Chapter 98: What Is the Truth
Ava felt inexplicably nervous. She was the one who had treated Victor, and she had expected him to wake up these past few days. Hearing his voice after so long, she still found it unreal.
Hayden, standing at the back, was the first to see Ava. Seeing her there, Hayden turned to look at Victor leaning against the hospital bed and said with a smile, "Grandpa, look who's here."
Everyone around the bed turned to look.
Ava blinked, quickly walked to the bedside. Victor had already lovingly extended his hand toward her. Ava immediately grasped Victor's warm hand, tears instantly streaming down her face. "Grandpa, you're finally awake. That's wonderful, really wonderful."
"Why are you crying? I'm fine now, and it's all thanks to you saving me." Victor's sharp eyes looked at Ava with affection, the adoration in them impossible to hide.
"I'm just glad you're okay, Grandpa. I was wrong before, leaving without saying goodbye and making you worry."
Ava said in a choked voice. Even though Victor was now completely out of danger, she still felt guilty remembering Ursa's words.
Victor's gaze swept over Ursa standing to the side.
Seeing Victor look at her with a hint of reproach, Ursa pressed her lips together helplessly. "Dad, I know you didn't want her to know, but I was just stating facts. If you hadn't been so worried about her day and night, your condition wouldn't have worsened so quickly."
Ursa was still angry about Ava leaving without a word back then.
"I'm not blaming you for that." Ursa was indeed impeccable, and Victor had no intention of blaming her, but one thing she did really made him angry. "I heard from Hayden that while I was unconscious, you kept Ava from seeing me, is that right?"
"I..." Ursa choked, her angry eyes glaring at Hayden.
How could Hayden tattle like that?
Hayden shrank his neck. When Victor asked about Ava, he just told the truth.
Victor raised his hand slightly. "You don't need to explain. Don't let this happen again. I've said before that even if Ava divorced Joshua, she's still part of the Thomas family."
Since Victor put it that way, what else could she say? She could only press her lips together reluctantly. "I understand."
At that moment, there was a commotion at the door, and Joshua's tall figure appeared in everyone's view.
His eyes lit up as he walked over to Ava's side and respectfully called out to Victor, "Grandpa."
Victor responded faintly. Seeing Mia following behind Joshua, he snorted coldly, his face full of displeasure.
Then neither of them spoke.
Ava blinked gently and tugged at Joshua's sleeve, signaling him to talk more with Victor.
Joshua glanced at Ava and asked with slightly pursed lips, "Are you feeling better?"
Victor retorted, "Don't you have eyes? Can't you see?"
Joshua raised an eyebrow. "Seems like you're almost fully recovered."
Ava's brow twitched involuntarily.
Victor looked at Joshua a couple of times, then stopped talking to this "unlikeable" Joshua and turned to chat warmly with Ava instead.
Seeing this scene, Ursa felt rather helpless. She was used to Victor always doting on Ava the most, but there was one thing she really couldn't stand. "Dad, the person who saved you wasn't Ava, it was Mia. Don't get it wrong."
Victor frowned, his gaze falling on Ursa's indignant face, then on Ava.
Ava shook her head slightly with a somewhat helpless expression. Victor patted Ava's hand sympathetically.
Having a mother like this wasn't easy!
Speaking of Mia, Ursa's eyes searched the room, finally spotting Mia standing quietly in the back.
Ursa knew Victor didn't like Mia, so she thought Mia wasn't coming forward because she was afraid of Victor's dislike. Thinking this, Ursa felt even more sorry for Mia.
She walked to Mia's side and noticed Mia's eyes were red and swollen. Ursa was startled and immediately asked, "Mia, what's wrong?"
Mia's eyes were red. She glanced up fearfully at Joshua in front, then quickly lowered her head, looking small and helpless, unwilling to say anything.
"Mia, just tell me." Ursa was anxious, then looked at Joshua, who was as cold as death itself.
The atmosphere was so strange that Ursa was certain something had happened between these two.
After a long while, Mia finally said, "Mrs. Thomas, I... I'm fine. Joshua and I just had some misunderstanding. It'll be fine once we clear it up."
Mia said in a hoarse voice.
Facing Ursa's questions, Mia felt guilty. She didn't want to talk about causing Ava to fall down the stairs here—it wouldn't do her any good.
Seeing she didn't want to talk about it, Ursa let it go. She gently took Mia's hand and brought her to Victor's bedside. "Dad, these past days it was Mia who treated and saved you."
Victor's face, which had been smiling, immediately furrowed. Hearing this, he became even more disagreeable. "I was just unconscious, not dead. Don't I know who saved me?"
"Dad, it really was Mia who saved you." Ursa felt somewhat helpless, thinking Victor was deliberately favoring Ava because he doted on her. Thinking this way, she felt even more wronged on Mia's behalf and sided with her even more. "You can't let favoritism make you lose sight of right and wrong."