Chapter 194 Anna
The alarm's piercing shriek instantly shattered the standoff in the hospital room.
Hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway. Within seconds, the door was forcefully pushed open from outside.
Two tall security guards led the way, followed by a head nurse with several nurses in tow, quickly flooding into the room.
"What happened?"
The head nurse's gaze swept across the scene, quickly assessing the situation: Rufus with his ashen face and agitated emotions, Elodie crying and sniffling, and Cecilia standing to the side with an icy expression.
"Head nurse."
Cecilia's voice was clear and calm. She raised her hand and pointed at Rufus and Elodie.
"These two are neither patients in this room nor registered visitors."
"They barged into the room and harassed me, seriously disrupting the patient's rest environment."
Rufus's chest heaved violently as he glared at Cecilia, the hatred in his eyes almost tangible, ready to devour her.
Just as he was about to speak, a sharp, twisting pain shot through his stomach.
The intense pain made him double over, cold sweat instantly covering his forehead.
"Mr. Chapman!"
Elodie cried out, rushing to support him while tearfully explaining to the head nurse: "That's not true! We didn't mean to! We just went to the wrong room. Mr. Chapman is very sick, please check on him!"
The head nurse frowned.
As a senior employee at this top-tier private hospital, she'd witnessed family dramas far more dramatic than any TV show.
Rufus's face—one that everyone in Harmony City recognized—immediately made her understand the complexity of the situation.
But the hospital had its rules.
"Sir," she signaled for a nurse to check on Rufus's condition while giving instructions to the security guards, "since you're not guests of room 809, please leave. If you need medical assistance, we'll arrange for you to return to your own room."
"I'm not leaving!"
Rufus gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stay upright, his eyes still locked on Cecilia.
"Sir, please cooperate with us."
The security guards stepped forward, assuming their standard escort position.
Their imposing builds and emotionless stares were themselves enormous pressure.
Elodie's face turned pale with fear. She tugged at Rufus's sleeve, pleading through tears: "Mr. Chapman, let's go. Not here. Your health is what matters."
This scene ultimately ended in embarrassment under the hospital's powerful security system.
Rufus was practically half-carried, half-supported out of the room.
Elodie followed close behind. Before leaving, she looked back at Cecilia with eyes full of resentment and unwillingness.
The door closed, and the world finally fell quiet.
The head nurse confirmed a few things with Cecilia, and seeing she was unharmed, left with her staff, leaving only the reminder to "press the call button if you need anything."
Cecilia let out a long breath, her taut nerves sending waves of dull pain.
She walked to the window and opened it a crack, letting the cool night breeze dispel the nauseating atmosphere in the room.
Just then, the door opened again.
It was Stefan.
He'd changed back into his hospital gown. Garth followed behind him, carrying a laptop.
Stefan looked better than before, but his features still showed the fatigue of intense work.
As soon as Stefan entered, he sensed the tension that hadn't fully dissipated from the air.
"What happened?" He walked to Cecilia's side, following her gaze out the window.
"Rufus was here."
Cecilia didn't hide it. In a flat tone, she briefly recounted everything that had just happened, including the fish soup she'd dumped.
After listening, Stefan was silent for a few seconds, then let out a soft laugh.
"I see."
He pulled over a chair and sat down. The movement tugged at his wound, making him frown briefly.
"I was wondering why Rufus reacted so strongly."
Cecilia turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"
"Elodie," Stefan's eyes curved, the emotion in them seeing through everything, his tone carrying a casual critique, "is a failed counterfeit."
"She only copied your past obedient shell, but not your soul."
"So when Rufus looks at her, he only sees a crude shadow, a painful symbol constantly reminding him that Cecilia is gone. This only makes him more miserable, more obsessed."
Stefan paused, then shifted direction, his gaze settling on Cecilia's face.
"But you're different."
"The more you resist, the more indifferent you are, the more he can see in you the suppressed truth that his late wife Cecilia never showed."
"He's not doubting you. He's torturing you to fantasize that he can communicate with a soul from the past."
"He's insane," Cecilia said coldly.
"He is." Stefan agreed. "You can't reason with a madman. So we need to use other methods to shift his attention away from you."
"What methods?"
"Make that counterfeit look a bit more like the real thing."
The corners of Stefan's mouth lifted in a meaningful smile.
"As long as that shadow is realistic enough to provide him with enough emotional comfort, the mad dog will naturally stop chasing after other bones."
Cecilia looked at Stefan without speaking, lost in thought.
Stefan didn't mention Rufus again. He placed a laptop on the small table between them, getting straight to business.
"This is the final version of the last project proposal. Take a look."
His expression became focused, the screen displaying a detailed cooperation agreement.
Cecilia leaned closer to the screen, reading word by word.
When she reached the clause about profit distribution, she frowned slightly, pointing at the screen: "This description seems different from the version I gave you before."
Hearing this, Stefan immediately enlarged that section.
He glanced at it, then turned to signal Garth, who was on the phone.
Garth understood, hung up the call, and quickly operated on his own computer, pulling up the scanned contract.
"Mr. Hensley, this page of the scan is blurry," Garth looked embarrassed. "There might have been a problem when it was archived."
Stefan's brow furrowed.
"For such a key clause, we must refer to the paper original."
Stefan looked at Garth, about to give instructions, but Garth gestured awkwardly at his phone, which was constantly flashing with new messages.
"Mr. Hensley, the meeting in Zephyria has already started. I need to be online."
The project couldn't wait, and Garth couldn't be in two places at once.
Before Stefan could say anything more, Cecilia had already stood up.
"I'll go get it."
Her tone was decisive. This was the most direct and efficient way to solve their current shared problem.
A flash of approval crossed Stefan's eyes. He didn't refuse.
"Alright, thanks."
The hospital's underground parking garage was brightly lit, so empty you could hear the echo of your own footsteps.
As Cecilia walked past rows of luxury cars, a clear female voice called out from behind her.
"Excuse me, are you Ms. Martinez?"
Cecilia turned around.
In the distance, leaning against a red limited-edition sports car, was a woman.
She had long curled hair styled perfectly, exquisite makeup, and carried a limited-edition designer bag.
Her beauty was aggressive, carrying an innate superiority completely different from Elodie's deliberately imitated fragility.
Cecilia was certain she didn't know her.
"You are?"
The woman walked toward her in high heels, an impeccable smile on her face.
"I'm Anna Clark."
Anna stopped in front of Cecilia, her gaze traveling over her with obvious appraisal and assessment.
"I think we might need to talk."
"I wonder if Ms. Martinez has time right now?"