Chapter 183 Poisoned - Part 1
Zora slowly stepped toward Angela's bed, her face contorted into sadness, and tears filled her eyes. Bryce stared at her across the room, nursing his sadness.
"Angela," Zora finally spoke, her voice filled with pain and a cry held back. "Who did this to you?" she asked as if Angela could reply.
She dropped to the level of the bed and held Angela's hand. Tears quickly rolled down her face as she stared at her only friend's face. Bryce stared at the two and realised he couldn't take it anymore. He stood up and walked to the bed.
"I know who did it, and I will deal with the person. Please stay with her. I will be back," Bryce said to Zora, standing at the foot of the bed.
He walked towards the exit without waiting for a reply. Outside, in the hallway, Bryce saw Martin standing just a distance away from the entrance.
"Come with me. I know who did this," Bryce said to Martin. "We are going to dig him out of whatever hole he is hiding in," he said, and Martin nodded.
The two started walking towards the elevator. Martin pressed for the elevator, and they patiently waited for the elevator to come up. They soon entered the elevator, and Martin pressed for the ground floor. The elevator starts to close slowly. Before the elevator could close completely, Martin saw someone coming up the staircase. He felt some familiarity with the person. He frowned but felt he was overthinking.
The elevator opened on the ground floor. Bryce and Martin stepped out of it and started walking towards the exit. They were soon outside and got into the Range Rover.
"Where are we going, sir?" Martin asked.
"We are going to the Davis family home," Bryce said, believing someone in the Davis family would know where to find this Ivan Davis guy. "Once we get there, you park at the bus stop, and we do the rest of the journey on foot to the mansion," he said, and Martin nodded, putting the car into motion.
After a couple of minutes' drive, Martin parked the car a distance away from the Davis mansion.
"Do you have an extra gun on you?" Bryce asked, and Martin nodded yes. "Good, give that to me," he said, and Martin handed him a pistol.
Bryce put the pistol into his shoes and covered it with his trousers. He got out of the car and looked at his foot. The gun was not visible. The two started walking towards the Davis mansion.
Back at the hospital, Zora was sitting on the chair next to Angela, wondering why she was still not awake. A nurse walked in to check on Angela.
"Please, what is wrong with her?" Zora asked, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand.
The nurse stared at Zora's tears-stained face and sighed.
"She is in a coma," the nurse replied, and Zora's eyes widened as she shifted her gaze back to Angela.
"So what is going to happen to her baby?" Zora asked. "Is the baby alright?" she asked a follow-up question.
"She lost the baby. She was shot, and the bullet fractured the head of the baby inside the womb," the nurse explained.
Zora's hand flew to her mouth, and her eyes widened even more.
"She was okay, but there was another attack last night, and that was what put her into a coma," the nurse informed her, and Zora felt an overwhelming pain.
She was wondering how Angela would feel if she woke and found out her baby was gone.
"Do you have any other questions concerning the patient?" the nurse asked, and Zora shook her head.
The nurse left the ward feeling sorry for Angela. She had gone through a lot. They were not even sure if she would survive in the current conditions she was in. They are only keeping her alive with the machines.
Zora sat there staring at Angela with tears streaming down her face. Her phone rang, drawing her attention to her bag. She retrieved the phone and saw Elorm's name flash on the screen. She answered and swallowed her tears before speaking.
"Hello," Zora greeted.
"Hey, Zora, how is everything going?" Elorm asked.
"Fine," Zora replied, but the pain in her voice was so evident.
"Zora, what is wrong? What happened?" Elorm asked, sounding concerned.
With no one around to share her grief, Zora burst into tears and told Elorm everything on the call.
"Oh my God, so the news is true?" Elorm asked. "I am in town. Tell me which hospital, and I will be there in a couple of minutes," he quickly added, and Zora gave him the name of the hospital.
"I will be there in twenty minutes," Elorm said and ended the call.
In the hospital, inside the laundry room, Elorm was dressed like one of the staff members of the hospital. He slipped the phone back into his pocket as he looked around for anyone coming. He took off the overalls, dumped them on the floor and slowly stepped out of the laundry room into the hallway.
Elorm scanned the hallway for any sign of Bryce's guards but found none.
"Maybe they might be guarding Angela's ward," Elorm whispered on his lips as he scanned the empty hallway.
He saw a nurse coming, and he started to act normally, walking down the hallway. He walked past the nurse and continued to walk down the hallway. He pulled his phone out and sent a message to Zora.
I am here. Where are you?
He received a reply from Zora and smiled. He pressed for the elevator at the end of the hallway. He entered and headed for the floor where Angela was.
Zora heard a gentle knock and invited the person in. It was Elorm. She stood up and went to hug him. She broke down again, and Elorm rubbed her back gently.
"What happened?" Elorm asked after pulling away from the hug.
Zora started telling him everything the nurse had told her. Elorm stared at Angela lying on the bed with many wires connected to her body as Zora spoke. He paid half attention to Zora as he thought of how to execute his job without being suspected, just in case he might have to use Zora again. He was glad there was no guard at the door when he arrived.
"I am so sorry to hear this. She will be fine. Angela, I know, has been through worse situations and survived. She will get well," Elorm consoled, and Zora nodded.
Zora sat down on the seat next to Angela, and Elorm sat on the couch. The room was soon filled with silence. Elorm sat there wondering how to execute his plan. An idea dropped into his mind, and it made him smile inwardly.
"Do you care for some tea?" Elorm asked after a few minutes, breaking the silence, and Zora nodded.
Elorm went out and returned a couple of minutes later with three cups of tea.
"I am sure you had not eaten," Elorm said, and Zora smiled.
It was this part of Elorm that made her fall in love with him. He was always ready to take care of her.
"I did eat before I heard the news, but thank you," Zora appreciated and accepted the two cups of tea from Elorm.
Elorm returned to the couch and sipped his tea.
"Please, take your tea," Elorm said, and Zora nodded.
She grabbed the tea and began to sip.
"You still remember how I like my tea?" Zora said, smiling.
"How can I forget how to make you happy? I loved you very much back then, and I still do. I know I have little time to live, and it's the reason I ended our relationship," Elorm said and lowered his head while saying the last bit of his sentence.
Zora stood up from the chair and joined Elorm on the couch, recalling from the report she had read that Elorm had cancer and was in his last stage.
"I don't know what I can say that will encourage you or make you happy, but thank you for being here for me despite your situation," Zora said, staring at Elorm.
"You are very beautiful. Always beautiful," Elorm admired, staring at Zora's face, and Zora managed a smile. "Take your tea," he said, and Zora nodded.
Earlier, she was very sad about Angela's situation, but seeing Elorm, whom she knew was dying but was still actively going about his situation, she felt some hope for Angela.
"Finish the two cups of tea and come here," Elorm said, opening his arms and inviting Zora in.
Zora smiled and emptied the cup of tea she had in her hand. She went for the other cup and also gulped it down. The temperature was just right. After taking the two cups, amounting to 0.5 litres of consumed liquid, Zora went to sit next to Elorm, and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in.