Pampered by My Secret Husband

Chapter 496: Chapter 499: Give me your hand, quick!

But tonight’s sandstorm had struck without warning. Any accident would disrupt all their plans.

Charlie River jolted upon hearing Thomas Shannon’s words. ”Young Master, you can’t!”

”Do as I say!”

Charlie River shook his head. ”Young Master, I can’t risk your safety!”

”Charlie River!” Thomas Shannon gripped Charlie River’s collar tightly with one hand, hoisting him up. His expression was dark as he roared, ”Do as I say! Don’t make me say it a third time.”

”Young Master!” Charlie River still wanted to stop his reckless plan, but seeing Thomas Shannon’s expression, he didn’t dare to speak further.

The raging wind swept around them, making it difficult for either of them to stand.

Charlie River pulled two items from his clothes and thrust them at Thomas Shannon. ”Young Master, be careful!”

Thomas Shannon nodded, struggling to keep his eyes open against the wind. ”You too.”

Sophie Sullivan, hiding in the tent, felt a sense of unease gradually spreading in her heart, though she couldn’t understand why. Gradually, she could no longer hear the voices of the man in black or Charlie River. Charlie River’s final cry of ”Young Master!” made her heart pound with fear.

Could something have happened to Thomas Shannon?

The tent was already straining, on the verge of being ripped away by the ferocious gale.

Sophie Sullivan steeled her resolve, gritted her teeth, and was about to rush outside when, at that very moment, Thomas Shannon’s figure appeared in the tent’s doorway.

He reached out a hand, his face etched with urgency. ”Give me your hand! Quick!”

His low growl had barely faded—Sophie Sullivan’s hand had just brushed his fingertips—when the tent began to shake violently.

”AHH—!”

Sophie screamed, instinctively shutting her eyes tightly. Her hand was gripped firmly, and in the next second, a powerful force yanked her forward. Her body crashed into a hard chest.

With a savage howl, the wind tore the tent from the ground, sending it tumbling and rolling across the sand dunes into the distance.

Sophie felt a violent force strike her, followed immediately by a wave of dizziness that sent the world spinning. They tumbled to the ground, Thomas Shannon holding her tightly as their bodies rolled relentlessly down the sand dune. Sharp sand and stones scraped agonizingly against her back. Her head spun, and her stomach churned. Sand was everywhere—on her body, in her hair, in her ears... Her entire body ached, and amidst the relentless tumbling, she lost consciousness.

「Day broke, and the dark sandstorm had finally passed.」

Sophie Sullivan felt a sharp pain on her face and slowly opened her eyes. In the dim light, she could clearly see the man in front of her.

”...Thomas Shannon.”

Thomas Shannon looked somewhat disheveled, his handsome face smudged with dust. Holding her shoulders, he helped her sit up and lean against him. ”How do you feel? Are you hurt anywhere?”

The stinging pain in her back was exceptionally sharp. Sophie Sullivan tried to ignore it, but couldn’t. She frowned in pain.

Thomas Shannon’s brows furrowed deeply, his handsome face clouded with worry. ”What’s wrong? Where does it hurt?”

”My back... it hurts so much.”

Thomas Shannon gently had her lie prone in his lap and lifted the back of her shirt. Her fair skin was covered in a shocking array of bruises, large and small.

”You were scraped by rubble last night.” Thomas Shannon carefully lowered her clothes. ”Bear with it. They’re just bruises; they’ll heal in a few days.”

Sophie Sullivan lifted her eyelids, raised her head from his embrace, and looked around. Yellow sand filled the air, and as far as she could see, there were only sand dunes. Not a single person, not a single plant. A vast emptiness stretched between earth and sky, desolate and disquieting.

”Where are the others?” Sophie Sullivan asked, shocked, tightly gripping Thomas Shannon’s arm.