Chapter 50 Ethan's pov

Chapter 50 Ethan's pov

Seeing Alex in the hospital bed made my eyes watered. I wasn't the type to cry or let my emotions show. I came close to loosing him twice no three times in less than one year. I won't be able to move on if something happened to him.
It's been three days since the accident and I pretty much haven't slept a wink. Eating didn't even cross my mind. I looked like shit. I Hadn’t changed out of the clothes I’d worn the night Alex almost died in front of me. My knuckles were bruised, my shoulder still burned from where debris had caught me, and there was dried blood under my nails I hadn’t bothered scrubbing away.

Because none of that mattered.

Only Alex did.

The hallway outside his room had become our own personal purgatory.

Aiden sat curled into one of the plastic chairs, knees pulled to his chest, eyes red and swollen. He hadn’t stopped crying,not really. Every now and then the tears would pause, his breathing would even out, and for a few minutes he’d look like himself again.

Then he’d remember where we were. And he’d break all over again. Noah was there with him, he hadn’t left his side.Not for a second.

He stood close enough that Aiden’s shoulder brushed his thigh when he paced, or his knee knocked against Noah’s when he slumped forward again. Noah didn’t say much. He passed Aiden tissues without comment, pressed a cup of water into his hands when his sobs turned dry and painful, and kept one hand anchored at the back of his neck.

“I should’ve been there,” Aiden whispered hoarsely, staring at the floor.

“You were,” Noah said calmly. “Just not in the way you wanted.”

Aiden shook his head. “If he dies...”

“He’s not dying,” Noah cut in, firm and Final.

Aiden swallowed, nodded weakly, and leaned sideways until his head rested against Noah’s arm.

I watched them from across the hall, leaning against the wall like my bones were made of glass. Noah caught my eye briefly. The look he gave me wasn’t accusatory.

It was worse.

It was understanding.

Which meant he knew exactly how close I was to falling apart.

“How long?” I asked quietly.

Noah checked his watch. “Another hour, maybe two. Depends.”

I nodded. “Any change?”

“Vitals are steady. No bleeding. He’s stable.”

Stable.

That word had become both a lifeline and a curse.

Aiden sniffed. “He better wake up soon,” he muttered. “I swear to God, if he doesn’t, I’m haunting him.”

Despite everything, a weak huff of laughter escaped me.

“That’s reassuring,” I said.

Aiden looked up at me, eyes bloodshot. “You look worse than I do.”

“High praise,” I replied dryly.

Noah’s phone buzzed.

He didn’t look at it right away. When he finally did, his expression hardened into something sharp and lethal.

“We’ve got him,” he said.

My spine straightened instantly. “Where?”

“few blocks from the crash site. He tried to run but Didn’t get far.”

Aiden went still. “You mean the guy who...”

“Yes,” Noah said. “The one Joe hired. Because that's the only explanation.”

The air felt heavier and thick suddenly.

“When?” I asked.

“Ten minutes ago.”

I pushed off the wall. “Take me to him.”

Noah studied my face. “You’re not in the headspace...”

“I don’t give a fuck,” I muttered. “I need to hear it.”

Aiden stood abruptly. “I’m coming.”

“No,” Noah said immediately. “You’re staying here.”

Aiden bristled. “Like hell I am...”

“Noah,” I interrupted, softer. “Let him decide.”

Noah looked between us, then sighed. “Five minutes. You don’t speak unless I tell you to.”

“Deal,” Aiden said instantly. His voice sounded like he was forcing his cheerful side along.

The interrogation room was cold, bare, and smelled faintly of bleach.

The man sat cuffed to the table, face swollen, one eye already purpling shut. He looked young. Too young to have almost killed the man I loved. He should be around his early twenties.

Noah leaned against the wall, arms crossed. “You know why you’re here.”

The man laughed weakly. “Yeah. Guess I fucked up.”

“You tried to kill Alexander Blackwood,” Noah said flatly.

“No,” the man corrected. “I tried to scare him.”

My hands curled into fists.

“And who told you to do it?” Noah asked.

The man hesitated.

Noah stepped forward. “I don’t have patience today.”

Silence.

I moved closer, resting my palms on the table, leaning into his space. “You almost burned him alive.”

The man swallowed. “I didn’t know he’d be in the car. I was only given a plate number to work with”

That snapped something in me.

I slammed my hand down so hard the table rattled. “WHO SENT YOU?”

His resolve shattered.

“Joe,” he blurted. “Joe Blackwood. He said—he said if I didn’t do it, he’d kill my sister.”

Noah didn’t react.

I did.

My vision tunneled. “Say that again.”

“Joe Blackwood,” the man repeated desperately. “He paid me. Told me where Alex would be. He Said to make it look like an accident.”

I straightened slowly.

Noah nodded once. “That’s all.”

The guards dragged the man away, his pleas echoing down the hall.

Aiden stared at the door long after it closed. “That’s it?”

“No,” Noah said quietly. “That’s the beginning.”

I turned to him. “Clara Hayes.”

He nodded. “She’s being moved as we speak.” 

“She won’t be testifying,” I said.

Noah raised an eyebrow. “That’s a shift.”

“I’ll handle Joe myself.”

Silence.

Aiden looked between us. “Like… legally?”

I met Noah’s gaze. “However it needs to be done.”

Noah held my stare for a long moment, then inclined his head. “Understood.”

When we returned to the hospital, the hallway felt different.

Taut. Charged.

The doctor was waiting outside Alex’s room.

“He’s waking up,” she said.

My heart slammed violently against my ribs.

Aiden sucked in a sharp breath. “You’re kidding.”

She shook her head. “He is stronger than he looks. Not everyone can survive such crash.”

I didn't smile, I just maintained a poker face
"Can I see him?" I asked.
I didn't even wait for her reply I just walk past her into the room.
As I stepped into the room my heart beats. Fast like it was about to jump out. I didn't know if it was the excitement or fear. I walked slowly to his bedside gripping his hand like my life depended on it.

Alex’s lashes fluttered.

His brow furrowed.

“Hey,” I whispered. “Hey, baby. I’m here.”

He blinked a few times like he was confused. But it changed to something close to recognition like he was about to be happy to see me.

Relief surged through me so hard it almost knocked me to my knees.

Then his expression shifted again. A mix of Confusion and Fear.

His gaze slid over my face, searching.

And then he spoke. Softly with a weak voice.

“Who are you?”