Chapter 7

HE IS AWAKE

“The Lost Ones blocked my way, but how can those things be my equal? There was something else there. They followed its orders. I heard it whisper and the shadow locked me in. I could not get out. It was then I was attacked,” he recounted his accident.

“By wolves? Your wounds...” Doctor Hunter started to say.

“Werewolves,” he answered.

“There are werewolves who would work with The Lost Ones?” Doctor Hunter asked in a half growl and half shout. 

“Trapped in the shadow, I was ambushed. I know a werewolf when I see one. Even then, how did they manage to drug me?” he asked and Doctor Hunter walked closer to his bed where he laid.

“I also want to know that. Mathew, You obviously cannot be drugged, but I found something in your system and you were out as though you were drugged. Your injuries were not enough to weaken you that way. Could there be a new drug on the market?”  he said to Matthew.

“It felt like a drug, something injected into the air. But that is not the issue. Emerald entered the shadow realm,”

His words were like a bolt in the clear sky.

“Entered, what do you mean by entered?”

“When I dropped, she seemed to have tripped over locked inside the shadows,” he explained.

“Tripped? As in she entered and tripped over you and walked out? She is a mortal,” Doctor Hunter insisted.

“I know and she is my wife,”

“Even though. How is what you are saying possible? Mortals can not see us in the shadows realm,” Dr. Hunter asked. 

“Not only back there, back when we were fighting the Lost Ones, we were looking for Master Matthew, she heard us and broke into a run,” Samuel said.

“Seeing, touching, hearing...”

“I don’t know how that would work, but she tripped, did not leave and they suddenly could not approach me,” Matthew explained.

“Who couldn’t approach?” 

“The wolves. She literally grabbed me and dragged me out of the shadow realm,” Matthew explained.

“This cannot be a simple mortal then,” Doctor Hunter descended into thought, before he spun to the two by the corner, “And where were you two throughout all this?” he asked them.

“We could not get close to the master no matter how hard we tried. It was as though the master had been locked away in a different space,” Samuel said, his emotions all over the place.

“We could see the master after stepping out of the shadows, but we could not get close. It was as though there was a wall around him. This barrier only disappeared when the master got to the hospital,” Leo explained much calmly than Samuel.

“Then she really isn’t a normal person. What are you going to do? If I had not met her, I would have said she was too dangerous to keep around, she does not seem to have any clue. Besides, how can you leave and not let me see your wife I had thought was not real? Mr. Reeves, you might as well stay and let Mrs. Reeves take care of you,” Doctor Hunter said cheekily, his serious demeanor melting just as quickly as it condensed. He was expecting to be scolded by Mathew, but was only met with silence. 

“Leo,” Matthew called and Leo answered, appearing by his bedside instantly.

“Stay close by, don’t leave her side.” he ordered and Leo nodded, to a step back and was swallowed by shadow.

“She has an odd relationship with her family. Keep an eye out so they don’t do something,” Matthew muttered before looking up at Doctor Hunter who pressed the emergency button by his bedside to alert a nurse.

“I need to take a blood sample to test for the drug. Samuel you should stay hidden,” Doctor Hunter instructed and Samuel faded from sight.

“When is the next visiting hour?” Matthew asked.

“Noon, Why?” Doctor Hunter asked.

“Don’t you need to tell my wife I have woken up?” he asked and Doctor Hunter’s eyes widened excitedly.

“Shouldn’t I just inform my sister in law you have woken up at once? VIPs can visit whenever they want,” he said excitedly. 

“You are too excited for your own good,” Matthew said and closed his eyes to rest just in time for the nurse to come in. 

Doctor Hunter held his tongue when he was pretending to sleep. It doesn’t matter. As the attending doctor, he will be here when his sister in law comes again.

Emerald on the other hand was unaware that her ‘husband’ had woken up. She was worn from the matters that night and almost slept off in the taxi. 

Getting home as quickly as she could, she rushed into the house to find her mother on the couch watching a drama.

“So, you know where your house is,” she heard her mother say as she locked the doors behind her.

“Mom, why did you suddenly come?” she asked as she entered the living room, but she did not pause to greet as she rushed past her into the small galley kitchen. 

She opened two of her cupboards and checked everything was still intact and sighed in relief, only to turn and meet her mother’s fierce gaze by the kitchen door.

“Mom,” she started.

“You went to find your food the moment you came home? You are more worried 6about your food than to greet your Mom,” her mother started.

“Mom, you were the one that scared me to think you had messed with my kitchen. You are more likely to burn down my apartment if I am not careful. Besides, you break everything you touch in the kitchen, you broke two frying pans, even a very nice wok,” Emerald answered.

“Why can’t you buy actual pots? Which pots break like plates?” Her mother scolded.

“It's porcelain, it’s expensive.”

“Who uses porcelain to make a wok? They are not afraid of Chinese ancestors flogging them at night? And you dare use it,” her mother sneered and walked off, returning to the living room to sit on the couch.

“Mom...” she started, “You have not even told me why you came?”

“Do I need a reason to come see you? You, talk. Where are you coming from?” her mother asked, “It's not as though you have found me a son in law, so why are you walking the night? Haven’t we warned you that you are bound to the dark? You have been ignoring these words since you came to the city, right?”

“I have not been, Mom. I sometimes have no choice, my editor says I should handle this interview no matter what. If I can’t finish this, I might lose my bonus this year. But you, why did you come out of the blue? And there is no way your doctors would have agreed to that, only an idiot would believe that,” she said.

“What have you been doing in the city? Your grandmother called and made a fuss that night to ask about you,” hearing her mother’s words, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

“What did she say?” she asked and her mother paused for a little over a second. One look and Emerald could tell she had words at the tip of her tongue, but she seemed reluctant to say. Soon she waved Emerald away.

“Go to sleep, don’t you have work tomorrow?” she said and increased the volume of her drama.

She was not stupid. She knew something had happened. Emerald wanted to ask what her mother was not saying but she held her tongue and went to bed.

 She woke up the next morning and hurried out to work. She did not have time to arrange her materials because she came home late the night before. 

She knew her editor, Mrs. Jensen would not scold her too much but she did not want to disappoint her, after all, she was the one who asked to take on this interview. So she took the morning off to pursue her task. 

She met up with the appointments set to meet the CEO of Remus Tech. But, the CEO was said to be in a meeting. Since they were the ones who had failed to show up for the appointment twice, they apologized and set a new date with the CEO’s secretary promising that the next morning will definitely be set aside in his calendar. She finally got an official appointment. 

Her phone rang at that moment. It was Emily.

“Em, what’s up,” Emily said.

“What could possibly be up. Just came back from an interview,” Emerald answered.

“About Matthew. You were paraded as his wife all night, you can’t leave me out on the tea,”

Emerald suddenly recalled the man in the hospital.

“We rescheduled so that we might talk about it. I had to leave because of the interview and could not talk. I will keep you posted,” Emerald said and ended the call.

She had work to think about. She had to arrange plans for her interview.

Even though this pleased her, she had still not gotten the interview, so she could already tell the look on Lucy Gruiel’s face when she came in without finishing her assignment by noon. 

And sure enough, when she walked in the next there, Lucy had just walked in just like her. She knew enemies were like ghosts; they hovered over their hunts day and night, as though they had a homing signal in the beyond pointed to the victim, they arrived just on time, to drain your spirit.

“Oh, isn’t this Miss Jackson, how is your big client interview going?” she asked almost as though she knew it would fail.

“Don’t worry about it too much. When I get that front page, you will sponsor me to dinner, right?” Emerald asked with a sickening smile.

“Oh I would love to, so work hard, Okay?” Lucy said.

“We should both work hard, don’t worry, Mrs. Jensen is seeing your hard work, even though you have not had much notable work in the past two years, you have been working hard and we have all seen it. Don’t worry, you will get there,” Emerald said with sincere eyes and walked to her desk.

“You mock me, Emerald. It seems writing a few articles have gone to your head,” Lucy Walked after her and paused by her desk. 

“Look, I don’t have the energy for you today, Lucy. I have expended all the energy I have for nonsense yesterday. If you taunt me, I will throw it back at you. If you have time to comment about my work, then find time to put the same energy into your articles then, you can stand on high ground and taunt me,” Emerald snapped at her.

Lucy was frozen in shock. Is this the Emerald that would always be cautious no matter how many digs she took at her? She was not the only one. 

The entire office paused to watch the show. If anyone had told them that the soft spoken Emerald would one day snap, well, they wouldn't believe it. 

They are shocked she lasted this long taking Lucy’s insults and plots with grace. But, they were still shocked she snapped this way.

“You dare? You dare talk to me like that?” Lucy asked.

“Dare? What a word. If someone doesn’t know, they would think you are descended god that us mortals dare not defy, or they would think you are my boss,” 

These words shut Lucy up. The next moment, her phone rang and she picked it up in anger.

“Yes?” she answered rudely.

“Is this Mrs. Jackson, I am calling from the first central hospital. Your husband has woken up,” the person behind the phone said and her eyes widened in shock. she dropped everything and hurried out, leaving behind the paused office. 

It would soon be her break, so she decided to use the time to settle the matters at the hospital.

She arrived at the hospital quickly and rushed to the VIP wing. 

She paused at the door to take a few breaths and arrange her thoughts before cautiously opening the door to peek into the room at the man on the bed. He put down the magazine he was holding and rested his eyes on her.

“Come inside, Wife,” he said to her and she felt her body freeze into the twelfth level of hell.