The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Listening to the silence on the other end of the phone, Brandon's handsface grew colder by the second.

"Go check out the power room and see what's up with the blackout," Brandon said, not missing a beat.

"Got it," Kent murmured, motioning for the security guy who had tagged along to head towards the power room with him.

Meanwhile, Brandon picked up the pace, hurrying to the construction site.

Construction Site

The sudden lights-out threw the well-organized division of labor into a bit of chaos, and the crew, who had been hard at work,

erupted into a frenzy of panic and questions.

"What's going on?"

"What happened?"

"Did we lose power?"

Voices asking questions overlapped with the mechanical hum of machinery.

Sophia also glanced around, but the sudden plunge into darkness meant her eyes couldn't adjust fast enough. Plus, it was dark as

the inside of a cow outside, with the rain coming down, and she couldn't see a thing.

But the concrete mixer, which relied on external electricity, was still chugging along, and she could vaguely make out the delivery

pipe raised high, aiming straight for the column's pouring spot.

Sophia wasn't sure if the blackout was a fluke or something else. Instinctively, she tightened her grip on Nell's arm next to her and

called out into the darkness to Tomas, "What's happening?"

"Maybe scircuit fried." Tomas shouted back, edging into the crowd, "I'll have someone check the wiring. Everybody hold off on

your work for now and stay safe."

Daniel, in a rush, lit up his phone to check the time; seeing the auspicious moment slipping away, he dashed into the rain, barking

orders at everyone, "Those not involved, take a break where you are. Concrete mixer operators, keep at it..."

He was in a hurry, and moving fast, his body still not fully recovered, and before he knew it, he tripped over something, staggering

forward, nearly taking a nosedive.

Sophia, right beside him, was pulling out her phone to turn on the flashlight. Before she could light it up, she saw Daniel take a

tumble out of the corner of her eye, about to hit the ground hard. On instinct, she reached out and stabilized him by the arm,

preventing a full-on faceplant.

At the smoment, Sophia felt Nell, whom she was still holding onto, lurch violently as if someone had rammed into him from

the shadows, sending him reeling towards the railing.

The faint glow from Daniel's phone screen revealed the concrete delivery pump with its pipe raised high, and the concrete flowing

rapidly into the column mold.

Nell was skinny and fragile-looking. When he hit the railing, his upper body almost flipped over it, and he was about to tumble

down.

Sophia's face changed instantly; she let go of Daniel and reached out with both hands to grab Nell. Daniel, suddenly released,

stumbled to the side, and his phone clattered to the ground.

Darkness enveloped them once again. Daniel, whose eyes had slowly adjusted to the dark, vaguely saw Sophia desperately and

powerfully pulling the slim worker back, while she herself was being pushed towards the railing by the chaotic crowd.

"Watch out!"

Daniel couldn't help but yell, stretching out his hand to grab Sophia, but before he could reach her, his view was blocked by

someone rushing past. Through the dim vision, he saw Sophia's slender figure tilt backward towards the rapidly flowing river; right

behind her was the delivery pump still pouring concrete into the river mold at high speed.

Daniel's face went white.

Sophia faintly felt a harsh blow, her whole body's weight focused on pulling Nell back, and when the brutal force from the darkness

hit her, she lost her balance and was sent flying towards the iron railing. Frantically, she pushed Nell, who she had managed to pull

back, and instinctively reached out to grab something to stabilize herself, but the force was too strong, and before her hand could

catch hold of anything, she was shoved hard once more. She didn't even have tto scream for help before her body tipped

backward into thin air.

A "splash" of something heavy hitting the water echoed in the silent night, clear and loud. Daniel, watching Sophia fall, turned

pale, and with all the force he could muster, he yelled towards the concrete mixer operator's booth, "Stop the work! Stop it right

now!"

But the sound of the rain and the machinery swallowed most of his cries, and the operator, focused on the task, didn't hear his

command. The concrete continued to pour into the mold like a waterfall.

People farther away didn't know what had happened; the site was too chaotic and dark, but they vaguely sensed the tense

atmosphere and looked over, confused.

Those closer realized something had gone wrong, and urgent cries came, "Stop the work, someone's fallen in!" The sounds echoed

through the night.

Brandon had just arrived at the steps when the words "someone's fallen in" hit him like a ton of bricks, taking his breath away. He

took two steps at a time, rushing forward.

The scene was chaotic and frantic. Under the dim light, people crowded at the railing, craning their necks to peer into the pitch-

black water.

But without the searchlights, the water surface was pitch black, and there were no signs of splashing or cries for help.

"Stop the work already; someone's fallen in!" The urgent calls continued.

"What the hell happened?" Brandon roared.

Daniel recognized Brandon's voice, turned his head towards him, and with a trembling voice said, "Sophia, Sophia fell in. | don't

know if she fell into the column being poured; | can't hear any calls for help."

Brandon's mind went blank for a moment, as if his breathing had stopped.

"Brandon," Daniel called out to him urgently and pushed him hard. It was like a jolt to Brandon's system.

"Stop the work! Rescue mission, now!"

He yelled fiercely, his hands gripping and vaulting over the railing. Before the crowd could react, a shadow flashed by, and Brandon

had leaped into the river.

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