up the first-aid kit. He quietly changed her bandages.

"Don’t worry," he said. "I won’t touch you without your consent."

Aiden Sinclair left the bedroom and went to his study to continue working.

He made a call to Jay Keane. Jay answered, sounding agitated. "Mr. Sinclair, where are you right now? Your mother and Ms. Jacobs have been looking everywhere for you."

Aiden Sinclair asked, "Why are they looking for me?"

Jay Keane replied, "Your mother said she has something important to discuss with you in person, but she didn’t say what. Ms. Jacobs has chosen a new wedding dress and wants to know when you’ll be free to take the wedding photos, Mr. Sinclair."

"I see," Aiden Sinclair said coldly. "We’ll talk about it when I get back. Is there anything else?"

Jay Keane added, "It seems that Nina Walsh has gone missing. A lot of people are looking for her. Declan Grant broke into Lividia Villa yesterday. Ms. Jacobs had to call the police to get him to leave."

Aiden Sinclair sounded unconcerned. "Don’t worry about him. Anything else?"

Jay Keane: "It seems Julian Sinclair is also looking for Nina Walsh."

"Julian Sinclair?" Aiden Sinclair’s brow furrowed. "What have you found out about that Third Aunt in prison?"

"We have the basic information. This Third Aunt’s real name is Laney. The racing team that Julian Sinclair’s mother, Hannah Hale, signed with back in the day was Laney’s team. Laney was also a race car driver in her youth. She was imprisoned for accidental homicide and sentenced to twenty years."

Aiden Sinclair thought for a moment. "Have you found any connection between this Third Aunt and Nina Walsh?"

"Before Laney was imprisoned, she had no interactions with Nina Walsh or her mother. We haven’t found any connection between them yet."

"Have someone keep a close watch on Julian Sinclair."

After hanging up, Aiden Sinclair was mentally and physically exhausted. He couldn’t focus on a single word in the documents before him.

A few years ago, when he couldn’t sleep, he had seen it as a good thing. He simply used all that extra time for work.

Now, even one sleepless night left him feeling panicked and exhausted.

Aiden Sinclair shut down his computer and returned to the bedroom. Nina Walsh’s even breathing indicated she was already asleep.

Aiden Sinclair gently gathered her into his arms, and his turbulent thoughts immediately settled.

He drifted into a drowsy sleep. Suddenly, his body was yanked upward and suspended. He opened his eyes and realized he wasn’t in the bedroom. Before he could react, two men started beating him with clubs.

Club after club rained down. His body, like a sack, was knocked from side to side by the blows.

He felt as if his bones were breaking. Blood trickled from his mouth, and his vision blurred.

Just then, the beating stopped. The two men grabbed the hemp rope and dragged him away.

SPLASH! He was thrown into the water. The salty taste filled his nose and mouth as icy water rushed in from all sides. He thrashed his bound hands, but it was no use. His body sank rapidly toward the seabed.

At that moment, a young girl suddenly appeared on the seafloor. She was as agile as a fish, with a bow-shaped barrette clipped to her hair at the temple.

The girl suddenly pulled a small knife from her waist, looked up at him, and smiled. Her smile was identical to Nina Walsh’s.

Aiden Sinclair jolted awake. He opened his eyes and was immediately met by a pair of vacant ones.

A sharp pain pricked his neck. Aiden Sinclair looked down to see Nina Walsh holding the scissors from the first-aid kit to his throat.

The sharp pain wasn’t a dream. ’Nina Walsh is trying to kill me!’

A cold sweat broke out on Aiden Sinclair’s back. He looked at Nina; her eyes were unfocused, as vacant as a marionette’s.

Aiden Sinclair didn’t dare to move a muscle. After a moment, Nina put the scissors away and quietly returned to her side of the bed to lie down.

She was sleepwalking.

All desire for sleep gone, Aiden Sinclair got up and went to the study. He ignored the fact that it was the dead of night and called his psychologist.

"Mr. Sinclair, it’s very late. Is something wrong?"

"Doctor, what does it mean if a person suddenly refuses to speak and also starts sleepwalking at night?"

"Mr. Sinclair, has the patient recently suffered a great deal of shock and trauma?"

Aiden Sinclair was reluctant to admit it, but he still answered, "Yes."

"If that’s the case, it’s highly likely they’ve endured too much psychological stress that they can’t process, leading to a neurological disorder. This kind of situation can easily lead to severe depression or even self-harming tendencies. It must not be taken lightly."

Aiden Sinclair was alarmed. "Doctor, what should I do?"

"It would be best to bring her to a hospital for a thorough examination. Most importantly, you must do everything you can to alleviate the patient’s stress, make her feel happy and joyful, and help her regain confidence and hope in life."

"Okay."

Aiden Sinclair hung up and hurried downstairs.

A moment later, the sound of a car engine starting came from outside.

...

「The next day」

The storm had passed, and sunlight streamed through the curtains, bathing the windowsill in light.

Nina Walsh got up. There was no one in the bedroom. She sat on the bed, staring blankly at the sunlight outside the window.

"Miss Walsh. Breakfast is ready. I’m bringing it in."

Mrs. Lane pushed the door open and carried the breakfast in.

Nina Walsh remained silent.

Mrs. Lane brought the breakfast tray to her. "Miss, please eat something," she urged. "You barely ate anything yesterday. If you don’t eat, you’ll get sick."

Nina Walsh shoved with her hand, knocking the bowl to the floor.

Mrs. Lane quickly went to get a broom and cloth to clean up the mess. Just as she finished, the sound of a car parking came from downstairs.

Mrs. Lane glanced out the window. "Sir is back."

Just as she said that, the bedroom door opened. Michelle Quinn ran to the bedside and hugged Nina.

"Lemon."

Nina Walsh froze, and for the first time, a spark of life returned to her eyes.