To avoid future misunderstandings, the three of us carried out the assessment together and had to achieve consensus on every single inspection detail. As such, we were all tuckered out by noon and were resting in a visitors’ room outside the base.
It was about noontime and everyone decided to break for lunch. I was feeling all drained out from sleep deprivation and walking all morning.
“Let’s take a break and have something to eat,” Marcus’ voice rang from in front of me. I lifted my head to see him dressed in a black suit while holding a white takeout container.
“It’s your favorite chicken casserole,” he said while holding out the container.
I let out a slight smile. “Thank you, Mr. White. You’re right on time.” I took over the food and started devouring my lunch.
Marcus found a seat next to me and sat down quietly while I munched on my lunch. He waited till I was almost done with my food before he spoke slowly. “We’ve covered pretty much all of the important aspects this morning. Why don’t you take time off this afternoon to get some rest? Sleep deprivation takes a heavy toll on your health.”
I sighed a little. “I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
He tilted his head in my direction. “Did you have a row with Anthony last night?”
I was hesitant for a brief moment before I swallowed my food and replied with a smile, “Just normal fighting like every other couple. We’ll be okay eventually.”
He pursed his lips. “What did you guys argue about?”
Finally finished my food, I looked at him with amusement. “What, are you a marriage counsellor now?”
He smiled softly while passing me a glass of water. “You should consider yourself lucky that I’m about to give out free advice today.”
I took a sip of water and replied, “We’re really okay. It’s just one of those trivial things all couples encounter. Oh yeah, the Harvest Festival is approaching. Are you going back to K City?”
He thought about it for a moment before replying, “Yeah, I will.”
I nodded and fell silent.
Even though the sun was blazing hot today after the downpour from last night, I still politely declined Marcus’ suggestion for me to take a nap at the hotel after lunch.
Nonetheless, I started to feel a dull pain in my abdomen and winced a little. Marcus noticed my discomfort and walked up to me. “Are you alright?”
Shaking my head, I put my hand over my lower belly. “Just a little twinge in the tummy. Might have been the food this morning.”
Marcus frowned as he stood up. “Come, I’ll bring you to the hospital for a quick check-up,” the man said while holding onto my arm.
I shook my head again, thinking that it might also be my menstruation since it was about that time of the month. Before I could reject, I noticed from the corner of my eyes that the frame of the sunshade awning above us was coming off.
After a few seconds, I finally realized what a perilous situation we were in. Before I could utter another word, Marcus was already one step ahead and was about to pull me away from where we stood.
However, before I managed to take another step, my stomach had a sudden cramp and I froze on the ground. Seeing that the awning was about to fall, I pushed Marcus away and yelled, “Go! Go without me!”
In the next split second, as though on reflex, Marcus took one big step toward me and used his body to shield me from behind. What happened next was me hearing a loud thump as the awning fell on top of us, followed by Marcus’ low grunt behind me.
Everything went dark at that moment. When I snapped back to reality after a few seconds, I realized we were both trapped under the big sunshade awning, hence the darkness.
Marcus was still holding onto me. I asked worriedly, “Marcus, are you okay?”
He replied weakly from behind me, “I’m okay. Don’t worry. I’m sure someone will come to our rescue soon. Are you hurt anywhere?”
I shook my head, but my body was trembling from the shock. Luckily, before long, I finally heard a commotion just outside where we were trapped.
Suddenly, I felt a warm stream of liquid slowly trickling down my back. Sensing that something was off, I asked in a shaky voice, “Marcus, are you okay? Where are you hurt?”
His voice was weak and shaky, and I could tell he was just trying to reassure me when he said he was okay.
I panicked and started yelling, “Help! We’re here!”
When I tried to check on Marcus again, he didn’t answer me. I grew more distressed as I could feel more warm liquid flowing down from his direction. “M-Marcus, are you okay? Don’t fall asleep, talk to me. Please, wake up! Help! Please hurry up!” I was already sobbing uncontrollably.
“Ms. Stanhope, we’re doing all we can right now. Don’t you worry,” a voice rang outside.
After a while, the workers finally managed to retrieve us from under the fallen overhang. As Leedon was about to help Marcus up, he was stunned for a few seconds when he saw the state Marcus was in before he fired away, “Quick, get our medical officers and call an ambulance!”
Upon hearing that, my eyes widened and I dared not move any muscle.
When the ambulance finally arrived, the medical staff carefully removed Marcus from above me and placed him on a stretcher. I was later helped up by Leedon, panting so heavily that I couldn’t utter a single word.
All I could do was stared at the pool of blood from where we were trapped earlier. My brain seemed to have stopped processing everything else that was happening around me.
I didn’t know how I had arrived at the hospital. The world seemed to pass me by in a blur as I stood outside the ER while doctors and nurses flitted in and out through the door. I had wanted to stop them to ask about Marcus, but my body wasn’t listening to my command.
In my stupefied state, I remembered someone trying to pull me aside, but to no avail as I simply stood frozen on the ground with my eyes fixated on the light above the ER door. I finally managed to breathe a sigh of relief when the light turned red.
A few minutes later, the ER door swung open and a doctor walked out. I approached her, wanting to ask for Marcus’ status. However, when I opened my mouth, I realized I couldn’t make any sound from my sore throat.
The doctor’s gaze shifted from my face to my body and she furrowed her brows. “Miss, are you injured?”
I shook my head and tried to muster all my energy to reply to her. “I’m… fine.” My words came out all muffled.
She looked behind me as she spoke, “I think you guys should get her checked out to make sure she’s okay.”
It wasn’t until then that I realized most of my light-colored top was covered in blood. No wonder the doctor asks me to get checked out.
I followed the doctor’s gaze and was surprised to see that it was Joseph she was speaking to. I had no idea when or for how long he had been here. He nodded at the doctor and turned to me. “Mrs. Featherstone, Mr. White’s condition has stabilized. We should get you checked out by a medical staff now.”
I nodded. The moment I relaxed, my vision went dark before I lost all consciousness.
When I came to, I was already lying on a hospital bed. A nurse was inserting an IV drip attached to my arm as she explained, “She passed out due to suddenly relaxing after a prolonged fight or flight response, causing the adrenaline rush to stop abruptly. To top things off, she is experiencing her menses at the moment, so her hormones are all over the place. She’ll be okay after some proper rest.”
I realized the nurse was not talking to me. I tilted my head and saw both Anthony and Joseph in black suits. The latter nodded after the nurse’s reminder and sent her off.
Anthony’s dark eyes fell on me for a brief moment and then slowly shifted away.
As I regained my full consciousness, my mind was once again flooded by images of Marcus in a pool of blood. Without thinking much about my row with Anthony from earlier, I asked, “How’s Marcus? Is he okay?”
Upon hearing my question, Anthony’s expression immediately turned sulky. His dark eyes fixed steadily on me as he spoke coldly. “So that’s all you care about.”
I frowned at his snarky remark, but still wanted my question answered. “Has he come out from the ER yet? Is someone looking after him?”
Instead of replying to my burning questions, Anthony continued to stare coldly at me. His gaze was filled with despair and a hint of sad irony. After which, he left the room without uttering another word.
Despite knowing he was upset, I had no choice but to check on Marcus myself. As I sat up from my bed and attempted to remove the IV drip from my arm, the door swung open.
Joseph walked in and saw what I was doing. He darted to my bedside and stopped me. “Mrs. Featherstone, the doctor just said that you have to rest. You can’t remove the drip.”
I furrowed my brows and asked, “Joseph, can you help me check on Marcus? I’m really worried about him. Is someone taking care of him?”
Joseph sighed helplessly and said, “Mrs. Featherstone, sometimes it baffles me how you manage to overlook all that Mr. Featherstone has done for you. Knowing that Mr. White has injured himself trying to protect you, do you not think Mr. Featherstone will take good care of him? After being told of your accident on site, he dropped everything and rushed to the hospital in the first instance. But he was met with his stunned wife being worried sick for another man, not responding to his calls when he tried to speak to you. When you passed out all of a sudden, Mr. Featherstone even fell into a full-blown panic mode that I’ve never witnessed before. Knowing you’ll be worried for Mr. White’s wellbeing, he has made sure that Mr. White receives the best care he can get in this hospital. Mr. Featherstone has even hired a personal nurse to look after Mr. White. And after all that he’s done for you, your first words after coming to were all about Mr. White. Don’t you think that’s a bit too cruel to him? After all, he is your husband, and despite the very little emotion he lets on, he does feel jealous and sad just like every other guy.”
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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