CHAPTER 26

I forced my heavy eyelids open, my body shivering uncontrollably. The cold, hard surface beneath me was unfamiliar. As my vision cleared, I realized I was submerged in a bathtub filled with ice water, and it clung to my skin, numbing my senses and sending shivers down my spine.

I didn't even feel the cold water and ice because the heat of my body was overpowering. But why was I trembling? I didn't know if it was because of the cold or what was happening to me.

"How are you? Thank god that you're okay now."

I slowly turned to Ria, who was walking towards me. I could still hear voices outside the bathroom, which I think were Atlas and Oceanus. But I couldn't make out what they were talking about because my mind felt cloudy. I couldn't process what was happening right now.

"R-Ria," I called her name weakly.

She was wearing a lab coat and lowered her facemask when she got closer to me in the bathtub. She sat down on the edge and gave me a faint smile.

"Oceanus called me to take care of you as soon as you got home," she told me.

I lowered my gaze unconsciously and hugged myself when I realized I was completely naked in front of her. But it seemed pointless because they had probably seen me like this for a while now.

I tried to get up, and Ria immediately helped me until I could stand. She helped me put on a black bathrobe that was hanging on the side and sat back down beside me.

"She's still sleeping—"

Ria and I both looked up when Atlas and Oceanus suddenly entered. They were both wearing white polo long sleeves that were rolled up to their elbows.

"I'm sorry," I apologized quickly as they fully entered the room. "I couldn't complete the task you assigned me, Atlas. I promise to make it up to you next time."

I hugged myself as I felt my body still trembling. The intense heat was subsiding, and I was slowly starting to feel the cold. The coldness was slowly spreading throughout my body, as if the air conditioner was set to its maximum coldness. The bathroom heater was on, But I was still freezing. I could feel my muscles trembling

"It's okay, Sarah," Oceanus interjected. "The important thing is that you're okay now. It seems like you were caught off guard by what Atlas did."

"Yeah... I think so? I don't know what you mixed in there, but it felt really weird. What did you put in the drinks the waiters were serving?" I asked, frowning.

"Sex drugs," Atlas replied curtly, arms crossed in front of him.

I swallowed hard, unable to believe his answer. Could that be why my body reacted so strongly when I tried to kill Amadeus? My memory of what happened in the security room was hazy, but I clearly remembered hearing him say my name.

He knew my real name, but why? How did he find out my real name? I knew nothing about Amadeus Alejandro Zevallos beyond his surname, which was the same as my best friend's.

It was possible that my suspicion was correct—that their family was involved in shady dealings. But I couldn't bring myself to ask him if he knew Rafael, afraid of confirming my suspicions. Still, there was a chance... a big chance.

My mind was racing. Amadeus' profile in the organization only mentioned his work, under the codename Helios.

"Sarah..."

I blushed furiously when I heard his voice in my head. Was I going crazy? Why was my body reacting this way to the sound of his voice after only meeting him once?

I gently slapped my cheeks and unconsciously touched my lips, remembering our passionate kiss in the security room. The planned assassination had turned into something entirely different—both of us had been drugged.

"If we both lost consciousness, does that mean... something might have happened between us?" I whispered to myself.

I wanted to dive headfirst into the ice-filled bathtub out of sheer embarrassment.

"That's why I told you not to drink the cocktail," Atlas said abruptly.

I looked up at him. "Sorry. I panicked and took a drink. It won't happen again, Atlas. I promise."

He nodded and excused himself, saying he had something else to do. We were left alone in the bathroom.

"Why did he do that?" I asked Oceanus, turning to Ria as well. "Why did he put sex drugs in the drinks?"

Oceanus scratched the back of his neck and looked at Ria, as if asking her to answer. I looked back and forth between them, waiting for an explanation.

"Atlas just wanted to try the sex drugs he made on other people," Ria admitted hesitantly.

My jaw dropped. Was he crazy? I had no idea my boss was capable of something so twisted.

"It seems the outcome was good, and he plans to sell it to his dealers for distribution to other countries," Ria added.

"Sometimes that's just how Atlas is, and we've gotten used to it," Oceanus interjected. "It would be better if he tried it on himself first to see if the sex drugs that he made are good or not, so he wouldn't always be so irritable."

I furrowed my brow. "Huh?"

"Do you know that I can hear you, Oceanus?" Both Oceanus and Ria jumped when we heard Atlas's voice from outside the bathroom. I thought he had already left my room, but apparently not. "Come here."

I looked at him as he peeked through the open door, a phone pressed to his left ear.

"Atlas! It was a joke," Oceanus laughed nervously and said goodbye to Ria and me. "I'll go ahead."

But before he could completely leave, he ran towards us with a big grin on his face, as if trying to stifle his laughter, which made me frown even more.

"That's what happens when there's no one to have sex with. That's why Atlas is so grumpy. He hasn't been able to hook up with anyone for more than years—"

"Nikolai Vaughnn Sergeev. If I catch you talking about me behind my back again, you won't like what I'll do to you."

Our eyes widened, and I pushed Oceanus so hard I almost knocked him over when I heard Atlas call out Oceanus's full name. He quickly left the bathroom.

"Bye!"

"Bye..." Ria and I replied weakly in unison.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

A week later... at Mexico

"Why can't I come?" I asked Atlas, furrowing my brow.

I had just finished working out in his basement gym. Sweat was dripping down my face, and I was wiping it away with a towel. Atlas and Oceanus had joined me for a workout, which had motivated me to push myself harder. I had even sparred with Oceanus before he left to take care of something in his room.

He shook his head. "I'll go alone, and you don't need to accompany me. You need to prepare for what I'm going to do for you."

"What are you going to do to me?" I stood up, draped the towel over my shoulder, and approached him.

"It's time for your major plastic surgery," he replied, stepping down from the pull-up bar. "Is that what you want, right?"

It took a few moments for his words to sink in. My dream was finally going to come true. My face is going to change very soon!

"Really?" I asked, almost disbelieving.

"Yes," he nodded and began wiping sweat from his body in front of me.

I followed him as he walked towards the stairs. We walked together, side by side, so I could shower and rinse off the sweat.

"Don't worry about the exclusive auction I'm going to attend," he said. "I'll just take a bath, and we'll talk about your plastic surgery later."

I turned to him one last time before opening the door to my room. "Okay."

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

"I told you that your new name would be Valentina Imara Meadows, didn't I?" Atlas asked me.

It was late at night, and we were in the living room, continuing our conversation from earlier. Oceanus was with Ismael, checking the crates of drugs they had received. Aside from wanting to discuss my upcoming plastic surgery, Atlas seemed to still be upset with Oceanus for what he had said.

"Yes."

"Before you proceed with your plastic surgery in a few days, you're going to meet your new family," he said, taking a paper out of a white folder and reading it before handing it to me.

Meadows family.

The paper outlined the background of the Meadows family. I had thought Atlas had simply made up my new name, but it turned out he hadn't. According to the information, their daughter had died when she was only 18 years old, and the parents still hadn't fully recovered for their daughter's death. Now, I would be replacing their deceased daughter as Valentina Imara Meadows, and no longer Sarah Dayanghirang.

I discreetly glanced at Atlas, who was now absorbed in what he was reading. I carefully folded the paper and smiled.

I'm going to be beautiful.

We're going to be beautiful, Sarah. We're going to be very beautiful, and no one will ever say that we're ugly.

SHANGPU