Chapter 56 Chapter 56
“Some people survive death only to wake beside something far more dangerous, someone who refuses to let them die.”
Clara surfaced from the darkness slowly, like something being pulled from the bottom of a deep lake. At first, there was only sound.
A steady, rhythmic beeping that echoed somewhere far away, then closer, then inside her.
The smell came next, antiseptic that burned her nose and clung to the back of her throat. It was somewhat suffocating and It reminded her of hospitals, it reminded her of nights spent sitting beside her father’s bed listening to machines breathe for him.
Her lashes fluttered, heavy as if someone had glued weights to them. Opening her eyes felt like pushing through wet sand and when she finally managed it, the world appeared blurred and in pale light
White ceiling, fluorescent glow and a faint hum of machines.
She swallowed instinctively and winced. Her throat felt scraped raw, like she’d swallowed shards of ice. Her body… her body felt wrong and super heavy like her bones were made of concrete.
What happened?
Memory came in fragments. Being behind a glass filling rapidly with water while people laughed and whispered then shattering of the glass.
A soft rustle drew her attention. She turned her head slightly. The room tilted and nausea clawed up her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut until the spinning settled, whhen she opened them again, a nurse stood beside the bed, checking something on a monitor.
“Oh,” the nurse said gently, noticing her open eyes. “You’re awake.”
Clara tried to respond. What came out was a dry rasp that barely qualified as a sound.
The nurse immediately reached for a small cup. “Don’t try to speak yet"
She slipped an arm behind Clara’s shoulders and helped her sit up slightly. The movement sent a dull ache through her ribs and spine. Clara clenched her teeth against it.
The cup touched her lips, water; it was exactly what her body needed. She didn’t sip, she gulped.
The cool liquid slid down her throat like salvation, soothing the rawness so she drank greedily until the nurse gently pulled the cup away.
“Easy,” she murmured. “You’ll make yourself sick.”
Clara licked her lips, still dry but better. When she tried again, her voice came out hoarse but audible.
“How… long?”
The nurse adjusted something on the drip before answering. “Just about a day. You were unconscious from severe cold exposure and oxygen deprivation. Your body went through a lot.”
Only a day?, It felt like she’d been gone for weeks.
“You’re stable now,” the nurse continued reassuringly. “You’ll feel stronger soon. We’ve given you something to help with the inflammation and exhaustion.”
She injected something into the IV. A cool sensation crept up Clara’s arm almost immediately, easing the ache in her muscles.
Clara let her head sink back against the pillow, exhausted from just speaking. Her eyelids grew heavy again.
Before sleep could claim her, she forced out another whisper. “Where… am I?”
The nurse smiled faintly “In a safe place"
It wasn’t a real answer vut Clara was too tired to push. The nurse gave her one last glance before leaving the room quietly. Outside the ward, Hale stood by a wide window, phone pressed to his ear. His expression was calm, almost bored.
“…No,” he said into the phone, voice low. “Don’t apply pressure yet.”
A pause.
“I know he’s the missing piece. That’s exactly why you don’t scare him off" He leaned one shoulder against the wall, gaze drifting toward Clara’s closed door. “Reduce surveillance, let him think he’s invisible. People like him always resurface when they like no one is watching "
Another pause then a faint, humorless smile tugged at his lips.
“And when he does,” Hale continued softly, “I’ll be the one waiting.” then he ended the call without another word.
The nurse who had been hovering nearby straightened immediately. “She’s awake, you can go in and see her" she said
Hale nodded once "Thank you.”
She hesitated, as if wanting to say more, then thought better of it and walked away.
Hale pushed the door open and stepped into the room. Clara was already asleep again.
Her face looked smaller and fragile against the white pillow.The usual fire in her expression was gone, replaced by a soft, unguarded stillness. Her skin still carried a faint pallor from the cold she’d endured.
Hale pulled a chair closer and sat. For a long moment, he simply watched her breathe. Proof that she was alive making his heart ache with relief
His jaw tightened as he replayed the scene over and over in his mind. The shattered glass, the freezing water, the way her body had gone limp in his arms. For a split second, he had truly believed he was too late.
The memory twisted something deep in his chest. He exhaled, dragging a hand down his face.
“I've been too careless,” he muttered under his breath. “I let them take her"
He had seen the signs yet he had hesitated cause he was torn between stepping in and letting her fight her way out.He had wanted to see if she could save herself.
A humorless scoff escaped him. Clearly, she couldn’t.
His gaze returned to her face, softer now. If he had arrived even a minute later… The thought settled like ice in his veins, his chest tightened in a way he didn’t like or understand
He cursed quietly under his breath.What was this?. Could it be attachment, Obsession or maybe love?
The last word felt foreign and definitely unwelcome for a man like him. He leaned back slightly, studying her as if the answer might be written somewhere on her skin.
“Hale…?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it snapped him out of his thoughts instantly. Her eyes were barely open but he could see the confusion in them
He straightened, clearing his throat. “You’re awake"
She blinked slowly, as if trying to bring him into proper focus. “Am I… dreaming?”
He chuckled softly “No"
Her brows pulled together slightly. “Feels like one.”
He watched her carefully. “How do you feel?”
“Like I got hit by a truck,” she murmured weakly
He almost smiled then silence settled between them for a moment as she continued staring at him, her expression shifting from confusion to realization. Her eyes widened slightly.
“How… are you here?” she whispered. “Aren’t you supposed to be in prison? For life?”
Hale leaned back in his chair, expression calm. “I’m powerful enough to not be in prison whenever I want Clara.”
The casual certainty in his tone made her swallow
“Oh.”
She clearly had questions, hundreds of them but before she could speak, he lifted a hand slightly.
“Get stronger first,” he said. “Then you can interrogate me"
She nodded studying him quietly. He looked… normal. Just a man in jeans and a dark casual shirt, sleeves rolled to his forearms. No prison uniform, No sign he’d ever been locked away.
And annoyingly attractive. Her gaze lingered a second too long and Hale caught it.
A slow, teasing smirk curved his lips " I know I’m hot, Clara, but you’re practically drooling.”
Her eyes widened. “I...I am not..." color rushed to her cheeks despite her pale condition
He chuckled softly, clearly entertained.
She turned her face away slightly, mortified. “You’re annoying”
“And you’re alive,” he replied smoothly. “You’re welcome.”
She huffed weakly but didn’t argue, he was right after all.
Mayor Brattfield paced his office restless while across the room Rihana stood across near the desk, arms crossed, expression unapologetic.
“What were you thinking?” he snapped. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
Rihana rolled her eyes. “Relax, She didn’t die after all "
“That’s not the point Rihana!”
She tilted her head, unimpressed. “ Then what is the point. Look you’re just overreacting.”
“I am reacting exactly as required!” he shot back. “You acted without consulting me. You exposed us to...”
His phone vibrating cuts him off. He stopped pacing and pulled out his phone, irritation still etched into his face. “What now?”
He answered without checking the caller “Yes?”
Silence stretches for a minute too long then the caller spoke “I’ll kill your daughter for messing with me"
The calmness and certainty in Hale's voice was enough to make Mayor Brattfield freeze. He knew Hale was not bluffing and so did Rihana. Her confident and bratty expression faltered for the first time.