Daughter-in-law Strikes Harder

Collin’s eye remained so fixated on the lady that laid lifelessly on the bed for minutes, as he continuously wondered in his mind what could have caused her to go to the gallery.

He didn’t need to be told that meeting her being exposed to a harmful gas was an attempt to murder her, in the most gentle and brutal way that would slowly bore a hole into her lungs and kidney if she was left there overnight.

The doctor had explained that fact to him, and was really thankful that she was able to escape that fast.

However, when the doctor did some further tests for her he noticed some things that were not normal in her health. He advised Collin to bring her to the standard hospital where they could test her further, but transporting her without getting caught was the major problem.

Instead, he just did some years of experience test for her, and he figured out that she was having an Illness that only she could say for herself. More than ever, it scared Collin so much in his heart.

Getting too close to her even in her state of slumber made him find out quite a few things that she was hiding, which made his heart ache about what she had been having to face without telling anyone.

The doctor’s words continually rang in his head, “If what I suspect is what she is suffering from, then there is a need to take action immediately. Pain will get worse, and the gas she had inhaled would have probably made it worse.”

“How could you hide this, Ria? Just how much have you been hiding?” He lamented greatly with a crying heart for her, like she could hear him speak. Her life had been too tough.

Towards evening after the long day of having to deal with office jobs to take things off his mind, he went back to check on her again to see if she was doing fine and it was still the same. He knew he had to be responsible sooner or later.

That was when he made up his mind that if her state didn’t improve in the next two days, then he would have no choice but to inform Dalton in the most plausible way. A lie that needed to be perfect so as not to destroy every unlikeable bond between them, was all he needed to think of for the next two days.

Just as he checked to see if the IV connected to her arm needed a change, her lashes flickered to his shock as he resisted the urge to hold her in the rush of moment. Her eyes flickered again with a force of trying to be alive, even if her mind had not been totally shut down for the past few days.

Finally, she opened her eyes after so long and they really ached, but it didn’t matter because she felt so happy that she didn’t pass on.

Tears began to trickle down her eyes almost immediately after she had regained herself, and she could see the person before her beaming so happily that she was awake.

“Aria. Can you see me? Are you okay? Do you know who is talking?” He asked so many questions at the same time, hoping that she was not just going to fall into a deep sleep again leaving him in a dilemma.

“Collin,” she struggled to call, because it seemed like every part of her was aching badly too. However, even her little attempt to identify who was before her without any problem, put so much gladness in his heart.

“You are fine. You are okay now. You are,” he assured her and held her hands carefully in his, to tell her that he was there with her.

The doctor arrived minutes later and helped her stabilize with more injections, new IV fluid and a little personal patient talk too. He left shortly afterwards and promised to come the next day, leaving both of them to feel the happiness of her waking at the moment.

She requested only things that would help her gain strength at that particular point, and she ended up drinking three packs of orange juice in minutes. It was enough to keep her strength going.

“Do you feel totally okay now?” Collin asked again in concern for her, scared that there might still be something wrong with her body. The doctor had advised referring to the major hospital, since she was okay enough to move her body.

“I’m good. I am actually surprised to find out that I slept for days. Was it that bad?” Aria said nonchalantly, trying to act so strong like nothing was really wrong.

“I was really scared. It is really nice to see you back to your usual self again,” he smiled and she chuckled.

“I could possibly go back home tonight because everything is now okay. Wait, does anyone know that I am here?” She suddenly remembered, as she gulped another glass of juice again.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“Aria,” Collin called so painfully and solemnly, which made her wonder why he was being so sentimental, “The doctor told me.”

For a moment, she paused on breathing and looked to the other side of the room in sadness. Tears struggled not to drop from her eyes as it twitched uncontrollably, which ended up with a sniff so as not to ruin the beautiful moment.

“Can we not talk about that Collin? I’ve woken up now, and that is all that matters,” she tried to persuade him, but he was not having it at all. Wriggling her way out of it would not work again.

“Come on, Aria. The doctor said you can still get treatment. We can get your properly diagnosed in the hospital and begin treatment. Can you please stop being stubborn?” He pleaded with her in a stern voice, that took her aback that Collin could be serious with her in that manner.

“Please, just drop it for now……..”

“I cannot drop this Aria. Please. This family does not care about you, or know if something is wrong with you. Please take care of yourself, and do not blind yourself by revenge and rage. Look, you almost got killed many times. In the past, those that happened previously were all just warnings to make you miserable, but the recent ones are aimed at killing you now. You should leave their family forever and for good. I’ll help you do everything.”

“I cannot, leave everything now. I have so many things to do and I am almost done. In less than two months, I will be out of there after I’ve made them pay for everything they have done in the past. I cannot back down now. It is too late,” Aria turned to the table beside the bed she was sitting on, and grabbed a bottle of water so that she could get her focus away from him.

She didn’t want to tell him about the painting she found just yet, and everything that the masked dancer had told her for the past few days. She wanted concrete evidence and she was close to it.

He already knew the person that planned her attack and had been responsible for everything. The face of the person with the hand that shot the gun was deeply inscribed in his head, that he feared so much for that. That she had been living in that same mansion for years.

But he couldn’t tell her just yet. He couldn’t risk her acting rashly if she knew, but the truth was eating him up to know too. And somehow he feared for himself also. Handling everything perfectly with problems was going to be much harder.

‘How was it that she had not gotten killed? Something must be up.’

“So, what do you plan to do? Do you have any plans? And for all these incidents that keep happening, do you have a lead?” He asked her.

“I’ll tell you how far I’ve gone, if I have confirmed everything I want to do. I just need a little more time, then I will be able to leave in peace. Can we talk about another thing? It is depressing to talk about how sad my life is,” she sighed tiredly, and turned to drink from the bottle again.

“Does Dalton even know about all this? Does he even care?” Collin asked under his breath, trying not to sound angry at the mention of Dalton’s name.

“Wait. Have you called Dalton? You said it has been three days already. He must be worried sick,” Aria bothered as she turned left and right to see if she could see her phone anywhere, but it seemed like nothing close to a tech gadget was around.

“Are you that bothered about him now? This is about you,” Collin stressed out. He hated seeing her act that way.

“I know things will be tough if I’m not found for three days, Collin. Dalton might act out,” Aria tried to explain.

“Why are you talking like you care for him or how he might feel? You speak like you are in love with him,” Collin chuckled dryly, as he turned to stand up. He didn’t think he was ready to hear things that would break his heart more.

Aria paused on her thoughts immediately after Collin finished off his last sentence, and she stared at an empty space for so long as she became sad. It was simply a self denial that she was so sure about, and that her feelings could speak loudly in her ears and fight their way into her body.

It was an undeniable fact that was well known to her, that she felt something strong for Dalton. She couldn’t define exactly what it was, because she had never had to feel something that intense before. He was in her heart more than normal. She thought about him more randomly than any other, and he made her feel different things in different ways.

She hated to admit it, but it was too far from the truth. It was too risky to handle, and she knew that it was forbidden. They had less than two months to spend together, and everything was to end for good. But……

“Maybe I do love him,” she finally admitted.