Storm stood outside the room waiting for Jade to call her but she didn't. Moments passed and Storm started feeling uneasy– her instincts told her to go in but she couldn't just barge in. Jade needed privacy and maybe she was still trying to make sense of the report or the whole ordeal. Thinking this way she tried to calm her nerves but it wasn't working.
She finally decided to eavesdrop just to make sure everything was ok. The room was silent…eerily silent. She shrugged it off only to hear the ring from her room to summon nurses. She instantly barged into the room sensing something wrong. The sight in front of her shocked her. She rushed to Jade's side panicking and saw her terrifying condition.
Storm had seen violence. She had seen bloodied bodies and broken bones but seeing Jade like this, shook her more than any battlefield.
Jade lay on the bed in half-sitting position, her complexion deathly pale, her expression twisted into one of utter pain, her body trembling with each moan leaving her slightly parted lips and her trembling hands near her ears. Storm's heart ached and her eyes brimmed with tears. She quickly composed herself and removed the report from the bed. Then, she placed Jade properly on the bed with trembling hands.
A few nurses came in but seeing Jade's condition, they immediately summoned the doctor. The doctor arrived a few minutes later and asked Storm to go out. Storm complied even though she didn't want to. She looked at Jade's trembling figure over her shoulder when the nurses closed the door. Steadying herself, she placed the report back in its safe place and immediately went to inform Caleb about Jade's condition.
Her boots clicked against the marble floor like a countdown, each step louder than the last. She pressed the elevator button and waited – each second stretching unbearably – until it finally opened. She rushed inside and pressed the button to the 1st floor. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest and her breathing uneven but she didn't care. Every moment inside the elevator felt like an eternity, as if time had slowed down. She waited for the elevator to open while holding her breath. As soon as it opened, she bolted out and ran towards Caleb who was talking to somebody on the phone.
She spoke while panting,"Sir – it's Jade, she is unconscious." Caleb tensed on hearing this and rushed to Jade's room with Storm following closely. "How did it happen?", he asked while walking. Storm hesitated, she couldn't tell him the whole truth. She gulped nervously and replied,"I don't know." Caleb didn't think much of it since he was concerned about Jade. As soon as they reached the room, Caleb asked the doctor,"How is she? What happened to her?"
The doctor replied,"She is stable now. Her brain went through a huge shock probably due to exposure to something. Since she was already weak, her body and brain, both could not handle it, leading the brain to collapse and shut down completely. Make sure she doesn't have any exposure to anything stressful at least for a few days. She will be discharged tomorrow. Tonight, we need to keep an eye on her condition."
She handed over a list of medicines to Caleb and after explaining about them, left. He gave the list to Storm, who left to fetch the medicines at once. He turned towards Jade and gently caressed her face, who was now laying on the bed, unconscious. "I won't let anything happen to you.You'll be ok, I promise." He whispered, kissing her forehead and sat on a stool beside the bed.
When Storm came, she quietly handed the medicines to Caleb. He kept them on the side table and dismissed her. He would be taking care of Jade now. She was the only blood-related relative he had left. He wondered what made her go through such a huge shock. He made sure she had no exposure to anything stressful. He pondered over it and decided to ask Storm about it, once Jade regained consciousness.
After a few hours, Jade felt something heavy over her hand. She slowly pried her eyes open only to close them immediately. The light was blinding, she took a moment to adjust to the lighting. Finally, looking around she saw her uncle sitting on a stool beside the bed with his head kept on her hand. He was sleeping.
She smiled softly looking at him, his dark brown hairs were messy as if he had run his hands through them multiple times, his facial features relaxed, with dark circles under his eyes showing his exhaustion and the fact that he hadn't slept properly for quite some time. She remembered how he used to carry her on his back after she'd fall asleep at family dinners. That same man now sat here, broken by everything they had lost. He must be stressed with everything going on and handling it alone. Her heart ached for him. When, all of a sudden, she remembered about the report.
Her smile froze on her face. It was as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water on her. He hid her father's post mortem report from her and she wanted to know why. She wanted to know who murdered him and what else he was hiding. There was only one person who could answer her questions, the one sleeping peacefully with his head on her hand. She wanted to wake him up and get the answers but decided against it. He was exhausted, all because of her.
She closed her eyes and let tears slip out of them quietly. Her world was falling apart yet…it didn't matter. She had to hold everything together and still go on. She couldn't believe that her father was murdered in his mansion which has top-notch security and the murder was even staged to look like an accident. She was sure that it was the work of an insider, she would have to find out who. Though, she couldn't erase the horrifying things she read in the post mortem report. It clouded her mind.
Her head throbbed painfully, when she felt a hand gently wiping her tears. She stilled for a moment, it was her uncle. She was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she didn't realize he had woken up, she didn't realize that her body was trembling and she didn't realize that her silent cries had turned into loud sobs long ago. She slowly opened her eyes and saw her uncle's concerned face looming over her.
That was it, she lost it. She hugged him tightly as if her life depended on it, her body racking with sobs. He held her close and started rubbing her back to soothe her. It only made her cry more and she didn't hold back this time. She needed to let it all out. Her chest heaved heavily, her breathing unsteady. Her heart clenched painfully in her chest, so much that she found it hard to breathe but she didn't stop. She kept on crying for an hour. Caleb was gently rubbing her back and whispering sweet nothings into her ear the whole time. He knew she needed this. His heart ached for her but he couldn't do anything about it. He was helpless and it pained him.
When she finally calmed down, he gave her a glass of water along with the medicines. She ate the medicine and greedily gulped down the water. Her throat was hoarse and her eyes puffy from crying for so long. She still sat in her uncle's embrace pondering over the report. She wanted answers and she was going to get them.
Tristen was watching everything unfold, he felt things he shouldn't have felt and it annoyed him. 'She was supposed to suffer… to see the monster her father was. I wanted her to hate him. To hate herself for being his blood. Yet… I don't feel happy about it. She doesn't seem like a killer's daughter but appearances lie. Still she looked so small, so broken and for a moment… I felt something. It pissed me off. Maybe...just maybe, she didn't deserve to suffer for his sins but… she will. Not because she should – but because I did.' He thought.
He was lost in thought when he watched her eyes gleam with determination while sitting in Caleb's embrace. Even broken, she looked ready to fight. He smirked coldly. 'Good. That'll make breaking her all the more satisfying.'