Chapter 208
“Billy’s asleep, let him stay that way, Henry continued, his voice softening. “I know you two can’t be separated, so why don’t you both spend the night
here?”
I felt my face harden with anger, and Henry quickly raised his hands in a placating gesture.
“That’s not what I meant,” he added hastily. “I meant you and Billy can stay here, and I’ll sleep in another villa or in a guest room. You can lock the door from the inside. You don’t have to worry about me.”
The usually articulate CEO was now rambling incoherently. Despite his jumbled delivery, I understood what he was offering.
Henry must have seen my indecision. ‘I’ll leave right now,” he promised, already backing toward the door. “You don’t have to worry about anything.”
Before I could respond, he was gone.
Once upon a time, this kind of consideration from Henry would have filled me with joy. Now, it was too little, too late.
I carried Billy back to his bed, then locked the door securely behind me.
After a quick shower, I slipped under the covers next to my son, drawing comfort from his steady breathing. As for where Henry had gone, I couldn’t care
less.
Henry drove aimlessly around the Harding estate. Just yesterday, James had delivered bombshell news: the driver who had nearly killed Sophia in that hit- and–run appeared to be connected to Isabella’s cousin’s friend. They were continuing to investigate to confirm whether Isabella was involved.
If Isabella truly was behind the attempt on Sophia’s life…
Henry didn’t even know how to process that possibility. The woman he had loved since childhood, his pure and perfect first love, had been full of deception toward him.
His phone rang insistently. The caller seemed determined, letting it ring and ring. By the fourteenth consecutive call, Henry’s patience snapped. He answered
with a roar.
w to call a doctor
“What the hell is wrong with you? If I’m not answering, it means I don’t want to talk! What part of that don’t you understand?”
“Mr. H–Harding,” a trembling female voice responded. “M–Miss Scott is, f–feeling unwell. She’s in a lot of p–pain. Could you p–please come?”
Henry vaguely recognized the voice as belonging to Nancy, Isabella’s overly attentive nurse with the shifty eyes and nervous mannerisms.
“If she’s sick, call a doctor!” he barked. “What good am I going to do? I’m not a physician!”
“She’s right there in the hospital! Is she too stupid to ask for medical help?” His voice grew progressively louder. “If she doesn’t ev when she’s ill, what’s the difference between her and an idiot?”
‘I’m warning you–don’t call me again, or you’ll regret it!” He ended the call with a violent jab at his screen.
Across town, Isabella sat beside Nancy, her ear pressed close to the phone’s speaker.
She had insisted on using speakerphone, wanting to hear Henry’s voice directly.
She had heard everything–every harsh word. Her ears rang with the force of his anger. This couldn’t be her Henry.
Her sweet, devoted Henry would never speak to her this way.
She stared at the now–silent phone for a full three minutes, unable to process what had just happened.
“Miss Scott, are you alright?” Nancy asked anxiously. ‘Are you feeling unwell? Should I call a doctor?“
Chapter 208
Isabella felt a sharp, twisting pain in her chest that made it difficult to breathe. She pressed her hand against her heart, weakly waving off Nancy 2 concern
with her other hand.
“Don’t bother,” she whispered. “What good would a doctor do? It just be the same old routine.*
She looked up at Nancy, her eyes filling with tears. “Nancy, Henry
love me anymore. I can’t bear it. My heart is literally breaking
After Nancy’s attempts to comfort her, Isabella gradually calmed dow mind.
She gazed out the window at the inky darkness, a dangerous idea taking shape in her
Richard had already retired for the night, but Catherine couldn’t sleep. The thought of having to beg Sophia to help Grace was eating at her, but her pride was a difficult thing to swallow.
As she lay there wrestling with her indecision, her phone lit with
up
another message from Grace: Mom, have you decided yet? I’m freezing to death in bere
The message pierced Catherine’s heart like a needle. After reading
emotion finally triumphed over pride.
She replied quickly: Wait a little longer. I’m going to find her right now.
It was just a matter of losing face, after all. What was that compared to her daughter’s suffering?
Catherine gently called Richard’s name, and when he didn’t respond, she carefully got out of bed. Wrapping herself in a knee–length down coat, she slipped out of the bedroom.
Catherine knew Sophia was staying at Maple Grove tonight.
If she missed this opportunity, who knew when she’d get another chance? She drove directly there.
After parking, she stormed toward the house, pausing at the bottom of the staircase to compose herself. She needed to project authority, to appear intimidating enough that Sophia wouldn’t simply dismiss her. Taking a deep breath, she marched up the stairs in her high heels, heading straight for the master bedroom.
“Sophia!” she shouted, pounding on the door. “I know you’re in there! Come out this instant!”
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