Her Disabled Heir

Chapter 5: The Accident

All hell broke loose in an instant.

Everything happened so fast and in a short matter of time, I wasn’t sure if I could tell what was real or not.

Immediately after Chase and I locked eyes on each other, he fell. Everything would have been okay if this was just another regular old fall, but it was far from that. As Chase fell, he hit his head on a nearby desk with a thundering noise, causing panic to erupt in the very heart of the Williams mansion.

Without thinking twice, I ran out of my hiding spot and directed all my attention to my newly acquired husband who was now passed out on the floor with blood oozing out of his head.

Falling to my knees, I held him close and tried to stop the bleeding, but all my efforts were futile.

“Help!” I screamed.

“Someone, please help!” I screamed again.

With shaky hands, I pulled Chase even closer. “Where are all the staff in this damn mansion when you actually need them!”

I hadn’t even realized that I was crying until I looked up at Chase’s father and noticed that my vision was blurry. The man stood in one spot, like a man who had been paralyzed from his head to his toes. Maybe watching his son in such a scary situation did more damage to his brain than I could fathom, but none of that mattered to me.

“Call a f*****g ambulance and don’t just stand there like a f*****g tree!” I yelled at the old man.

Apparently, it seemed like a good yelling was what the man needed because instantly he jumped to his feet. He rushed to get his phone from his pockets and began to make a few calls.

I had only met this man today, yet it felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest. My heart thundered with the intensity of a real storm and when I closed my eyes, I could hear it ring in my ears. To say I was scared was a big understatement. I was nothing short of terrified.

Chase could not die on me. Not on our wedding night. Although this was not a conventional marriage, there was no way I could live through watching another person die.

Memories I had buried in the back of my mind for such a long time began to resurface, and a chilling feeling ran down my spine.

Bloodied hands. Blaring sirens. Gunshots.

Wiping my tears away, I convinced myself that this was not going to be anything like what happened years ago. Chase was going to be okay. I was going to be okay.

It turned out that Chase’s father was not as incompetent as I thought because help came in no time. The once-empty study became packed with medical practitioners. They picked up Chase and put him on a stretcher before rushing him to the hospital.

Through everything, I remained by Chase’s side. Maybe it was because of the piercing guilt I felt consuming each molecule of my being. If I had stayed in my room, this wouldn’t have happened. If I hadn’t opened the door, then I wouldn’t have seen my disabled husband stand up, and he wouldn’t have seen me as well. I wouldn’t have distracted him, and he wouldn’t have ended up in such a terrible accident.

Another emotion surfaced beneath my guilt. Hot burning curiosity. Did I really see Chase stand? And if I really did see what I saw, then why did he lie? Why had he been lying all this time?

In the back of the ambulance with a nurse as our only companion, I looked at Chase’s unconscious body and decided that these were questions that would have to wait until Chase was safe and conscious again.

While I waited for us to get to the hospital, I prayed for Chase to get through this because I knew that both my heart and mind could not handle another shock today. I knew that I needed a win. No matter how small.

By the time we got to the hospital, the rush resumed and there were nurses and doctors gathered around Chase all over again. He was rushed to the ER while I was left in the hospital to grapple with my thoughts and wait for the outcome.

During my walk in the halls, I was greeted with the kind presence of Chase’s father.

The old man’s eyes remained wide like he had encountered a ghost before coming here. His eyebrows were knitted into a frown and I didn’t need to be some expert mind reader to tell that he had some sort of animosity toward me.

“My son should have never married you,” he started, and there it was. The animosity the man held towards me was beginning to fester and I had a feeling that if it continued, things wouldn’t go well between us both.

I kept my lips pressed into a thin fine line. If this man wanted a reaction out of me, I was determined not to give him any. Not even a twitch.

He moved closer until he and I were at a slightly uncomfortable distance. Not uncomfortable enough for me to take a step back, but not comfortable enough for me to feel as confident as I felt earlier. Regardless, I stayed put. I was determined to drive this man mad with silence.

“What were you even doing spying on us, huh?! I’m sure that the only reason my son is in a hospital bed is all because of you, you vile woman!”

There it was. I began to feel that crippling guilt again. My mouth threatened to open and allow vulnerable and remorseful words to escape, but I held my resolve. I ensured that my lips were sealed tight because I knew in the end it wouldn’t be worth giving the man in front of me what he truly wanted. A fight. A pesky and petty little quarrel.

The man scoffed. The man actually scoffed in my face. “Guess you lost your voice, didn’t you?” The old man shook his head and turned around. “Chase really went ahead and made the worst mistake. If only Lola could see him now, she would have been just as disappointed as the rest of us.”

Something in me stopped and then clicked. Lola. I had heard the name just before Chase fell.

What will you do when she finds out about Lola?!

Before I could stop myself, the words slipped. “Who is Lola?”

Chase’s father turned back to face me. If I thought that he was angry before, then I was terribly wrong. At that instant, he was livid. His eyebrows arched as if he was shocked that I had the audacity to utter those words. His fists clenched by his side and his face squeezed like he had just licked the sourest lemon to ever exist. Just when I thought he was going to yell at me again, the doctor stepped out of Chase’s room.

“Mr. Williams is conscious now and he will be okay. He just needs some rest. You may see him now if you like,” the doctor droned as the silent war between me and my husband’s father simmered down.