Chapter 4
776 Words
"I'll go get Shawn. He doesn't even know you're awake yet."
Annie stepped out of the room.
Yara turned to Ryan. "You've known about Shawn's affair all along, haven't you?"
Ryan walked closer, guilt written all over his face. "Yara."
He let out a soft sigh. "I tried to talk him out of it, but he was head over heels for Annie from the start. And now... she's pregnant. That said, Shawn does still have feelings for you. It's the only reason he kept this hidden for so long."
"Once she has the baby, he plans to remarry you," Ryan said, hesitating. "With your health, getting pregnant again might be tough. Maybe you could just raise their child as your own?"
"That won't be necessary." Yara thought of Annie's kind, innocent nature, and her mouth filled with bitterness. "Annie is innocent. She has no clue Shawn is married, and I don't want to hurt her. Let it end here."
Ryan looked like he wanted to say more, but before he could, the sound of Annie and Shawn talking drifted in from outside the door.
He straightened up on cue and spoke in a professional tone. "You'll need a few more days of rest before you can be discharged. Other than that, nothing serious."
Yara nodded. Just then, a sharp, piercing scream suddenly tore through the hallway.
"You quack! You killed my son! I'll kill you—!!"
Startled, Yara sat bolt upright and exchanged a look with Ryan.
The two of them hurried out to the corridor, where a disheveled, middle-aged woman stood jabbing a fruit knife straight at Annie.
"The medicine you gave my son wasn't even for his condition! You owe me his life!"
Annie cowered behind Shawn, panicked and guilty. "That's a lie! I never did that!"
"What's going on? Call the police! Get security up here!" Yara urged Ryan urgently.
Ryan nodded and bolted off to get hospital security.
"Annie!"
At the sound of Shawn's frantic shout, Yara stepped forward on instinct and yanked Annie aside. The woman's knife sliced through empty air.
"Annie! Are you alright?!"
Shawn roughly shoved Yara away and pulled Annie tight into his arms, his face tight with panic. The sight sent a sharp pang straight through Yara's chest.
Even so, she stepped aside, pointed to the ward, and called out to Annie. "Get inside, quick!"
Annie's eyes lit up, and she bolted for the door.
The grieving woman saw this and screamed, "Don't you run—!" charging straight at her, blind with rage.
Annie shrieked in terror. "Help!!"
Yara grabbed Annie's arm and shoved her into the ward, but in the chaos, someone pushed Yara hard from behind.
Caught off guard, she stumbled and fell just outside the room.
The next second—click! The door was locked from the inside.
Yara froze, still dazed, as the sharp blade plunged straight into her chest.
The agony stole her breath in an instant.
The world spun, and Yara collapsed onto the corridor floor. Screams erupted all around her as Ryan shouted in horror, "Yara!"
At that very moment, the ward door flew open. Shawn lunged toward her, eyes bloodshot, his voice shaking.
"Yara—"
Yara couldn't get a single word out before slipping into total darkness.
The sounds of weeping and the steady beep of medical monitors blurred in her ears.
She drifted in and out of consciousness, but after emergency treatment, her vitals finally stabilized.
When she opened her eyes, Shawn was sitting beside her bed.
"You're awake. How are you feeling?" Shawn held her hand, looking worn and exhausted. "I'm so sorry. I never thought she would just snap and hurt you like that..."
Slowly, Yara pulled her hand free from his grip.
Shawn froze.
Yara closed her eyes, refusing to speak to him anymore.
Completely at a loss, Shawn mumbled, "I'll go get you some congee..."
With that, he left in a hurry.
The moment he was gone, Yara couldn't stand to stay in this hospital any longer. She forced herself up, had a nurse handle the transfer paperwork, and moved to a private medical center nearby. She issued strict orders barring Shawn and Annie from visiting.
After two days of quiet recovery, Yara got ready to head back to the hotel and pack.
She was flying home tomorrow.
Just then, her phone lit up with an incoming call from a hospital back home.
"Ms. Dye, are you having some kind of trouble lately? Your mother's medication fees for this month still haven't come through. If payment isn't received by eight tonight, we'll have no choice but to discontinue her special medication."
- Writer
