Chapter 105 24 hrs
Verena
The past twenty-four hours had been nothing short of chaotic for me. Ranging from whispering silent prayers in my heart—hoping Kian doesn’t die—to being forced to take a breath test because the officer believed this was a drunk-driving incident.
To have to suffer through listening to Kian’s parents' accusations about me intentionally hitting Kian with my car because I wanted to get back at him.
I didn’t even bother defending myself. Trying to reason with them was like talking to a brick wall.
Emily stayed by my side, quietly holding me together as I broke down on a video call with Daxton—who had dropped everything and was on his way back home.
God! Words were not enough to describe the relief that slammed straight into my chest when Kian regained consciousness after hours.
Silence lingered in the room as Doctor Penelope turned the screen towards me and Kian’s parents. “This fracture here is severe,”
My heartbeat slowly picked up in fear as I stared at the X-ray image of Kian’s bones. I hoped it wasn’t what I was thinking. I seriously hoped it wasn’t.
She clicked to the next image. “The impact of the car caused multiple breaks along the femur—”
I could hear Jana's small panicked gasps that teetered on the edge of escalation. I could also feel Neil’s murderous gaze as they burned holes into the back of my head.
“—and we've tried everything possible to stabilize him but given the severity of the damage, the chances of him ever walking soon are slim,”
My heart slowed to a stop while Jana let out a sharp cry as my lips parted in shock.
“But, we believe that with intensive rehabilitation and physiotherapy, he would recover but it might take years or he might never walk again,”
I slammed my hand over my mouth, feeling tears press at the back of my eye, and at the same time, my mind was running all over the place. I wasn't speeding. The impact was enough to knock him out, but not to make him lose his mobility.
‘Oh, My God. How could many things go wrong at the same time?’
I stood up, knees buckling beneath me while Jana hurled curse words at me for ruining her son’s life. A tear slid down my cheek as I closed the door behind me, locking eyes with Josh who pushed away from the wall.
“Please let me drive you home. You haven’t had anything to eat or haven’t slept yet. I just had to force Emily home and—”
“Kian might never walk again and it is all my fault,” I choked, turning teary eyes to him.
“No, it isn’t your fault. Please don’t blame yourself,” He gripped me gently by the shoulders and led me to a place where I had cried to my heart's fill until not a single drop of tears remained.
After controlling my emotions, I drew in a deep breath and walked into the private ward where Kian was. The moment, I opened the door, eyes turned to me, Kian on the bed with his leg raised and encased in a cast.
His arm is in a cast too.
Pain made my heart tighten in my chest as he smiled weakly at me. “Hey,” he croaked, his voice raspy from the aftermath of being sedated.
“Jaden told me what happened. It isn’t your fault,” He slurred.
More tears welled in my eyes while Jana huffed, staring at me with anger blazing in her eyes. “How can my only child be this stupid…” she whispered under her breath.
“Look, that woman almost killed you. If it weren’t for my prayers, my good heart, and good deeds. You would have lost your life!” She almost shouted.
“Calm down, Jana. We don’t want the nurses making us leave,” Neil said, stepping into line of my sight as I glanced up at him.
His face tightened with an unspoken rage as he stared daggers at me. “If you know what is good for you, please leave,”
“Dad stop,” Kian groaned weakly.
Jaden stepped forward, clearing his throat. “I don’t mean to interfere but it is right that we make some things clear,”
Neil cocked a brow.
“Mr. Kian Cooper moved in with me after being diagnosed with acute depression. His mental health worsened following Miss Zita’s betrayal and the pregnancy scam, and he has struggled with suicidal thoughts ever since. He had attempted to take his own life multiple times, so to support him and ensure he received proper care, I invited him to live with me.”
My heart turned cold in my chest.
“And I believed that he tried to take his life again and that was why he jumped in front of Miss Verena’s car,”
What the fuck.
Jana sucked in a gasp, Neil turning to his son as they rushed towards him for answers and while I remained rooted on the same spot, the guilt inside of me slowly evaporated, replaced by a fierce anger that I’d never felt.
I spent hours blaming myself, drowning in guilt and fear just for this to be the case?
“You mean, you tried to kill yourself?”
Kian nodded, fueling the rage burning inside of me, and this time, I snapped. “And of all the cars you could jump in front of, it had to be mine? If you wanted to die that way, you could have just told your secretary to run you over instead of putting me through twenty-four hours of hell,” I shouted, chest heaving up and down as I stared daggers at Kian.
The air stood still. Something in Kian’s eyes broke. “God, you are so mean, Verena. Do you really hate me that much,”
I ripped my hand through my hair, my anger intensifying with every second. I didn’t care if I sounded evil right now. Didn’t give a shit. Kian’s parents literally labeled me a murderer.
“You are a horrible person, Verena, and—”
My head snapped in Jana’s direction. “Shut up. Shut the fuck up, woman!”
Jana clutched her heart while Neil yelled. “How dare you,”
“Shut the fuck up too. Not a single word from you both,”
His eyes twitched as he glared at me and I matched his stare. These people had to be kidding with me.
“If you have a heart, you should be taking responsibility because what Jaden said doesn’t change the fact that you hit him. Who is going to take care of him now that he can’t walk,”
I ripped my hands through my hair. “And why do I have to take responsibility? You heard your son’s secretary. He wanted to die. I am not the murderer you and your husband painted me as,”
“Also, you can take care of him. He is your only child after all,”
Jana looked taken aback as she blinked continuously. “I would have loved to but I just started a new business,”
“And I also work and the fact that you want me to take care of your son who voluntarily put himself in harm’s way is unbelievable!” I retorted.
The audacity.
Kian muttered and when I whipped my head to him, tears welled in his eyes. “You don’t have to argue over me. I will go to a group home. Navigate my way through this and get used to being disabled for the rest of my life,”
“In that case, no one has to be burdened by me,” A sad smile slipped through his face.
Jana gripped Kian’s face. “No, that isn’t what I mean. You are never a burden to me but I can’t—”
I cut in—done with whatever this shit was. “Since my car hit you, I'll hire a caregiver to help you with your daily needs. That is as far as I’m willing to go,”
“Your parents can handle the rest.”