Hurrying to her car, Harper picked up her keys and put on a hoodie. She was out the door of her apartment in no time. She hated Alex for being a lousy and incompetent CEO, but she’d never wish ill upon him. They might have argued, and he might have gotten on her nerves, but she had and would never, in a million years, wish for him to be hurt in any way.
Starting the engine to her car, Harper began to panic and was perplexed about what help she could provide for Alex. His family was the freaking head of a freaking multi-billion dollar conglomerate. Indeed, they could afford the best doctors and pay for the best care in the whole world. So what could she possibly do to help?
Pulling out of her neighborhood and onto the main road, she put her foot on the throttle, going a little over the limit but not too fast and too furious that she would get pulled over. No, she wasn’t on that level yet. She glanced at the address that Lucas had sent her; the confusion in her mind just kept growing.
If Alex was severely hurt, why would they bring him to the most remote place in all of Washington?
It was already past five in the morning when Harper arrived at the address, although it took her another half an hour to locate and spot the unbelievably secluded cottage that was nestled in a lush forest rich with green ferns, heavy foliage, and surrounded by thick and tall trees in every direction, as though it were trying to hide. It had gotten colder, too, although the sun was going to show up soon.
She pulled her jacket tighter around her. And as she walked closer on a narrow dirt path with small pebbles, she noticed that the cottage was made of dark red bricks that looked like it was built to a high-quality standard and sat on an open plot of land with a manicured lawn. When she reached the porch, her body was now aching for anything warm. Hot chocolate milk in her hand and a fireplace in front of her would be perfect. But she quickly brushed off the comforting image, for she was there to check on Alex.
She knocked twice, and when she was about to knock again, the heavy door cracked open and a younger woman, actually younger than her, greeted her with a warm smile.
“Are you Ms. Harper Fritz?”
Harper nodded and returned the smile.
“I’m Libby. Come on in.” She opened the door wider for Harper.
“Nice to meet you, Libby,” Harper greeted and quickly walked in, rubbing her bare hands together. By now, she was already freezing.
“Cold morning, huh?”
She nodded. “Very.” She looked around. The place looked well-maintained and was equipped with everything one would need to live luxuriously for months. Or years. Her heart skipped a beat as soon as she saw the wood fireplace. She then wondered if they also had a fully working hot and cold shower. The place looked like it was built for overly privileged people like Alex, so it must have at least a couple.
“This way,” Libby ushered Harper through a quiet corridor, interrupting her random thoughts. She quickly followed. Their shoes were tapping against the wooden floors.
The cottage was larger than Harper actually thought. But the sun had not shown up yet, so she couldn’t really see just how large the cabin from the outside was.
Her eyes narrowed, and she tried to calm her racing heart as she tried to follow Libby up the stairs and through another corridor.
“Just wait here.” Libby pointed at a white and gold Victorian sofa when they finally stopped. “Dr. Miller is in that room with Master Alex.” She pointed at the mahogany door at the end of the corridor.
Harper’s brows immediately furrowed. “Master Alex?” She slowly sat on the sofa.
Libby smiled and nodded. “Don’t worry. Dr. Miller is one of the best in the country.” She sat next to Harper. “Master Alex will be okay.”
Harper looked over at her and nodded. "Do you know what exactly happened to him?"
“And ambushed. I must say, what happened to him was very brutal. He was never extra nice to me, but I don’t think he deserves this.”
“Wait. An ambush?”
“Ah-huh. I heard he was on his way home when it happened.”
Harper shifted to her right, facing Libby. “Was Francine with him?”
“That―you know her?”
“Yeah. I worked for Lucas, Alex’s assistant. Of course, I Francine Grimaldi.”
Libby softly smiled. “Lucas. Now, that guy was always extra nice.”
“Okay? And was Francine with Alex when he was ambushed,” Harper asked again.
The young woman’s demeanor suddenly changed. "I’m sorry, Ms. Fritz, but I’m just the caretaker here. I’m not really supposed to say anything,” Libby said, looking slightly dejected.
“Can you, at least, tell me why I’m here? What does he need me for?”
“Well, those bloodsuckers don’t know this place, and if anyone from one of Master Alex’s family would come, those bloodsuckers could trace him through them.”
Bloodsuckers?
Mouth agape and completely baffled, Harper asked, “A-what?!”
“Oh, no! I think I said too much. Oh, Miss, I’m sorry.” Libby suddenly stood up. “I wish to keep you company while you wait, but I’m afraid I’d only be digging my own grave in the process.”
“Libby…I’m sorry, but everything you just said―they don’t make any sense whatsoever to me at all.”
Libby smiled and nodded. “Good!”
“Good? Why is it good? And do you mean by bloodsuckers?”
“Um―”
Harper was about to press in for some answers when they suddenly heard someone cleared their throat. They both turned to see an older man in a white coat stepped out of the door.
“Dr. Miller! Ms. Fritz is here,” Libby said in a high-pitched voice.
“Go on, Libby. Leave us.”
“Oh-okay.” The young woman immediately scurried away.
“Is everything okay?” Harper asked when Dr. Miller joined her on the sofa.
“Master Alex has obtained several cuts, scrapes, and bruises, a broken wrist, four broken ribs, some small and large gashes.” Dr sighed, clearly exhausted. “He's been in and out of consciousness since yesterday, but that only means his body is trying to heal itself."
Somehow, Harper felt a relief. “Since yesterday?”
“Didn’t they tell you? Lucas called me around three in the morning yesterday. I came as soon as I could. There were already two doctors attending to him when I arrived.”
“Dr. Miller, I’m so sorry, but I don’t really understand what’s going on,” Harper’s voice was calmer, but she still couldn’t make any sense of clarity in everything. Especially after what Libby had just told her.
The doctor looked at her and sighed. “The only thing I can tell you, Ms. Fritz, is that Master Alex will live. He may look like a train had run over him, but he will live.”
“Is it really that bad?”
“Yesterday, yes. But he’s healing pretty fast. As he should.”
“Can you at least tell me what’s happened? And why am I here?”
Dr. Miller looked at her for a moment before saying, “He was driving his car when he was ambushed. That’s all we can tell you. And why you’re here? Because none of his family members or friends should.”
What does that even supposed to mean? Harper wanted so bad to scream at the tired doctor.
“What? But don’t they own this place?”
“They do. This cottage was built for Master Alex and Mistress Collette for―”
“Okay, enough,” Harper interrupted. “I really have to ask you now. Why are you guys calling Alex master and now―Mistress Collette?”
But Dr. Miller only smiled and shook his head. “Because that’s what we should call them to show our respect.”
“Okay? Weird!”
“You can ask Lucas, Ms. Fritz. I am in no position to answer those questions.”
“Fine.” Harper was about to ask the doctor another question when they heard a loud beeping sound coming from Alex’s room.
Dr. Miller immediately stood up.
“What’s going on?” Harper’s eyes grew wide in worry.
“I’ll be right back.” The doctor went into the room, and two men in white uniform quickly followed him behind.
Harper sat behind in silence. She fished her phone from her pocket and saw that there were no messages from Lucas. She had been trying to call him since she had left her apartment, but her former boss had not answered any of her calls. She sent him another text message instead, telling him she had arrived and that she had questions and had no idea what she was doing there. Then, after a series of yawns, Dr. Miller finally came out of the room again.
“What happened?” Harper asked.
"We had to place him into a medically induced coma. He's stressing himself out every time he wakes up. He panics and tries to escape."
"He’s disoriented?"
“Yeah. This is normal considering his head injury.”
“Head injury? Shit? But why was he ambushed?”
Dr. Miller pursed his lips together before answering, “Again, I’m in no position to answer that question, Ms. Fritz. You can ask Lucas yourself.”
“Well, he’s not answering any of my calls.”
“He will. Soon. I’m sure he’s very much occupied at the moment. That young man is the most hardworking one I know.”
Harper had to smile at the doctor’s remark proudly. “He is.”
“You can go in and see Master Alex now.”
Harper suddenly hesitated whether or not to see Alex. But curiosity got the best of her, so she slowly went into Alex’s room, silently closing the door behind her. Everything started to feel weird as soon as she was inside.
She gasped as soon as she saw Alex in white clothes instead of his usual expensive suites, looking barely recognizable with all cuts and bruises on his face. A bandage was wrapped around his head, and there were machines hooked up to him.
Harper walked over to his bedside.
“Oh, Alex, what did you do this time?” she asked an unresponsive Alex.
* * *
Harper spent her days at the cottage for the few day days. When she called Lloyd Castor about what happened, her new boss insisted that she stay with Alex offering to move her employment date as soon as she was back. She was stunned to discover just how influential Alex was.
For the next three days, she had quickly formed a routine, starting her day with a morning run at
seven o'clock in the morning. Libby had proved to be an excellent cook and an amusing companion while the other two male nurses had kept their distance and seemed to only talk with each other. It had bothered Harper at first, but soon, she immediately became unbothered by their odd behavior. Maybe they were there to do their job, which was to care for Alex. Maybe making friends and trying to get along with anyone wasn’t part of their job description.
Harper, however, was still unsure why she was there. Lucas hadn’t returned her call. She had called him nearly a hundred times already that she just decided to give up and just waited for him to call her instead.
According to Libby, Dr. Miller was a very well-known and popular doctor to the affluent and influential families like the Carmichaels. Harper, on the other, had no clue. She couldn’t even remember her dentist’s name.
Alex had been unconscious for the last three days after being induced into a coma, and the deep cuts and wounds on his face were starting to heal fast, so fast that it sometimes made Harper think if Dr. Miller was using some medicine to hasten the healing process. She had told Libby of this observation, saying that no person could heal that fast. But Libby only smiled at her.
One afternoon, while she was sitting beside Alex’s bed, trying to burn some hours by reading a book, Harper suddenly caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She looked up at Alex, but he hadn't moved, and there was nothing out of the ordinary around the room.
Shrugging it off, she went back to reading until minutes went by before she caught another movement. She glanced at Alex again. Still, nothing seemed different. She waited for almost a minute before she went back to reading when she saw Alex’s middle finger twitched.
“Oh shit!” She shot forward in her seat and stared at his hands, waiting for another movement. But nothing happened. She patiently stared for another minute before his finger twitched again.
“Alex?” she gasped before turning around and yelled, “Dr. Miller! Libby!
Everyone immediately came rushing into the room.
"What happened?" Dr. Miller asked, looking back and forth between her and Alex.
"His fingers were moving!" Harper told him.
“I hope he won’t lash out again,” one of the male nurses said by the door.
Dr. Miller came to stand on the opposite side of the bed and checked the monitors with the other nurse. He lifted Alex’s eyelid and directed his medical penlight into his eye. When they heard Alex let out a soft groan, they all stood back and waited.
After a moment, Alex slowly opened his eyes but immediately shut them in response to the bright light above him. He tried again and glanced around once his eyes adjusted to the lighting in the room.
“Alex?” Harper called his name.
But he was unresponsive. He looked at everyone in the room, one by one, before his gaze fell on Harper. Then he suddenly hissed.
“Master Alex, there’s no need to panic. You’re home. You’re safe with us,” Libby sweetly said with such encouragement and assurance.
But Alex kept his eyes on Harper. He held his breath for a second as he tried to swallow and open his dry mouth. Then slowly, in a hoarse voice that sounded very strained, he asked, “Who are you?”