Chapter 20
1333 Words
Alessandro's POV
I called Adrian and Zain to my study.
Zain had already arrived. I’m not a patient person, so I picked up my phone and called Adrian.
He picked on the first ring.
“If you’re not here in a minute, you don’t want to know what comes next.”
I hung up before giving him a chance to argue.
“Such a whipped guy,” Zain said with a smirk.
Within seconds, Adrian rushed in panting.
“Wait, I was just about to eat before you called. Sorry I’m late.”
Adrian sat down and looked at Zain.
I cleared my throat.
“I called you two here because of Mom’s arrival. No one is going to tell her about Alice yet.
And we’re going to prepare a welcome party for her tomorrow by dusk.”
Zain rubbed his hands together.
“Wow, so what’s the plan? I’m born ready.”
Zain has always been a party fan.
“You’re in charge of inviting the guests,” I said. “Adrian, you’re in charge of the wine and food.”
Zain’s face grew dark.
“You know I don’t like inviting people. I love arranging the food.”
Adrian eyed him.
“The last time you arranged the food, you almost ate all the cakes. We had to make an emergency batch because of you.”
I cut them off before they could start.
“You’re both dismissed. For now.”
I wasn’t in the mood for their banters.
After they left, I sat back in my chair.
I wished Alice hadn’t stolen the flash drive.
I wished she hadn’t done any of this bad stuff.
I know I’m not a good man. But I need an innocent wife. I need a clean house.
I looked out the window into the compound. It was filled with light.
I wished someone would tell me Alice wasn’t bad.
I decided to take a walk. I stopped at the entrance of the stairs.
Then I heard someone scream.
Wait. That must be June.
I ran to the last stair and found June and Alice.
Alice was at the lower end of the stairs, holding her knee like she was in pain.
June stood above her, holding her bleeding elbow.
“What happened?” I asked, stepping closer.
“She tried hurting me with a knife,” June said quickly. “She cut my elbow and tried to push me down the stairs. I held the stair guard and she ended up falling instead.”
I couldn’t believe it.
I looked at Alice. Rage filled my heart. She raised her hand, trying to explain something, but I knew that would also be a lie.
I went down to her and kicked her leg.
“Arrgh!” She screamed in pain.
“Haven’t I warned you? Maybe the warnings weren’t enough.”
“Lucas!”
Lucas, the guard standing nearby, ran to me.
“Yes, sir.”
“Take her to the punishment room. Lock her up there for two days. No food for her.”
Her eyes grew wide in shock.
“No, Sir, please. Listen to me. I didn’t hurt her. She hurt herself and blamed it on me. Please.”
I was tired of her lies.
Before I could control myself, I gave her a harsh slap.
She cried out more, holding her ears which were now red.
I dragged her up from the ground and slammed her back against the wall. She whimpered in pain. Tears streamed down her face.
“Look at me while I talk to you,” I said. “You don’t talk while I am talking. Understood?”
She nodded.
“Words!”
“Y-yes... Sir,” she whispered.
I let go of her and she fell to the floor, motionless.
I was about to leave when Lucas called me back.
“Sir, she is not waking up.”
Oh, what now? Is she learning how to faint?
“Pour water on her.”
I stood at the door, folding the sleeves of my shirt up to my elbows.
“Sir, she is truly not waking up.”
For a minute, something stopped in my heart.
No.
It can’t be.
I rushed to her side and picked her up.
“Call the doctor. Now.”
Lucas immediately grabbed the phone. “Get the doctor to the east wing. Now!”
I carried Alice through the hallway. She was light in my arms. Too light. Her head rested against my chest and she wasn’t moving.
Adrian and Zain stepped out of a room when they heard the commotion.
“What happened?” Adrian asked.
“Move,” I said.
I took her to the small infirmary we had in the mansion. The nurse on duty jumped up the moment she saw us.
“What happened to her?” the nurse asked.
“She fell,” I said. It was the only thing I could say.
The doctor arrived minutes later. He checked her pulse, her breathing, her injuries.
“She’s in shock,” he said. “Dehydrated. Exhausted. And this knee is dislocated.”
He looked at me. “Has she eaten or had water today?”
I didn’t answer.
“Put her on an IV,” he ordered the nurse. “And we need to set the knee. She’ll need rest.”
I stood in the corner while they worked on her.
They cleaned the bruises on her arms. They wrapped her shoulder. They set her knee and she didn’t even flinch because she was still unconscious.
Every sound the machines made felt too loud in the room.
Zain leaned against the doorframe.
“Bro… are you okay?”
I didn’t look at him.
Adrian came closer.
“Alessandro. Talk to me. What did June say?”
“That she attacked her,” I answered. My voice sounded flat even to me.
“And you believed it?”
I didn’t reply.
The doctor finished and pulled me aside.
“She’ll wake up. But she needs food. Water. And no more injuries. If she doesn’t get rest, she could get an infection.”
I nodded once.
Hours passed. I didn’t leave the chair beside her bed.
The room was quiet except for the beep of the monitor.
I watched her face. Pale. Bruised.
I watched her chest rise and fall.
I kept thinking about the flash drive. About the accusations. About the way she looked at me and begged me to let her go.
I kept thinking about the way I slapped her.
The way I slammed her against the wall.
My hands clenched.
Finally, late at night, her eyes fluttered open.
She looked around, confused. Then she saw me and her body tensed.
“Don’t move,” I said. My voice came out lower than I meant it to. “You’re hurt.”
She didn’t say anything. She just stared at me.
The nurse came in and checked her IV.
“You’re going to be fine,” the nurse told her gently. “But you need to rest.”
Alice gave a small nod.
When the nurse left, the room went quiet again.
“I didn’t do it,” Alice whispered. Her voice was hoarse. “I didn’t hurt June.”
I looked at her.
I wanted to say something. To argue. To tell her I didn’t believe her.
But the words didn’t come.
“Get some sleep,” I said instead.
I stood up and walked to the door.
“Sir,” Lucas said outside.
“Don’t let anyone in here without my permission,” I told him.
“Yes, sir.”
I went back to my study.
The lights from the compound were still on.
The house was quiet.
I sat at my desk and stared at nothing.
I told myself it was for the family.
I told myself she was a threat.
But the image of her lying motionless on the floor wouldn’t leave me.
- Writer
