Chapter 44: Beneath The Lies.

Chapter 44: Beneath The Lies.
Jade's POV

The world around me drifted in and out like a distorted dream. My eyelids felt heavy, glued together by exhaustion, and when they finally fluttered open, the room spun in slow circles.

A harsh white ceiling light glared down at me, but everything else was a blur...walls, shadows, shapes. All unfamiliar. All unsettling.

I tried pushing myself upright, and a stabbing ache exploded through my ribs.

“Fuck…” I gasped, gripping the bed with trembling fingers as the pain tore through my side like a heated blade. My body felt foreign..weak, stiff, bruised. As though it belonged to someone who had lived a lifetime of hurt in just a few hours.

I blinked repeatedly until the haze thinned. The room came into sharper view: pale walls, a metallic scent of disinfectant, quiet beeping from a machine beside me.

A hospital.
That much was obvious. But the silence was unnerving. There was no nurse. No friend. No familiar voice.Just me.
And the dull, echoing pain.

My mind scrambled to piece things together. I remembered shopping with Freda to get dressed...lip gloss, perfume, a simple outfit, because I was supposed to go on a thank-you dinner with Eric.

A small gesture for everything i had done for the company, for the awkward kindness he never directly acknowledged. But the memory of the accident crashed into me like a wave: screeching tires, blinding headlights, a violent jolt.

The impact still lingered in my bones.
I coughed, but the sound came out wet, ragged. A small droplet of blood stained my palm. My breath caught in fear.

“Okay… okay, breathe…” I whispered to myself, though my voice shook.

I reached for my phone on the tiny table beside the bed. My hands shook as I unlocked it. I dialed Freda immediately, praying she would pick up.
Switched off.

“Are you serious right now?” I hissed, frustration cracking through my fear.

The emptiness of the room felt suffocating, so I raised my voice.“Hello? Is anyone there? Hello?!”

Silence swallowed my words whole. Only the hum of the air conditioner answered me. I scoffed bitterly. Of course. when I desperately needed someone, no one was here.

I swung my legs off the bed, even though my body protested. Every movement sent pain slicing through me, but lying down while drowning in confusion felt worse.

I steadied myself against the cold wall and took a shaky step toward the door.

Then...
The door flung open so suddenly I stumbled back in fright, my heart leaping painfully.

“Jade?”
That voice.
That familiar timbre.
Eric.

He crossed the room in three long strides, reaching out to steady me before I collapsed.“

What are you doing?” he asked, his voice filled with concern and something else...something softer. “Sit down before you hurt yourself.”

His hand wrapped around my arm gently, guiding me back to the bed. My heart thudded erratically, not just from fear but from the shock of seeing him here.

Eric...poised, intimidating, powerful Eric..visiting me. A girl he once barely tolerated. A girl he often dismissed with cold eyes and colder words.Why would someone like him show up for someone like me?

“T-thank you,” I managed, swallowing the lump in my throat.

He pulled a chair closer and sat beside me, his gaze scanning my face as though he was assessing every bruise.“I’m glad you’re doing fine,” he said.

I let out a small giggle, not because anything was funny, but because I didn’t know how else to respond to the unexpected tenderness in his voice.

“Of course. I’m a strong girl,” I joked weakly.

He smirked, then reached out and tugged my hair lightly to the side. The touch was playful, almost intimate. A jolt ran through me. His fingertips brushing my hairline stirred something deep...an old feeling, a distant memory of someone whose touch once set my entire body on fire.

Eros.

For a moment, I hated how easily my heart remembered him.

I lowered my head. “Thanks for checking on me… and bringing me here.”

He shook his head. “I didn’t. Freda did. But I sent her to get you dinner.”

“Oh.” I blinked, oddly touched. “You guys didn’t have to stress yourselves.”

“You,” he said, pointing gently at me, “are the last person who should be telling us not to care. We care about you, Jade. That’s why we’re here."

I let out a small, disbelieving laugh. “I’ve always known you not to care about people you aren’t intimately involved with.”

He shot me a look...half amused, half serious. “You’re funny. But no. We care. And this is me saying ‘thank you’ for saving our company.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Our? Since when is it 'our' company?”

He chuckled. “It’s mine. But I say ‘our’ because I have a fiancée, and we’re both grateful you helped us… despite your issues with Sasha.”

A tight smile forced itself onto my lips, even though the words stung like salt on an open wound. I didn’t know why hearing about his fiancée hurt. Maybe I did know, but I refused to admit it.

He reached into a nylon bag and pulled out a small pack.

“Here. I got you chocolates.”

My chest warmed. “You bought this… for me?”

He nodded.
The gesture was simple, but it meant more than I cared to admit. I held the pack delicately, almost reverently.

“But… how did you know I love chocolates?”

He smiled. “Your best friend Sasha told me.”

My heart sank a little.“Oh. Right,” I whispered. “Well… I guess she remembered something.”

I felt stupid for letting myself think even for a second, that he noticed things about me on his own.

He shifted in his seat. “What’s really going on between you and Sasha?”

I stiffened. “She didn’t tell you?”

He shook his head. “She doesn’t even like me bringing up your name.”
Of course she didn’t.

I sighed. “I’m tired… is there a way to get these fluids out of me?”

He laughed softly. “So now you’re acting tough?”

I blushed at his teasing. Before I could respond, the door swung open again.

Sasha entered.
My breath caught.
She walked toward me with a practiced, effortless smile.

“Hey, mama. Heard you had an accident. Sorry about that.”

I nodded politely, unable to meet her gaze.

She said sorry, but her tone carried no warmth.Then without hesitation, she moved to Eric and pulled him down for a kiss.

I turned my face away instantly, staring at the bland wall as she wrapped her arms around him. Her laugh filled the room. I clenched my jaw, pretending the TV suddenly fascinated me.

“Do you need anything?” she asked eventually, breaking away from Eric.

“Uh… yes.” I lied.
Even though I didn’t need anything, I couldn’t bear her eyes on me.

A nurse came in shortly after. I drank the water she handed me as though it was exactly what I’d asked for.

“Thank you,” I murmured, turning back to the TV for distraction.

Sasha and Eric resumed their soft laughter and flirtatious whispers behind me. I wished I could disappear into the mattress.

Then...A breaking news headline flashed across the screen.
I blinked.
Then blinked again.

The words felt like needles pricking my skin.

“Two bodies discovered in a remote farm...investigation ongoing.”

My entire body went frozen.
I swallowed hard. My pulse thudded painfully in my ears.

Karma?!? Now??? Why???