Chapter 234 CUT OFF THE SNAKE’S HEAD.
KAI’S POINT OF VIEW
I choked out the words, my own voice breaking as I pressed her knuckles against my forehead. I was shaking, the adrenaline of the last forty-eight hours finally collapsing into raw, unfiltered relief. "I got to you. You’re safe. We’re in Westridge Hospital. Marloise is... she's never going to touch you again. Ever." I didn’t think telling her how she died was the best thing,
What if Aurora begins to see me as a monster? I can't bear the thought of it. She was about to speak, but before she could get the words out, the doors were pushed open. Dad, accompanied by three doctors and two nurses, stepped in. I quickly moved out of the way, but still stood close enough to monitor everything.
“Ah, Aurora De l…”
“Evermore.” She corrected, looking at me with a soft smile. I returned, my chest no longer as heavy or tight as earlier.
“Evermore…okay. How do you feel?” he took out his tools and examined her, expert hands moving swiftly, but carefully.
“Woozy….like I just woke up from a long nap.”
“Ah, the sedatives will do that to you.” He chuckled, scribbling on a clipboard. “Give it a couple of hours, and you’ll be alright. You’re quite the fighter; we could have sworn you would not wake up until at least one week.
Pretty impressive.” The doctor continued his checks, but I could barely focus on him. Everything blurred into a haze as I watched her alone now. The familiar fuzzy feeling in my chest returned, this time, with brutal force.
She looked ethereal; the hospital gown or her messy hair did nothing to taint her beauty. It felt like the sun cast a glow on her skin, leaving her with a glow that could threaten and save me at the same time.
I felt someone's stare digging into the side of my head. Looking up, I met Dad’s stare. He stood at the foot of the bed, his arms crossed over his chest. I expected the familiar hard, stoic glare, but instead, I was met with a soft smile.
Silas Mercer was….smiling. His eyes looked light and elated, as if he were staring with relief for some reason. I frowned, but he shook his head with a secret smile before looking back at the doctors who walked over to him. Everleigh had an important meeting with the lawyers, so she could not be here. Dad agreed to be the adult in this case for her.
“She can be discharged in a few days, sir. We only need to do a couple of final rounds of tests, so nothing surprises us later.” Doctor Cole said, nodding at Dad before walking out, Dad following behind to help shut the door. Aurora looks around for a second, as if searching for something.
“Everleigh is with the lawyers, Aurora. She’ll be here as soon as she's done with them.” I explained, grabbing the tray of fruits over. “You need to get something to eat, and I think the doctors cleared this earlier, right, Dad?”
“Yes, son. She can have liquids and soft fruits.” Dad agreed, and at once Aurora pounced on the tray of softened mangoes. I chuckled, working on peeling and slicing the rest for her so she had enough to munch on.
“Wait…why is mom with lawyers?” Aurora turns to both of us.
“Armando still refuses to back down with his claims. We know he's done, and the alwyers confirm it, but we only need to make sure all ends are tight so he doesn’t get off the hook.” Dad explained, before walking back to the couch.
“Is there anything I can do?” She asks, and my head snaps up.
“No…you only need to recover fully.” I shook my head. Her wanting to help is what got us in this mess in the first place. There was no way I’d let her expose herself to any form of danger again.
“I think I know what I can do, though. A way for all this to end peacefully, and even Aramando will not see it coming.