Chapter 54

Chapter 54
JULIAN’S POV
The sun was already creeping through the hospital windows when hereturned. He hadn’t gone home. He’d driven around the city until dawn, parking once in front of the river, watching the water move like something that refused to rest. He hadn’t slept. He hadn’t eaten. He’d only thought about what Katherine said and what Adele might now believe.
The hallway to Adele’s room felt longer than he remembered. Everything smelled of antiseptic and coffee. Nurses moved quietly, their shoes making soft squeaks on the polished floor. The whole place was too calm for the kind of storm he felt inside.
When he reached her door, he stopped for a second. Through the small window he could see her still asleep, her face half turned toward the light. The sight of her made his chest tighten in that familiar, painful way. She looked peaceful, but he knew better than to believe peace came that easily.
He pushed the door open gently. The sound barely disturbed the air. The machines hummed, steady and soft. A cup of water sat on the tray beside her bed. Someone had folded the blanket neatly to her waist. She looked small in the white sheets, her hair spilling around her shoulders like it had a mind of its own.
He took the chair beside her bed and sat down slowly. For a long time he didn’t move. He just watched her breathe. The rise and fall of her chest felt like proof that maybe everything hadn’t completely fallen apart yet.
He wanted to touch her hand but didn’t. He was afraid of waking her, afraid of the look she might give him when she opened her eyes. There were questions waiting behind those eyelids, questions Katherine had planted there and he didn’t know how to answer any of them.
He leaned back in the chair and rubbed his face with both hands. His body ached from the night. His eyes burned. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so completely drained.
He thought about calling the nurse just to ask how Adele had slept, but it felt pointless. He could see for himself that she was resting. The question he really wanted to ask was whether she had mentioned anything if she had seemed upset after Katherine left but that wasn’t something the nurses could tell him.
He kept seeing Katherine’s face in his mind, the way she’d smiled before walking out. It wasn’t an ordinary smile. It was the kind that said she’d already done what she came to do.
He didn’t even know exactly what he was afraid of. Maybe it wasn’t what she said but what Adele might imagine in the silence that followed. Imagination could be cruel when it mixed with doubt.
He looked back at Adele. The early light touched her hair, and something inside him softened. He remembered the first time he saw her, months ago, standing in the rain outside his office, completely unprepared for the world she was about to step into. She’d smiled at him that day, nervous and trying to be brave. He had thought then that he could protect her from everything.
Now he wasn’t sure he could protect her from himself.
The monitor beeped softly, pulling him back. He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He wanted to tell her everything the truth about that night, about why he hadn’t been able to face her but he also knew that the truth didn’t always fix things. Sometimes it just broke them differently.
A nurse came in quietly to check the drip. She gave him a polite smile. “You’re back early,” she said.
“I couldn’t stay away,” he replied. His voice trying to sound lively.
“She slept well,” the nurse said, adjusting something on the monitor. “You can stay, but try not to wake her yet.”
He nodded. The nurse left, and the room went quiet again.
He stood and walked to the window. The city below was waking up, cars moving, people rushing to work, the kind of normal life he hadn’t felt in days. He wished he could swap places with one of those strangers, just for a morning without weight.
Behind him, Adele stirred slightly. He turned immediately, but she didn’t wake. Her lips moved a little, maybe dreaming. He took a slow breath and went back to his chair.
He whispered, mostly to himself, “I’m sorry.”
It felt strange hearing his own voice after hours of silence. The words hung in the air for a second, then vanished.
He wanted to believe that if he sat here long enough, everything might fall back into place. That she’d wake up, see him, smile, and things would start over. But life never really started over. It only continued, carrying the cracks with it.
He thought about what she might say when she did wake up. Would she ask about Katherine? Would she look at him differently? Would she already know something she hadn’t known before?
His stomach turned at the thought. He pressed his elbows to his knees, clasping his hands together.
He remembered the night Katherine came to his house and drugged him and got him He hadn’t realized then how far she’d go. Now it was too late. Katherine didn’t just want his company or his money, she wanted it all. Control. She wanted to prove she could control him and make him abide by her wishes.
He looked at Adele again. She didn’t deserve to be part of that.
He reached out carefully this time, his fingers brushing hers. Her hand was warm. The contact made something twist inside him. It reminded him how real she was, how much he stood to lose.
For a long time he stayed like that, holding her hand lightly, half afraid she’d pull away even in her sleep.
He thought of the message she had sent the night before: You didn’t tell me Katherine came by. He hadn’t replied. He’d tried to think of the right words but none had felt honest enough. Everything he typed sounded like an excuse.
Now he wished he had at least told her the truth, that he didn’t know, that he would’ve stopped Katherine if he could. Maybe she would’ve believed him. Maybe not.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. The sound made him flinch. He pulled it out and saw his assistant’s name on the screen. He ignored the call. There was nothing at the office that mattered right now.
He set the phone face-down on the table and leaned back again.Time moved slowly. He stood and stretched, looking down at her one more time. “You’re going to be okay,” he whispered. He wasn’t sure if he was saying it to her or to himself.
He walked to the sink, poured a glass of water, and drank it slowly. The coldness woke him a little. When he turned back, Adele’s eyes went open, barely, but open.
He froze.
Her gaze found him immediately. There was a softness there, but also a distance he hadn’t seen before.
“Hey,” he said quietly.
She blinked once, her voice faint. “You’re here early.”
“Yeah,” he said, forcing a small smile. “Couldn’t sleep.”
She looked at him for a moment, like she was searching for something in his face. Then she nodded slightly and closed her eyes again.
Relief and fear hit him at the same time.
He sat back down. “Try to rest,” he said, even though she was already drifting off.
When her breathing steadied again, he let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.
He stayed there a while longer, just listening to the quiet. Part of him wanted to believe that maybe she hadn’t talked to Katherine for long, that maybe nothing had changed. But deep down he knew something had shifted. Even silence could build walls.
The morning light climbed higher, spilling across the sheets and the floor. Julian watched it move slowly toward his shoes.
He thought about the things he would have to say when she woke for real. He knew she deserved honesty, even if it broke what little trust they had left.
He rubbed his temples and whispered again, “I’ll fix this.”
But the words sounded small in the big, white room.
And for the first time, he wasn’t sure if he still believed he could fix it.