Counterfeit Heiress

Chapter Three

As Sloane slowly came back to consciousness, her entire body felt heavy. She tried to open her eyes but they refused. All she could do was lie there and try to remember what led to her current state.

... Nope, nothing was coming to mind.

She remembered the party, then seeing Marlow... Then the stranger bumping into her...

Then nothing.

Finally, her eyes cracked open. The light that met her was way too bright, causing her to groan and shut them right back.

"Stella?" came a voice to her right, and she startled a bit. "Oh my God, call the doctor!" Sloane scrunched up her face, the loud flurry of noise that followed bringing up what was quite possibly the worst headache she'd ever experienced in her life.

Finally things seemed to quiet down, and she felt someone take her gently by the wrist. "Easy now, Miss Stewart," a new voice murmured calmingly. "I'm a doctor for the White family. You're in your family's home, but Mr. Marlow White wanted me to stay her as well and monitor you after what happened."

She sighed in response, nodding a bit. Her mouth was so dry she couldn't form words just yet, so she just let him do his exam and resolved to ask her questions once he was finished.

After what felt like endless poking and prodding, Sloane finally got some water and someone helped her sit up. Once she got her eyes opened, she looked around the room.

Two very concerned older men were the ones fussing over her. Across the room was Mr. Stewart, as cool and collected as always.

Once he saw that Sloane was fine, he nodded once to her and disappeared out the door.

She sighed, focusing her attention on the two men left with her.

"Wh- What happened?" she finally asked.

They glanced at each other.

"Miss Stewart," said one, a shorter balding man with green eyes. "I'm the White family doctor, Oscar Simmons, and this is my assistant Gerald." The assistant, taller than the doctor and a bit younger also, nodded his head with a small, sympathetic smile to Sloane. "What exactly is the last thing you remember?"

Sloane sighed and closed her eyes. She described the party, the crowd, the person who bumped her-

Her eyes shot open. Her gaze zeroed in on Dr. Simmons immediately.

"Was I stabbed?" she asked.

The older man bowed his head. "Yes, Miss Stewart. Thankfully they missed all your vital organs, so it was a sloppy attempt. We've reported our findings to your father and Master Marlow already."

She huffed a little at the mention of Marlow White. And where the hell is he, while his fiancee (or so far as he knows, anyway) is recovering in bed from such an injury inflicted at his own party, no less?

As if they could sense what she was thinking, the assistant chuckled. "Mr. White hadn't left your side the entire time you were unconscious," he stated, ignoring the doctor's shushing. "He was in fact the person who saw you were awake and called for our attention. As soon as he saw with his own eyes that you were awake, he left to deal with the aftermath, I assume."

When he saw the weird look Sloane was giving him, Gerald's smile only grew. "I've been good friends with Marlow since childhood. I'm the fourth son of my family, though, so there's no room in the family business for me. I went to medical school instead."

Sloane immediately relaxed. Gerald had a calming presence, which Sloane had already found out was an uncommon occurrence in these swanky families. She was grateful he was here, and that he'd shared the information about Marlow.

But now she had even more to think over. Maybe the real Stella hadn't run off because of her arranged marriage after all?

Three days later and Sloane was back on her feet. The wound healed very quickly and without issue. She'd never been stabbed before, but it was a situation Sloane hoped to never experience again. Because of her ability, once everyone moved their attention away from her, she fell away from their focus and mostly had to care for herself. It wasn't anything she wasn't used to, but with a wound like this, the extra help was necessary, so Sloane had to be more outspoken than she was used to.

Thankfully, once she returned to the apartment she shared with her Nana, everything was fine. She had set up deliveries for all the necessities her grandmother would need, since going out in public and getting things herself was always way more of a chore than it was for normal people. The older woman was just worried over Sloane, who she hadn't seen in almost a week.

After explaining the situation, her Nana freaked out pretty promptly.

"I- I- I don't want you doing this anymore, baby!"

Sloane looked down at the floor, sighing sadly. "I'm so sorry, Nana. But I can't."

The contract was in full effect now. According to Mr. Stewart, there was already a noticeable difference in Stella's reputation with the other families, and the Whites approval of her match with Marlow had taken significant strides, even while she was bedridden.

"Everybody loves a good sob story," Cecil Stewart had said mysteriously, which had made Sloane dislike the man even more than she already did.

But whatever. As long as she got what she needed from this arrangement, the rest wasn't her problem.

So she took her grandmother's hands in hers with a reassuring smile.

Everything would be just fine.