How?! Dennis was just fine when she arrived!
That was when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach.
“What’s wrong?” Finn asked.
Abigail continued to clutch at her stomach, her back arched from the pain. “Stomach ache… but it really hurts… But right now, you’re coming with me to the hospital. We need to find out what happened.”
“You were just there—”
“Can’t help it,” Abigail grunted even as her face turned pale. “Help me walk.”
“Okay,” Finn said, and he did as he was told.
As they left the building, Eagle hurried to them when he saw Abigail needed help walking. “Are you sick, ma’am?”
Abigail waved him off and said. “I’m fine. Probably just bad food. Get the car right now.”
“Where are we going?” Eagle asked.
“Back to the hospital,” Finn said, answering on Abigail’s behalf since she looked really sick.
Eagle quickly got the car without another question, while Finn helped Abigail into it.
As Eagle drove to the hospital, Finn asked in concern, “Are you alright?”
Abigail actually thought that her pain subsided since the initial pang. “Much better.”
Color was returning to her face as well.
Heaving a sigh of relief, Finn said, “You must be under a lot of pressure lately. Maybe you were too anxious when you saw Director Turner faint?”
Abigail ran the possibilities through her mind.
She did not eat anything cold or dirty, so it was not food.
Maybe it was as Finn put it—she was under too much pressure.
“Maybe!”
Her stomachache completely faded when they reached the hospital.
However, just as she alighted, James arrived and intercepted her, asking grimly, “What are you doing here?”
Abigail said, “I was going to check on Dennis Turner—”
“Don’t. He’s dead—you should leave, and stay away. It’s a mess over there.”
Abigail would have dropped to her knees if she was not holding on to the door.
Her voice quivering with disbelief, she asked, “H-He’s dead?”
“Yes,” James answered with assurance.
“What?! How?!” Abigail had a hard time accepting it.
“What’s happened has happened. We have to go—from here on, we must be careful.” James then assured her, “It’s not your fault either. Don’t dwell on it.”
As Abigail returned inside her car, James told Eagle to keep both eyes on her. “Don’t let her get out of the car. I’ll be right back once I’ve arranged something.”
It was always Eagle’s duty to protect Abigail. “You have nothing to worry about.”
James then directed his men to retrieve Ian and keep a constant eye on him. Then, he ran back to Abigail’s car, telling Eagle to drive Abigail home.
Along the way, he whipped out his phone to call Diarmuid since this incident might get blown out of proportion.
They had to resolve it as soon as possible!
However, Abigail suddenly put a hand on James’s arm. “Wait.”
As James looked at her in confusion, she said, “I need you to look for a person.”
“Who?” James asked.
“Ray Hall,” she said, having gradually calmed down to think. “He works at that hospital and would definitely know the result of Dennis’ most recent medical examination. I want to know how Dennis died —whether it’s due to the surgery or the artificial heart…”
James hesitated for a moment, and he then said, “Alright.”
…
It took almost an hour for James to bring Ray to Abigail.
The instant he saw her, she asked, “You know, don’t you?”
Abigail nodded, and gestured for Mrs. Watson to bring him a glass of water.
Before Abigail asked, Ray told her, “Dennis Turner was perfectly fine when I first examined him. Everything was good… So what killed him out of the blue?”
“Weren’t you there at the time?” Abigail asked.
Ray shook his head. “There were too many people in that ward—Dennis’s family, the journalists… I couldn’t even squeeze my way in.”
“What’s the cause of death?” Abigail then asked.
“Unknown at present,” Ray admitted. “His family—especially his son—is making a huge racket at the hospital as we speak!”
Abigail pursed her lips. “I understand. Right now, I need you to keep Dennis’s body isolated. I’ll get a reliable forensic doctor for the post-mortem.”
Ray was hesitant. “Isn’t that up to his family?”
Abigail, however, did not believe Neil would be agreeable—he would refuse a post-mortem.
She was the one who insisted on operating on Dennis, and the hospital even recorded a video of her stating as much to maintain their innocence.
As she was the one who assumed that responsibility, Neil would most definitely be after her!
That was why she must find out the cause of Dennis’s death.
She would assume responsibility if it really was the surgery.
But it was another thing entirely if it was not!
“Alright, I’ll go back to the hospital right now to keep an eye on the body,” Ray said, rising to his feet.
Abigail had her old chauffeur send him back while she sat on the living room couch, pondering.
The only forensic doctor she trusted and was good enough was Lulu Adams.
In fact, she would only be relieved if it were Lulu who examined the body.
After hesitating for a few seconds, she whipped out her phone and texted the number Lulu used before.
[I’d rather not disturb you, Lulu, but I’m in a spot of trouble. Only you can help me. Please reply when you see this text.]
Abigail put down her phone after sending the text and waited for a reply from Lulu.
She would peek at the screen from time to time, but there was nothing…
Even as she reclined against the couch, she wondered the possible causes of Dennis’s death.
Naturally, she could not come up with anything, and that only left her more frustrated!
Still, as she scratched her head…her phone jingled with a notification.
She quickly picked it up, and tapped on the screen to find a reply from Lulu: [How can I help?]
Abigail took a moment to consider her words: [Can you come back to Cloud City?]
There was another long pause before a reply came: [Do I have to go back to help you?]
Abigail replied: [Yes.]
Still, she became worried about troubling Lulu since she was married now.
And since Lulu wanted to start over, Abigail had even less reason to bother her.
[Actually, I was just joking. I missed you, that’s all.]
Lulu, however, doubted that. [I know you, woman. I’ll check if there’s a bus.]
Abigail pursed her lips and quickly typed. [Thank you.]
[Cut that out. There’s no need to get formal between us.]
Abigail stared at the screen and smiled.
It was good having friends.
Another text soon came. [Bought a ticket. Tonight, 8 PM.]
[Call me when you arrive. I’ll come to get you.]
[Sure.]
Click—
The door opened just then, and Abigail looked up to see Diarmuid entering, with Zachary Slate in tow.
Considering that she was still in touch with Lulu, Abigail turned off her phone and slipped it into her pocket, while staying calm as she greeted Zachary.
Diarmuid was scowling, having heard from James about Dennis’s death—which was also why he returned early.
As he sat on the couch, he stared at Abigail as he asked, “You know, don’t you?”
Abigail nodded slightly and said quietly, “He died out of the blue.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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