A Matter of Wife and Love
Chapter 261

Amelie was examining the marks on the ground when she sensed a shadow charging at her from behind. She instinctively darted to the side, falling to the ground. Before she knew what had happened, a shriek rang out from beside her.

"Aah!"

When she turned around, all she could see was someone falling off the cliff. So, she stared at the ridge for a while, dazed, before a realization hit her. Then, she jerked her head up, looking around for Jodie. Where's Jodie? Could she have fallen off the cliff?

Boom! Suddenly, her face contorted in terror as a loud boom resounded in her thoughts. She instinctively peered over the cliff's edge in search of Jodie.

She looked down the cliff and saw a collection of trampled, withering plants. They all exhibited signs of impact marks, but she couldn't see through to assess Jodie's condition. Nonetheless, Amelie didn't give any thought to pausing before leaping to her feet and sliding down the slope until she reached the bottom of the ravine. After making a few wrong turns, she eventually located the pond Jodie had fallen into.

As Jodie fell, the forest's vines caught her and cushioned her fall, so she didn't go straight into the pond. Still, with the vines around her waist, her head was submerged. She could not raise her head, so she had no choice but to continually struggle, which made both her and the vines sway and jiggle. Moreover, she would drown if left in that position.

Meanwhile, Amelie was horrified when she saw that.

Jodie, on the other hand, was suffering horribly. It's unfair that I have to go through this when I only want to push that woman off the edge. The vines had entangled her from head to toe, and she had no way of freeing herself. Her entire body was sending out waves of fear and pain while her head was submerged, and all she could do was scream for help. Before she could say anything, her mouth was filled with ice- cold mountain water.

She coughed and choked to get the water out of her mouth, but she couldn't, so it came out her nose instead. Soon, she felt her lungs expanding to their breaking point as the pressure on them increased, and she struggled to catch her breath. As a sheltered kid raised in luxury, she had never encountered such a situation. At that point, she was afraid and could only flail helplessly in the water.

Standing in the narrow space nearby, Amelie could tell the danger Jodie was in within a few seconds. Jodie was hanging over a deep pond with blue waters that glistened in the cold light below, but Amelie could not see to the bottom of the pond. With a single glance, she felt chills run down her spine.

Still, she took a deep breath and plunged into the water. As soon as she entered the water, the chilling temperature engulfed every cell in her body. The temperature of the water was considerably lower than she had anticipated.

Within seconds of entering the water, Amelie felt the chill permeating every part of her body. Her entire body felt as if it were being pricked by a thousand tiny needles, and every square inch of her skin ached. Since every stroke required extra effort, she struggled to get through it. Nevertheless, she managed to swim over to Jodie and got her head above water.

Then, Jodie began coughing violently when her head was lifted, causing her to spit out mouthfuls of water.

Amelie was about to instruct her on what to do next when Jodie suddenly burst into tears. As she struggled, she sobbed, "It hurts! I want out! I want to get out of here now! I don't want to spend another second here."

She then wrapped her arms around Amelie's shoulders, trying her best to use Amelie to raise herself higher and away from the water. Soon, Amelie's weight had dramatically increased.

Amelie was already struggling due to the severe cold of the water, but Jodie's actions didn't help. Eventually, Amelie's entire body sank, and the water rose above her chin and mouth. If this continues, we will both drown. Then, Amelie screamed and shouted to snap Jodie back to her senses.

Nonetheless, Jodie had lost all rationality and could not comprehend anything she heard.

As Amelie sank lower and lower, Jodie's anxiety grew, and her grip on Amelie's throat tightened until she was effectively strangling and choking her.

Amelie's lungs felt increasingly suffocated with each passing minute, her head became heavier, and her strength dwindled. Even though she was weak from suffocation, her survival instincts kicked in, and she slammed a fist into the back of Jodie's neck. With Jodie out cold, her hand dropped from Amelie's, and she lay there motionless.

After a few deep breaths, Amelie realized she could not swim out of the pond while dragging an unconscious Jodie behind her. Then, she reached over and grabbed a nearby rope, made a loop with it, and placed Jodie's head in the sling. Later, Amelie tied the rope around Jodie's waist, securing it to the tangled mass of vines so that Jodie's head would not sink back into the water. Following that, she swam back to the shore and stumbled along the path for help.

Before she could get very far down the path, she came upon Fabian supporting a hobbling Fiona.

As soon as he learned that Jodie had been hurt, he promptly set Fiona down and grabbed a few twigs to cushion a spot on the floor before assisting her over to it. "Wait for me here. I'll be back soon." Standing beside them, Amelie saw that his hand was bleeding. While Fabian did not come from a wealthy background, he did have silky skin as an actor. There were scratches over his hands from working so quickly to bend those twigs.

Meanwhile, Fiona noticed it as well, and pain flashed through her eyes, but she turned away. "Hurry. Don't let anything happen to Miss Alston."

"Okay." Before he followed Amelie off the cliff, he shot Fiona one last look.

They heard a loud wail from below shortly after reaching the cliff's edge. Amelie's heart raced when she realized Jodie was awake, and she sped up her pace out of concern that Jodie would struggle too hard and drown herself again.

When she reached the pond's edge, she realized Jodie was no longer suspended above it. With a sinking feeling, she hurriedly entered the water.

Jodie was a delicate woman born and raised in luxury. After being hung there for so long, she might be hurt after falling into the water due to exhaustion.

There was nothing to be seen but the eerie green water, and Amelie's heart skipped a beat at the sight of the ripples dancing across the surface. There was no time to think as she immediately dived into the

water.

A hand shot out and stopped her. "Miss Alston isn't here. She's over there!"

From behind her, Fabian pointed to the shore across the pond.

She looked up to replace Jodie sobbing hard while sitting on a boulder on the shore. Sitting next to her, although at a distance, was Leo.

Jodie had her arms wrapped tightly around her brother while he gently patted her back. The two of them were completely soaked. Evidently, he had jumped into the water to save her.

Meanwhile, Blake was standing behind the two of them with pursed lips. Worry tinged his handsome face. His hair stuck to his skin as the water rolled down his cheeks. His clothes were similarly soaked. Then, Amelie and Fabian walked over to the trio.

"Are you okay, Miss Alston?" Fabian politely asked.

When Jodie heard his voice, she looked up.

The moment she laid eyes on Amelie, she pointed an accusing finger in her direction. "Leo, it's him. What you see before you are the wicked woman who shoved me off the cliff and nearly drowned me."