Stumble
“Contact Elice. Ask her what she needs. And send a maid there. If there’s anything wrong with Garrett and Elice, inform me immediately.”
As the sun reappeared on the eastern horizon, Daphne quickly summoned her butler. She gave him several instructions. To make sure that Garrett and Elice would have everything they needed while in the hospital.
“I don’t want Elice’s health to deteriorate due to lack of food or exhaustion. Make sure you provide everything.”
Yocelyn nodded. “Yes, madam.”
“And remember. Don’t let her lack for anything,” Daphne said, looking at Yocelyn. “I don’t want to hear complaints from either of them. You better not make mistakes like the other day if you want to stay here.”
That was about Yocelyn’s carelessness in accepting the new maid. It might seem trivial, but not in Daphne’s eyes. In fact, she remembered it until now.
“Yes, Madam.”
Yocelyn nodded with a seemingly bowed face, feeling her face stiff and hot. She felt embarrassed by the reprimand, as a pair of eyes witnessed the incident.
After Yocelyn left Daphne’s room, Regina immediately approached her. She gave her a glass of water and some pills. Daphne took her medicine and then took a long breath.
“I’m going to check your blood pressure first, madam.”
Regina grabbed her medical equipment. She pulled out the blood pressure monitor and Daphne immediately held out her hand. As Regina began to examine her, she took a deep breath. She tried to calm down.
“How is it?” Daphne asked after Regina took the blood pressure monitor out of her hand.
Regina smiled as she put away her medical equipment. “Everything is fine, madam.”
“Oh, thank God,” Daphne sighed in relief. “I can’t afford to be sick right now. Garrett needs me.”
There was a knock. Regina opened the door and ushered Carolus in while apologizing to Daphne. She left the room. Leaving Daphne and Carolus.
“Did you see Garrett’s condition?”
Carolus nodded. “I didn’t think Mrs. Farrah would do such a thing.”
“What is she incapable of?” Daphne asked sarcastically. “She’s ruthless to her own father and siblings, let alone a nephew.”
Carolus was silent for a moment. He could see the anger on Daphne’s face.
“What shall I do, madam?”
Daphne thought. Her fingers squeezed repeatedly. A look of indecision on her face.
“First of all, you need to take care of Garrett and Elice as best you can. Don’t let anyone visit them. And shut down all media. I don’t want this news to get out.”
Carolus noted all this in his mind. To make sure he didn’t neglect anything.
“And one more thing.”
Carolus waited for further instructions.
“Arrange a flight for me in a week.”
Guessing in his mind, Carolus asked. “To Crestdale, madam?”
Daphne nodded. “I must meet the child,” she replied. “But later. After I make sure Garrett is fully recovered.”
If she wanted to follow her feelings, Daphne would fly to Crestdale right now to confront Farrah, her daughter. But her concern for Garrett’s condition overwhelmed her anger. Now there was nothing she cared about more than Garrett.
“All right, madam.”
Meanwhile, outside Daphne’s room, Regina was returning to her room to return her medical equipment when she found Yocelyn blocking her path. The young girl smiled politely at Yocelyn and asked, “Is everything all right, ma’am?”
Yocelyn seemed hesitant, approaching Regina with slow steps that made the girl’s brow furrow.
“About earlier…” Yocelyn said quietly. “… don’t discuss it with the other maids.”
Regina didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, whatever happened in Madam’s room earlier, don’t let it reach the ears of the other maids. If anyone talks about my shortcomings behind my back… then I can assure you that you’ll be the one spreading the gossip.”
Regina blinked. It seemed that she was beginning to understand Yocelyn’s meaning. It was surely related to Daphne’s rebuke of Yocelyn.
“I won’t say anything to the other maids,” Regina said. “Ma’am, I won’t–”
Not feeling the need to listen to Regina’s words to the end, Yocelyn left immediately. She left Regina to take a deep breath and close her eyes for a moment. When she exhaled and opened her eyes, she said in her heart.
A beautiful house and a generous salary. But commensurate with the pressure.
*
A powerful blow struck the large table with such force that it made a loud noise, causing Ruben to close his eyes. Although he had expected Ariel to be angry, he hadn’t expected his emotions to explode so intensely.
“Failed?” Ariel asked, her breath heavy. “What do you mean, failed, Ruben?”
Ruben sighed. With his head bowed, he replied, “Mr. Garrett survived, sir. And right now, he’s being treated at the Royal Heights Medical Center.”
“You must be joking!”
Shouting again, Ariel quickly grabbed his phone. He aimed it at the news sites. But of all the pages he opened, not a single headline mentioned Garrett’s name.
Sure, if Garrett had met an unfortunate fate, it would be a hot topic in every media outlet. But far from being the main news, Ariel couldn’t find even a passing mention.
Ariel stood up. He pounded the table with both hands again. His breathing became more chaotic. Panting with anger that he didn’t know where to direct it.
Was it Garrett, who didn’t live up to his expectations of being dead? At Ruben, who had failed to carry out his plan? Or at what?
“I’m sorry, sir. But our plan would have succeeded if it wasn’t for the intervention…”
“Silence!”
Ariel’s scream echoed loudly, his hand raised and pointing at Ruben, his anger palpable.
“I don’t care if Garrett got help or if there were even police there,” Ariel shook her head. “I don’t care. I only care about one thing. And do you know what that is?”
Ruben nodded. “I know, sir.”
Ariel stepped closer to Ruben and pointed right in his face, emphasizing his words.
“I just want Garrett dead.”
Ariel’s breath sounded harsh. His hand slammed down on the table and his face was sweaty.
“And you wasted our only chance, Ruben. For what? Because I guarantee you, after this, Nana will protect Garrett. We won’t have another chance to hurt him.”
Ariel was sure of that. After this incident, Daphne would undoubtedly take various measures to ensure Garrett’s safety.
“I’ll come up with another plan, sir. I promise I’ll make up for my mistake. I’ll make sure the plan to get rid of Mr. Garrett runs smoothly this time.”
Harshly, Ariel rubbed his sweaty face.
“Do everything you can. If necessary, destroying the entire family is no problem!”
“Understood, sir,” Ruben said. “I will do it.”
Ariel immediately put the failure out of his mind. Now something else occupied his thoughts.
“How is Elice?”
Ruben blinked once. He seemed unprepared for the question.
“She seems to be fine, sir.”
Ariel wasn’t convinced by Ruben’s answer. He thought for a moment before slowly shaking his head.
“She’s definitely not fine,” Ariel said as he stood up and grabbed his jacket. “She must be very upset right now. I need to comfort her.”
“Do you want to leave, sir?”
“Of course I have to go. This is a great opportunity for me to win back Elice’s heart. She needs to know that I’m still looking out for her.”
Having said that, Ariel immediately left his office with one purpose in mind: to find Elice.
Driving his car, Ariel was confident in his decision to go to the hospital where Garrett was being treated. Given Garrett’s condition as a result of the attack, Elice would surely be by her husband’s side.
Ariel got out of his car as soon as it was perfectly parked in the lot. Without wasting any time, he hurried to the reception desk to inquire about Garrett’s room.
“Sorry, sir. There’s no patient named Garrett.”
Ariel frowned and looked at the receptionist in confusion. “His name is Garrett Alexander Morales.”
The receptionist checked and shook her head. “I checked, sir. But there is no patient named Garrett Alexander Morales.”
Ariel walked away frustrated. He knew he should have asked Ruben first before leaving. But he was so hasty because Elice was the only thing on his mind.
Moving to a quieter place, Ariel called Ruben. The answer from his personal assistant was unsatisfactory.
“I don’t know, sir. When Mr. Garrett was taken to the hospital, Mrs. Daphne’s people immediately took control of the place. My people couldn’t get in.”
Ariel ended the call angrily. As he imagined the sweet words he would say to Elice, reality presented him with an unwanted situation.
Pacing back and forth for a few moments, Ariel tried to think of a way to find Elice. But after several minutes passed without an idea coming to mind, he gave up. He turned to his last option: sending a message to Elice.
Ariel:
How are you, Elice?
I hope you’re well.
If you need anything, you can contact me.
Ariel didn’t expect Elice to answer his message. But at least he wanted her to know that he still cared about her. He was still watching over her.
Shortly after, Ariel realized that there was no point in staying. He decided to leave.
Later. There would come a time when Elice would need him.Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.
As Ariel finally left the hospital building, someone stepped out of the shadows behind him. Someone Ariel hadn’t noticed had been watching his every move.
It was Abert. He and his colleagues were on rotating security duty. While two of his colleagues guarded Garrett’s room and another guarded Dariel’s room, he watched the entrance and reception area. He made sure that no outsiders knew of Garrett’s presence there.
Abert called one of his colleagues to switch positions with him. Then he went to Garrett’s room and told him what had happened.
“Ariel?”
Abert nodded. “Yes, sir. But he didn’t stay long. He left as soon as he didn’t know where you were being treated.”
Garrett just nodded. Meanwhile, Elice, who was sitting next to Garrett, furrowed her brow. She seemed puzzled by the visit. And when the husband and wife’s eyes met, it seemed they both realized the same thing.
How did Ariel know Garrett was being treated here?
*