Chapter 115. Problems
Lilly Bradley
I walked into my office and paced back and forth, thinking about all the words we exchanged. Our relationship was over. All I wanted was to find the person who had involved me in this embezzlement, clear my name, and get out. I ran a hand over my neck, feeling the tension. It was a lot of stress. I winced as a small cramp hit my abdomen, cursed under my breath, and then it passed. The phone on my desk rang. I picked it up and answered, irritated.
"Lilly Bradley."
"You need to be in this office, now." It was Jackson. He was pissed, but I was even more so.
"You know what? I'd rather go home. Being locked in the office with you will make things worse. And I really don't feel well enough to keep fighting and saying hurtful things to each other."
"Then let Richard..." I interrupted him.
"I'll go alone. Anything else, Mr. Johnson?"
"Lilly, please."
"Miss Bradley to you."
"Then if you don't want to, the car I bought you is in the underground parking lot, where I usually leave the..."
"I don't want anything, Mr. Johnson, just like the apartment you gave me. I'm returning it."
"Why do you have to be so stubborn? Those were gifts from the heart!" he exclaimed, more furious.
"I sincerely don't want anything, so I'm letting you know I'm leaving." I hung up, grabbed my things quickly, and stopped with my hand on the edge of the desk as the cramp worsened a bit. I clenched my teeth and tried not to panic. "Breathe, Lilly. The stress is getting to you. You'll get through this." I swallowed with difficulty, but once it passed, I straightened up, gathered my things, and headed for the elevator. I pressed the button to take me to the lobby, but Mr. Paige stopped the elevator doors.
"Where are you going, Miss Bradley?" I noticed a hint of irony in his voice.
"I'm going home to rest and..." Another cramp. I paused, took a deep breath, and exhaled through clenched teeth. "I don't feel well. Mr. Johnson has authorized it."
"Are you okay? You're sweating and look pale." I barely managed a smile before another cramp hit.
"Can you let the doors close? I need to go." He nodded and withdrew his hand. I saw something in his eyes I couldn't describe. Finally, the elevator began to descend. I requested my usual transportation service. It was a couple of minutes away. The doors opened, and Richard was waiting in front of the elevator. "No, Richard, please." I swallowed as my throat quickly dried, shook my head, then couldn't hold on any longer. I felt my legs give way. Richard caught me mid-air to prevent me from collapsing.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Your face is very pale." My fingers clutched his jacket sleeve. "You're even sweating, and your lips are almost white."
"Just..." I tried to suppress the scream of pain spreading through my abdomen. I looked up at Richard. "Don't tell Jackson, please." He nodded quickly. "Emergency, please." I wasn't sure if I spoke aloud, but he nodded urgently. I'd be lying if I said I was aware of how I left the building or how I got into the car. Everything was fleeting as the pain worsened. What was happening to me? Then darkness embraced me, and I couldn't fight it.
"Lilly?" I heard my mother's voice. Slowly, I began to open my eyes. My eyelids felt heavy. Seeing my mother, I barely smiled. Then I realized I was in a hospital gown.
"Mom..." She stroked my hand and smiled, sitting beside me.
"How do you feel?" I closed my eyes again, feeling exhausted. When I reopened them, I smiled again.
"I feel okay now, but earlier... no."
"I was so scared when your father told me you had arrived at the emergency room with Jackson's head of security." "Jackson" I tried to move, but my mother stopped me. "Calm down, don't move."
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you. I'm going through a lot lately."
"I know. Your father has kept me informed about your health. He'll come by later to check on you..." I closed my eyes for a moment, then reopened them, feeling thirsty.
"Can you get me some water? My throat is dry." She nodded and stood up. I didn't watch where she went, just closed my eyes again, feeling my eyelids grow heavier. I don't know how long I stayed like that, not thinking about anything.
"He been asleep for a while, please keep him away from the hospital." I heard my mother talking from a distance. "I don't care who he is, don't take his side, Leah." I opened my eyes slowly and then saw her, she was on the phone. "I'm more surprised," there was a pause. "I don't doubt it's because of him that she reached her limit, it's a stress that's very harmful to her health, this didn't even happen in London, now imagine how your sister must have been to end up in the ER..."
"Mother..." she turned to me immediately.
"She's awake, come up by yourself," then she hung up. "Daughter, how do you feel?"
"Fine," but I lied. "I..." I felt the urge to vomit, she hurried and put a container near me, I sat up and leaned to the side, vomiting water, another gag, then my stomach calmed down. My mother wiped my mouth and helped me lie back down, I felt quite tired even though I hadn't done anything to be so, and that alerted me. "Do they know what's wrong with me...?" My heart began to race thinking it could be something else.
"You have severe stress and you're dehydrated, but you already have an IV..." she showed me the catheter in my hand, I hadn't noticed it since I woke up.
"Oh, is that all?" She nodded, then frowned.
"You were holding back too much, and one way or another, your body reached its limit. Were you expecting something else?" I shook my head, recalling the times I took the morning-after pill when we didn't have protection, and I was also on birth control. I sighed a bit relieved by that, I couldn't be pregnant right now, especially not by him.
"We've ended our relationship." She wasn't surprised.
"Don't take it the wrong way, but I knew this would happen, you've known each other for a short time, and now, add the embezzlement situation pointing at you." There was a silence.
"Will Leah come?" She nodded.
"But I told her to come up alone, I don't want you to get more stressed if he comes up." I heard irritation in her voice.
"Mother," she looked at me. "After the embezzlement problem is solved and everything is cleared up," I paused for a moment. "I'll go back to London." Her eyes widened, I knew she didn't see that coming.
"What?" I noticed more concern on her face. "Are you sure?" I nodded slowly.
"Very sure, I think the best thing is to go back to the place where I was born, grew up, besides I miss everything from there. I won't be alone, Grandma is there..." I lied.
"You're not doing it because of Jackson?" I pressed my lips together.
"I'm doing it for me." Double liar.
"Isn't it a bit extreme? You might think I'm crazy, but I carried you in my womb for nine months, I know it's because of him, but let me tell you, you don't have to leave the country at the first problem. You can find another job. Here."
"I've already decided, Mother." She nodded slowly. There was a knock on the room door and my mother went to make sure it was really my sister. When she came in, I could see the relief in her eyes, she approached and hugged me even though I was lying down.
"I was scared when I heard you were in the ER."
"I'm telling you now, don't stress your sister, I'll go get my things to wait for your discharge," I nodded, then she left us alone.
"How do you feel?" she asked.
"Tired and a little groggy, I feel like I haven't stopped all day."
"I don't want to stress you, but..." her hand was stroking mine, but I knew where she was going, so I took her hand.
"Don't, please." She was surprised. "We've broken up."
"What? But you seemed so happy, I saw you really in love with him..." she said, a bit confused. "It was the first time I really saw you in love, Lilly."
"Right now, the only thing that matters to me is finding out who the culprit is and why they pointed at me."
"What? She told me about the embezzlement but not that it pointed at you, how is that possible? I hope Jackson is supporting you, even if you've broken up, he should do something."
"He has a plan and I hope he gets to the person, after clearing my name... I'll go to London." She let go of my hand and stood up quickly.
"What? You can't leave, what do you mean you'll leave?"
"Leah..." she interrupted me.
"It's a bad decision, let me tell you. Why are you running away? Are you doing it because of him? He's not the only man in the city, nor the job, we'll get through this together." She started pacing the room, then turned to me when she stopped at the foot of the bed. "You did the same with Oliver, you put an ocean between you." Her words hit me hard inside. "You have to stop running, you just have to get over it and move on, but here, next to your family."
"I know it sounds extreme as our mother said, but I've already decided." She sighed, Leah knew there was no turning back, that once I made a decision... there was no one in the world who could change my mind.