Chapter 65
Chapter 65
“Adrian, I need you to get Principal Benning and go back to the school, because if I do, I am liable to commit murder.” Rayan said.“I’ll handle it.”
"For treatment, we'll need to start her on a course of oral corticosteroids, like prednisone. This will quickly bring down the swelling and redness and significantly reduce the inflammation. It's important to complete the full course as prescribed to prevent the rash from flaring back up. I'll also give you a stronger topical cream to apply directly to her feet to help with the itching and healing locally." Petra said,
"You can continue with soothing measures at home, like cool compresses or oatmeal baths, but the oral medication is key here because of how widespread and inflamed the reaction is on her feet. We want to make sure she's comfortable and can walk without pain as soon as possible."
"Beyond treatment, the most critical step is prevention. Urushiol is notoriously persistent. Every item that might have come into contact with her feet—especially those shoes and socks and any rugs, bedding, or toys she touches with her feet—needs to be thoroughly washed. Hot water and detergent are best. If something can't be washed, like certain parts of her shoes, it might be best to discard them for now, just to ensure there's no re-exposure."
"We'll monitor her closely, but with the medication and by eliminating the source, she should start feeling much better very soon. The most important thing now is to keep her skin clean and to ensure no more contact with the urushiol.
"“Thank you, Dr. Rayna. We’ll head home. Mira, let’s go; we’re going to get that entire house cleaned from top to bottom,” Aunt Lisa said.
Rayna
I sat beside her and held her hand; she had fallen asleep. Rob stayed with me; Adrian had left for the school, and the others went home. She had taken her medication before Adrian left. We were upstairs in a private room. I let out a breath. I had the worst day possible.When I left this morning, I went straight to the clinic. Armin had gotten samples from everyone; how, I don’t know. I never question Armin on his tactics, but when he says he can have it done, he follows through. I had paid a bit extra to have them hurried through. It was someone Armin vouched for, so I trusted his judgement.
I don’t know what I was expecting, but when I opened the envelopes, my world fell apart. All the lies they told needed to end. When I walked out of that clinic, I was more determined than ever to end it all. As I was about to get into the car, Armin stopped me and pointed at the thick brown envelope that was left on the windscreen.He retrieved it and opened it. Then handed it to me.
When I opened the envelope and dumped the contents onto the seat, pictures, letters, and USB drives fell out. I picked up the first picture, then the second, then the third, and realized what I was looking at. I grabbed my laptop and started it up. When I plugged in the flash drive, there were multiple videos labeled Evidence.I clicked on the first one.
The person on the screen was my mother, but the man wasn’t my father. I told Armin we needed to go somewhere safe and start planning. We ended up at the house Adrian had, where he had kept the nurse and the guy who had shot me.Armin and I sat and watched all the videos and pieced it together. By midday we figured out the entire story.
We were in the midst of planning when Adrian said he was taking Zaya to the hospital. I left Armin in charge; he knew what to do. In a few hours all the players will be in the same room, and we will end this entire drama once and for all.Around eight, Dr. Petra came back to check on Zaya.“Well, this is the best we can do for now, Mrs. Wolfe. I suggest you take her somewhere other than home just as a precaution so that she doesn’t come into contact with any lingering traces of the urushiol,“ he said, and I nodded.
After a lengthy discussion, he discharged her. Rob was with me. When we got home, Mira was waiting outside by the door. When I got out, she looked at me.“So we’ve checked. Adrian called half an hour ago and told us to get rid of everything in her room.” Mira said, and I knew Adrian probably found something.“Okay.”
“We already have the guest room set up for her.” She said,“Thank you, Mira.”
Uncle Shane came out and took her out of the car; when she woke up and saw him, she smiled.“Come on, Princess, Grandpa Shane will put you to bed.” He said, walking into the house with her. After everyone came, including Vanessa and Rachel, and they fussed over her, she drank her medication and fell asleep.Around nine, I saw Armin walk in; we were in the living room, and he came straight to me.“Mrs. Wolfe, It’s ready for you wheneveryou’re ready,” he said.“Okay, thank you, Armin.” I saw Adrian walk in; his face said he was pissed. I didn’t say anything.“I’ll be back. I’m going to grab a shower,” he said, heading up the stairs.
He returned half an hour later and had dinner. After dinner we were all sitting in the living room. Vanessa said she would stay with Zaya, and I was thankful for that because we needed to discuss a problem.“What happened, Adrian?” Grandfather asked him.
“Nothing, Apparently The cameras were down for the past two days, and Benning didn’t know. According to him, none of the teachers or administration employees knows about the cameras,” he said, and I looked at him.“After I told him and showed him, he made a few calls and had people come in and test every area of the school.”
“And what did they find?” Aunt Lisa asked.“Nothing,” Adrian said, and I knew there was something else going on here.“Okay, we will continue to investigate that, but Zaya will remain at home until she is better. Now there is something we need to discuss, well, the entire Wilson and Wolfe family.”Adrian looked at me.
“I intended to do this somewhere else, but with Zaya being sick, we will need to do this here. Rob and Armin, please clear out the front yard. Armin, you know what to do.”
“Yes, Mrs. Wolfe,” he replied, nodding and walking out.“Rayan, what’s going on?” Mira asked.“Everyone will find out in due time.”We sat there for half an hour, when Armin and Rob came back inside.“Mrs. Wolfe, it’s finished and waiting for you.”