Chapter 22

Back at Celestial Gardens, Irene parked the car and then had to work hard to pull Sam out. Before this, Irene could easily climb up ten flights of stairs without breaking a sweat. Now that she was carrying a man who was taller and heavier than her, though, Irene's legs shook as she climbed. She felt like crying. It seemed like her stamina was still not good enough. After climbing seven floors in a row, Irene felt as if her chest was about to explode. She had to hold on to the railing to catch her breath. In the hot and stuffy stairwell, she felt like she was about to be cooked like a lobster. Paulette was holding onto Sam from the other side. She panted hard, her body going limp with exhaustion. After they rested for two minutes, Irene got ready to carry Sam up to the tenth floor in one fell swoop. However, someone pressed gently on her shoulder. Sam propped himself up with great difficulty, sweeping his sharp and vigilant gaze across the stairwell. He pressed his fingers on th