Chapter 459 Collapse

Chapter 459 Collapse
DAMIEN

That makes him pause and without meaning to, he panics. If she's this hesitant, it's something that will upset him to the core. It's about Amelia, it has to be, and he's right.

He regrets asking her, he regrets being insistent. He wasn't prepared to hear this shit, he truly wasn't. She tells him about Amelia's dinner with Ash and everything Kirk and the others had to say about it. Dinner. With. Ash. Fucking. Rockford. Dinner. The word alone makes his head hurt and spin. He tries to imagine her siting across him in the middle of a restaurant and he just can't see it. His ears must be deceiving him. Is this the plan she was talking about? What will having dinner with him solve?

"I tried to stop her," she's saying. "She doesn't ever listen to me. I'm afraid that she'll do something even more reckless. I'm so worried about her and I didn't want to worry you in your state, which is why I didn't tell you. I've lost control. I'm so sorry, Damien, I tried to—"

"Theo," he says, cutting her off. He's not interested on the what-ifs or the I-wish-I-hads. "Where's Amelia now?" He has to talk to her. He has to convince her to abandon this plan at once. Again, this war isn't hers, it's his. He didn't think her plan would entail such risks. He shouldn't have underestimated Devon Tyler, he always keeps doing that. He ends up outsmarting him each time.

He can't believe Amelia is involved in this. It's like he's finally waking up. He was asleep this whole time. How could he let this happen? He's disgusted with himself, with his incompetence, with his inability to keep her safe and out of harm's way.

"She left the office two hours ago," she tells him. "I asked Roger and he told me he dropped her off at a hotel. She paid for the night."

He frowns. "What would she be doing at a hotel? Why not go back to the apartment? It doesn't make sense to me."

She stares at her lap. She hesitates, but in the end says, "I think that's where she's going to meet Ash."

His heart drops. For a few seconds, he doesn't know what to think or how to feel. There's this pain in his chest that won't subside no matter how shallow his breaths are. Hotel. Amelia. Ash. He sees red. Something within him bursts and it all comes spilling out. This has gone way too far. He tries to stand. "Call Roger immediately. Tell him to come here and take me to that hotel right away."

She stands, keeping her hands on his shoulders. Her eyes are wide with concern. "Damien, you need to calm down."

Calm down? How can he do that after what she just told him? His wife is going to meet that criminal, that fucker, at a hotel and he's supposed to stay calm? He was already agitated and upset before she told him this. He feels a thousand times worse now.

"Please," she says to him, trying to grab his arm. He stands, determined to walk out of the room. "You have to rest, you're not well yet!"

He isn't listening to her anymore. His only focus is to get to Amelia and bring her here, fuck the rest. She's taken this too far. There's no way he's going to let her meet Ash Rockford in a fucking hotel. He'll do everything in his power to stop her.

He takes another step and his whole body is pricked with ice-cold needles. Rather, it's like someone threw a bucket filled with ice and water at him, stopping him in his tracks. He tries to take another step, but he falls to the floor instead. His breaths are even shallower, but his heart is racing. He tries to open his mouth to speak, but no words come out.

"Oh my God," Theo says, horrified, kneeling next to him. "Nurse! Nurse! My brother needs help! Nurse! Help!"

Damien hears the door bang against the wall and footfalls rapidly approaching him. He can't see anything significant, just stars. His heart is beating faster than ever before and at any moment, he's certain that it will beat for the last time. They're hauling him up from the floor, he can feel it, but he can't see it. He hears some noises, but he can't make sense of anything.

He looks to his left. His vision begins turning black and the last thing he sees is Theo's tear-streaked face.