Chapter 188
For days on end, Ella was in a complete daze.
She had no mind for company matters at all, and she stayed in her room all day long.
When Aurora and Dorian came to see her, no matter how they tried to comfort her, they couldn't see a trace of life on her face.
Heath and Rhea knew that Ella was blaming herself.
Because of her, Brian had died, and Megan had been injured.
But no matter how they tried to persuade her, Ella couldn't let it go, couldn't move past the pain.
Vida also came to talk to her. "You and Joshua made it back safely - I believe that's what Brian and Megan would have wanted most to see. Please stop blaming yourself, okay?"
Looking at Vida, Ella couldn't help but feel her nose sting and her eyes turn red again.
Ella's voice was still hoarse. "It's because I didn't listen that they got hurt. There were four of us in the car, but they drew those people away to protect Joshua and me, and that's why they had the accident."
"I've let Brian and Megan down."
She really couldn't stop thinking about it.
She thought about Megan lying in the ICU, thought about Brian, who would never come back, and Ella was filled with regret.
If only she had listened to Joshua back then, none of this would have happened.
Even though Zachary had now been taken in for questioning.
Since it was abroad and the Baker family is powerful, the police there definitely wouldn't do much to Zachary.
And that Michael.
Why wasn't he the one who died?
If she ever got the chance to see him again, she would kill him with her own hands.
"Ella, since it's already happened, blaming yourself won't help. What you can do now is pull yourself together. I believe Megan won't blame you either."
Vida felt sorry for her and reached out to hug Ella.
Ella had no energy to speak anymore. She moved away from her embrace, leaned against the headboard, and with red eyes wanted to sleep again.
Seeing her like that, Vida couldn't bear to disturb her further.
She went out, and Aurora and Dorian came up to ask, "Aunt Vida, Mom still won't go out for some fresh air?"
Vida nodded and told Aurora and Dorian, "Give Mom a little time. Let her stay like this for two more days, then we'll try to persuade her again."
Aurora and Dorian had to agree.
Later that evening, Joshua came over.
When Aurora saw him, she quickly ran over and took his hand, looking up at him and saying, "Dad, please talk to Mom. She's been eating very little since she came back, won't go out, and won't let us stay with her. I'm so worried about Mom."
Dorian stood nearby.
Ever since learning that Joshua had gone abroad to save Ella.
He had tried to convince himself to change his view of him.
If someone who did wrong was truly willing to turn over a new leaf, apologize, and work hard to make amends, it wasn't unforgivable.
So now that Joshua was here, he didn't avoid him or speak harshly to him.
Joshua picked up Aurora and sat her in the crook of his arm, looking at her gently.
"Don't worry, Mom is just sad. Give her a little time. I'll take her out for some fresh air in a bit."
Aurora nodded, "Okay, then I'll leave Mom to you, Dad. I know you can help Mom get through her sadness."
Joshua thought Aurora was really adorable, like a little sun, always able to warm people's hearts.
He put Aurora down and looked at Dorian.
Seeing that he wasn't avoiding him this time, Joshua gave him a gentle smile.
"Stay with Aurora. I'm going to see your mom."
Dorian nodded in agreement, "Okay, talk to Mom properly. Maybe she'll listen to you."
Anyway, Ella wasn't listening to him or Aurora anymore, and it seemed like the whole family's advice hadn't worked.
It was up to Joshua to see if he could get through to her.
Joshua greeted Heath and Rhea, then went upstairs to Ella's room.
Ella had just laid down to sleep.
Every time she closed her eyes, her mind was filled with bloody, brutal images.
She could imagine the despair Brian and Megan felt when the car crashed and fell off the cliff.
Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face again.
Joshua walked quietly into the room and saw Ella's tear-stained face. He pulled out a tissue to wipe her tears and told her, "Megan's doing much better. She says she wants to see you. I came to take you to the hospital to visit her. Do you want to go?"
Hearing this, Ella sat up abruptly, her eyes filled with tears. "Really? Megan really wants to see me?"
Joshua got up and went to the closet to get clothes for Ella, came back to help her change, helped her put on her shoes, and tidied her messy hair.
Then he took her hand to leave.
Ella didn't refuse.
She followed him obediently.
When the two came downstairs, the children and elders downstairs saw that Ella was finally going out and breathed a sigh of relief.
But they didn't interfere, just watched as Joshua took her away.
They believed Joshua would take good care of her.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Ella was nervous.
Her hands gripped the seatbelt tightly as she looked at Joshua, "Will Megan hate me? Won't she forgive me?"
Joshua clearly saw Ella's worry. He reached out and squeezed her hand, comforting her, "No, we'll go see her, and you'll know what she says."
Ella still couldn't relax.
Samuel had said that Megan wouldn't get better, that she'd be paralyzed in bed for the rest of her life.
She had ruined Megan's entire life - how could she not blame her?
Throughout the journey, Ella was restless.
Her face was deathly pale.
Joshua could only feel heartbroken watching her.
After arriving at the hospital, he took Ella's hand and led her to Megan's room.
Megan was doing much better - she could eat and talk now.
Samuel's medical skills were excellent, and he'd been taking care of her personally.
The two were chatting when they saw Joshua bringing Ella over. Samuel tactfully stood up and moved to the side.
Joshua had warned him before not to put the blame on Ella.
He couldn't say much.
After all, Megan was Ella's assistant.
There were some things Ella had to have Megan do.
To give the two some privacy to talk properly, Joshua left after bringing her there, pulling Samuel out of the room.
Ella walked heavily toward Megan.
Seeing that even though she was doing better, she still couldn't move while lying there, Ella's heart felt like it was being cut with a knife. Standing by the bed, she couldn't help but cry. "I'm sorry, Megan, I'm the one who hurt you."
But Megan smiled and reached out to pull her closer. "What nonsense are you talking about? It's not your fault, it's the bad people's fault. But seeing that you and Mr. Thomas are okay puts my mind at ease."
Megan gestured for Ella to sit down. Lying there, her voice was still weak. "I called you here because I was afraid you'd feel guilty and couldn't move on."
"You know what? When Brian was dying, he told me - he said he didn't regret rushing over to save you, didn't regret giving his life to keep you and Mr. Thomas safe."
"He also said that his life used to be very hard, that it was Mr. Thomas who gave him a chance to start over, and it was Mr. Thomas who made his life better. If he really couldn't make it back to Emerald City alive, he wanted you all not to be sad for him. He felt it was worth it."
Hearing these words, Ella couldn't control her emotions anymore. She lowered her head and sobbed uncontrollably.
Megan looked at her, her own eyes reddening. "I don't blame you either. Actually, a long time ago, I also hit rock bottom in life. It was you who pulled me out of the darkness and gave me a new life."
"Ms. Garcia, please don't blame yourself. Everything is fate."
Ella tried hard to control her emotions, wiping away the tears from her eyes, choking up as she said, "Rest and recover. Don't worry about the future. I'll always be with you."
Megan cried and laughed at the same time - tears of emotion, smiles of happiness. "You know what? Dr. Harris proposed to me. Look, he even put the ring on my finger."
She held out her beautiful hand to show Ella.
"I used to think he didn't love me, that he was just playing around with me."
"But after this happened, I felt that he did love me. When I woke up, I saw him crying like a child by my bedside. I know my legs are ruined, and I didn't want to drag him down, so I told him to leave. But not only did he refuse to leave, but he takes care of me personally every day."
"Seeing how caring he is, I agreed to his proposal."
"From now on, with Dr. Harris taking care of me, you don't need to worry about me. I'm actually quite happy."
Seeing her so optimistic, Ella was happy for her.
But her heart still couldn't let it go.
She had to pay some price for her stubbornness.
She stayed in the room with Megan for a long time. She had wanted to help her wash and massage her, but Megan refused.
In the evening, when Samuel brought food over, Ella had to leave.
Joshua had been waiting outside the door the whole time.
When Ella came out, he reached out to take her hand and asked, "I was right, wasn't I? Megan doesn't blame you at all."
Ella looked at him, still somewhat doubtful. "Did you say something to Megan beforehand? She's in that condition - there's no way she wouldn't blame me."
Joshua was a bit helpless. He held her hand and led her out of the hospital, explaining, "I would have liked her to comfort you, but what right do I have? They got hurt because of the two of us."
"When I came to see her, she didn't say anything. She thought I was lying when I said you were okay. She had to see with her own eyes that you were fine before she could relax."
"You've been good to Megan, and she remembers it all. She's a grateful person. Nobody wanted this to happen - how could she blame you?"
Ella sat in the passenger seat. After hearing Joshua's words, she felt a little better.
They were right. She couldn't stay trapped in this guilt and sadness forever.
She needed to pull herself together, live well, and take care of Brian's family and Megan together with Joshua.
What happened couldn't be changed, so they would just try their best to do right by everyone.
After adjusting her mood, Ella requested, "Can you take me for Mexican food?"
Joshua looked at her and saw that Ella seemed to have figured things out.
He nodded in agreement and took her to a nearby Mexican restaurant.
The two booked a private room, ordered spicy dishes, and for the first time sat together peacefully for a meal.
The Mexican food was too spicy. Both of them ate until their faces were flushed and they were dripping with sweat.
Joshua handed Ella a tissue, a faint smile appearing on his handsome face.
"Feeling a bit better now? After this meal, start fresh and go back to work at the company, okay?"
She had shut herself up at home for too long. If she didn't return to the company soon, things would probably fall apart.
Ella nodded.
Meeting Joshua's gaze, she sincerely said, "Joshua, thank you."
But this "thank you" made Joshua feel like she was being distant.
He didn't want to hear those two words from Ella's mouth anymore. He gazed at her, his eyes becoming much deeper.
"Do you remember what you said to me before?"
Ella looked at him. "What did I say?"
"You said when we got back, you'd tell me." Joshua was hinting at something.
Back then abroad, when they were in a difficult situation, they had been intimate.
He had asked Ella to be his girlfriend. Ella hadn't refused right away, saying they'd talk about it when they got back.
They'd been back for so many days now.
Ella hadn't been in a good state, which he could understand.
Now seeing Ella gradually moving on and letting go of the past, he wanted to remind her and see if she had thought about it.
Ella really didn't remember that.
She thought about it but couldn't recall, and stared at Joshua, asking, "Tell you what?"
Joshua saw that she seemed to have forgotten. Although he felt a bit disappointed, he didn't mind. He served Ella some food.
"Nothing. Eat up. After we eat, I'll take you home. Everyone at home has been worried about you these past few days."
Ella nodded.
She didn't know when it started, but she had begun to not dislike Joshua, not reject him, not deliberately distance herself from him anymore.
Sometimes she felt that without Joshua, she didn't know what kind of state she'd be in.
He had saved her life twice - that should make her grateful, right?
Otherwise, what difference was there between her and an ungrateful person?
After dinner, the two returned to the Lewis family home together.
Walking through the villa's front door, Ella saw a circle of people sitting in the living room.
Among them was Mason.
He was holding his son and playing with him, while Vida watched from the side, her eyes filled with tenderness that was hard to hide.
Ella remembered that Mason had run to Eldoria to bring them back.
She thought about how Vida still had feelings for Mason, and the child couldn't be without a father.
So her heart softened too.
She also hoped their whole family could be reunited.
"Mom and Dad, you're back!" Aurora and Dorian saw them and quickly rushed over.
Joshua bent down to pick up Aurora.
Aurora was seven years old now and had grown quite tall. Holding her in his arms, she looked quite big.
He kissed her and said with a smile, "Dad helped bring Mom back for you. Keep Mom company, okay?"
Aurora nodded and looked at Ella, "Mom, are you feeling better? Did you feel happier after Dad took you out? Wow, did you guys go eat Mexican food? I can smell Mexican food."
Joshua laughed at her sharp nose and put her down, looking at Dorian, who had come over. "Dorian, good evening."
Dorian responded and stepped forward to take Ella's hand.
"Mom, are you okay?"
Ella's mood was much better.
Her children were healthy and right in front of her, her parents were both alive, and Mason seemed to have realized his responsibilities and returned to the family.
What more could she be dissatisfied with?
She shouldn't make them worry about her anymore.
The company was waiting for her to return and take charge.
Taking the two children toward the living room and standing in front of her parents, Ella said sincerely, "Mom, Dad, Vida, I'm sorry for making you worry during this time. I'm fine now. Starting tomorrow, I'll go back to work at the company."
Seeing that Ella's condition had really improved a lot.
And all of this was Joshua's doing.
Rhea pulled Ella to sit beside her and looked at Joshua. "It's too late. Why don't you stay tonight?"
Joshua looked at Ella, hesitating.
Aurora, beside them, quickly cheered, "Yay! Dad's staying! We'll sleep with Mom tonight, so Mom won't be lonely and sad."