Steven pushed the giant doors of Graceville Memorial Hospital, running towards the front desk.“Looking for Marie Blair Watson…” He hollered, barely stopping to catch a breath.“Okay, please one moment.” The kind looking nurse said as she scrolled through a tab.“I can’t find a Marie Blair Watson here…”“I’m pretty sure she’s here. She just got admitted. She’s in a coma?”“Nope.” The nurse said, barely sparing the tablet a second glance.“Do you have a Marie King?”The nurse looked through the tab and nodded this time.“I do. Who are you?”“Her bloody husband! Who do you think I am? Where’s my wife?”“Please, keep your voice down, Mr. King.” She said, glaring at him. Steven clenched his fists and followed her. She took him round a corridor and pushed back a curtain. Immediately Sandra saw him, she flung herself into his arms sobbing.“Oh Steven! What are we going to do? Oh Marie…” She said,Steven stumbled forward to the bed where his wife lay. She was hooked up to a ventilator with h
“Sorry, I took so long.” Sandra said as she barreled down the stairs. He was still glued to the spot with the takeout in his hand when he turned to face her.“I thought you said Marie didn't make it to your house, Sandra?” He asked.“Yes, I did. She never made it here.”“And the Mexican food made it? How do you explain that, Sandra?”She glared at him for some seconds before throwing her head back in laughter.“Are you crazy, Steven King? You think I did that to her? What did I do? Run her over with my car?”“I'm just trying to make sense of what's happening, Sandra. How come the food made it to your house and my wife didn’t?”“If you must know, Mr King. Zed came over to my house after work today. You can call him and confirm. Did you stop to think of why Marie was bringing me Mexican food? Because I asked her to! And I had already asked Zed to ask well! And shame on you for thinking I would hurt my best friend!” She screamed, waving her hands around her.“Sandra…”“No, Steven. I don'
“Is she going to be alright?” Sandra asked“Of course, Sandra. She’ll be alright. In fact I think she’ll wake up in the morning and ask us why we worried in the first place.”Sandra let out a shaky breath as Steven squeezed her shoulder before heading out. He stopped at a deli to pick up some sandwiches for James before heading back to the hospital.James took one look at him and let out a whistle.“I don't want to hear it, James. I'm tired. Here, have a sandwich and leave me alone, please.”“You're doing that stupid thing again, aren't you City Boy?”Steven's features hardened as he turned away from James. He wasn't ready to have this conversation with him.“You can turn your face away all you want but you know I'm right.”“Uh huh.”“You cannot possibly blame yourself for this, Steven.”“You're the only one that seems to think so, James. Alden blames me. He thinks I messed up and brought this upon her.”“He’s angry, City Boy.”“But that doesn't make any sense. He barely knows Marie.
“You know, I haven’t thought about that. I think I left it at the scene of the accident. I was just so focused on getting Marie here. When the ambulance came, I jumped in and didn’t think about anything else.” Sandra replied.“Okay, but did you see it at all?” Steven asked,“I didn’t. But honestly, that wasn’t at the top of my mind. Why? Do you think there’s something on it that can help us?”“Maybe,” Steven said as he dropped into a chair.“I mean it’s my neighborhood, so I could go look for it. James can come with me if you like?”“There’s no need. I’ll get people on it. I just needed to confirm you hadn’t seen it.”She shook her head sideways and muttered an apology before taking a sip from her Sprite can. Steven cast a longing glance at the bed, but there was no response from his comatose wife. James offered him a watery smile before sitting at the other end of the room. All three took turns napping as they waited for an update on Marie’s condition. In the evening, the doctor appe
“The next time he calls, we’ll be ready to trace it,” James said, as he hovered around Steven. Steven, who suddenly felt exhausted nodded his head and downed the rest of the hot chocolate.“You need to eat something, City Boy,” James said to his friend.“You haven’t eaten either, James. Quit bugging me.” He retorted as he ran his hand over his face.“I’ll see Sarah about fixing something for us to eat. Meanwhile, you should take a nap and then a shower before we head back to the hospital.”“I’m not hungry, but I’ll try to take a nap.” He said as he headed towards the elevator.Steven felt the heaviness in his shoulders with every step. He climbed into his bed and opened his email. He scoured through, searching for the email Mr. Kaito had spoken about but couldn't find it. It was obvious that whoever had sent the email hadn't passed it through his desk. Was this connected to the leaks and his ongoing investigation? Would finding the person in the team who had sent the email to Mr. kait
“Are you okay?”James asked, stroking Sandra's shoulders as she sobbed harder. Steven frowned at them as he watched James try to soothe Sandra. The innocent lady had experienced a scare because of him. Because he had foolishly fallen asleep instead of coming back to the hospital to be with his wife. He was never letting her out of his sight again.“I'm so sorry, Sandra. We need to get someone to look at your bruises.”“I'm fine, really. There are just a few bruises. The important thing is finding out who that man was and making him pay.”“Look, Sandra. This is becoming too dangerous. I can't have you getting caught in the crossfire.”“Don't you dare, Steven King. My best friend is in a freaking coma! If you think I'm going to back down and let this guy win, then you don't know me!”“Sandra, I understand but…”“James, can you let him know I'm not leaving Marie's side ever? This has gotten personal for me too.”James shrugged and Steven let out a terse curse before glancing at his phone.
“I guess you can stay in Marie's room. That way, we are close to her at all times. It's what she'd want anyway.”“Alright, Steven.” She said, walking into Marie's room and shutting the door. Steven got to his room and side-eyed his bed. For now, he was going to treat it like his enemy. Yesterday, he had intended to nap for an hour, but had ended up sleeping till the next morning.He took out a change of clothes and headed to the bathroom. Every step was getting more difficult as the reality of what was happening dawned on him. If Marie didn't wake up before tomorrow, he’d have to move her to the house comatose.The fact that he was spending a small fortune setting up this arrangement didn't bother him as much as the fact that her condition was out of his hands and he didn't know what to do. He was a fixer and had been one for his entire life. If something wasn't working, he fixed it. But now, he had no idea how to fix it. He walked into the bathroom and stared at his reflection in the
Alden!This isn't a joke,I need this leave!” Steven yelled into the phone. He let out a curse and paced as Alden's angry voice rattled on angrily at the other end of the line.“Absolutely not. You think it's alright to shirk your responsibilities at this time? Do you have any idea how much your prolonged absence will hurt the company at the time?”Was his grandfather kidding? He expected Steven to be worried about his darn company when his wife was in a coma and needed him?“I don't freaking care, Alden! I don't care. My wife is in a coma and that's all that matters to me.”“Don't you dare blame this on Marie, Steven. You're asking for an indefinite leave so you can isolate and lick your wounds like you always do when things get tough but I'm not going to let you run my company into the ground!”“Alden!”“Three weeks leave and that's it.”“Maybe I'll quit then. Walk away from it all. I mean I've been thinking about it for a long time.”“Great. Let the scumbags who put your wife in the
Eight months later Marie smiled as she felt Steven’s warm breath dance on her face. Moments later, her eyes flickered open and locked with her husband's handsome eyes.“What's this?” She asked, as she sat up and made space for the tray he was holding.“A celebratory breakfast.” He said as Marie answered with a short laugh.“We can't keep celebrating a sentencing that happened four months ago, Steven.” She said as he ignored her and filled her glass with orange juice.“Who says?” Steven asked, as he planted a kiss on her forehead.“Me. I’m saying.”“Noted. Now eat.” He responded as he plunked on the bed beside her and watched her.“What?” She asked as his eyes roved over her.“I can't believe I almost lost you, Marie.”“You mean the way you were going on and refusing to listen to me?” She teased as she tossed a pillow at his head.“I told you I didn't like that woman.”“I know you told me. You’ve told me so almost a thousand times, Steven. But it was Zed that was the real shock to you
Steven’s mind whirled with thoughts as they headed to the hotel where he was staying. The silence in the air was rife with the weight of unspoken words. He glanced at her again and she looked so ashen. Was she okay? Why had she felt the need to come to Japan? How had she survived the flight? Was that why she looked so white? And why was she trembling so badly?He placed his hands upon hers and it was so sweaty.“Stop trembling. You're making me nervous.” He said in a more gruffer tone than he had planned.Her eyes widened for a second before she mouthed a solemn“Sorry.”She retracted her hand from under his and stuffed it in her laps.Huh. So much for wanting to comfort her. They said nothing to each other after that until the car stopped in front of the hotel.Steven rolled his eyes as Marie argued with the front desk attendant who had patiently explained that the hotel was fully booked and there was nothing she could do about it. To listen to Marie, it was like he was going to har
Steven frowned at the clock ticked noon. All his life, he had never had to wait to see anyone, but here he was, waiting on Mr. Kaito, whom he has been unable to see in the last two days.“Mr. King?” A feminine voice called out.“That's me.” He said in a chirpy voice, smiling even though his insides felt queasy. He knew convincing Mr. Kaito of the fact that Alden King Inc. still deserved his business was going to be tough and he wasn't so sure he was prepared for it. Although, in a way, he felt relieved the truth was out. The pretty brunette led him through a series of doors before stopping before a plush office. She tossed him a tight smile then knocked before leaving Steven on his own.Mr. Kaito took his sweet time before answering the door.“Mr. King, what a pleasant surprise.” Mr. Kaito said as he ushered him to a seat. While his face was smiling, Steven could sense the displeasure in his tone.“Thank you for seeing me.”Mr. Kaito took a long look at him, and Steven could feel the
Marie's hand clenched the steering wheel till her knuckles turned white. Sandra had a lot of nerve, seducing Steven and then trying to pin someone else's pregnancy on him. She jumped out of the car, and headed to the front door. She was about to knock when she noticed the door was open. Zed's loud voice filtered to where she stood.“You had just one job, Sandra! Seduce him! Get him to marry you! Don't think I care about that scum in your belly!”“I tried okay! He loves her! And I’m tired of being your little pawn! You always said you could have taken down Steven King without me so why haven't you?”“I've done everything on my part! You haven't done crap except complicate things for me. You couldn't even convince him to have sex with you. And he was drunk!”“And the only thing you’ve succeeded in doing is killing an innocent woman!” Sandra flung back.“Oh? Breathe a word of that to anyone and see what happens!”“Oh, please. What are you gonna do? Kill me too?” Sandra screamed.Marie to
Marie shoved the rest of her mementos and snapped her box shut. If she wanted to get to Lake George by nightfall, she had to hurry.She chuckled ruefully under her breath as she wondered about the rush. It's not like she had a job anymore or anything she needed to get to. Ten years with Steven, ten years of bending backwards, and all it took was one misunderstanding for him to fire her. She had even gone back and tried to explain but his granite heart hadn't moved. This from the man who though married to her, had decided to knock up her best friend.She frowned as her cell phone rang. She fished it out of her pocket, and held it to her ear with her shoulder as she rolled her luggage out.“James, there's nothing more we can do. I tried, James,”She waited as James tried to convince her not to leave town until he had spoken with Steven but to be honest, she was done begging him. For the most part of her adult life, she had fixated her emotions on him. Letting him treat her like his feel
Steven was slightly out of breath when he arrived at the orchard and ran into Rick.“Uncle Stevie! Wow. Aunty Marie was super fast. I only just spoke to her. Are you here to take me to the Planetarium? You’ve promised many times.” He asked expectantly.“You’re right, buddy. I do owe you a trip to the Planetarium. But that's not going to happen today, buddy. I've been…”“Busy. I know. You’ve had important things to do.” Rick said as a forlorn expression rested on his face. Steven sighed as he lowered himself to the boy’s gaze.“Now, Rick. You know how important you are to me, don't you?” Steven asked.Rick shrugged but Steven refused to let him out of his grasp till Rick said“Yeah.”“Well, Uncle Stevie has just had a lot of things happening to him at the same time. I'm almost done wrapping those things up and then we can go to the Planetarium as many times as you want, okay?”“Really truly?” Rick asked, a huge smile forming on his face.“Really, truly.” He confirmed.“Okay.”“That's m
“So you're headed to the house at Lake George?” Alden asked as Marie watched him peel an orange and toss a piece into his mouth. Ahead of them, Rick was glad that he had a no-school day and was allowed to run amok.“Quite a sugar rush, he’s got.” She remarked as Alden sighed.“Tell me about it. Amelia's going to have my head when she returns. One minute I look away and he downs all that stuff.”“So, what did Steven say when you told him the truth?”She sighed and tossed a piece of the tangerine she had just peeled into her mouth.“What I expected. That it didn't change anything. And that he wished me the best in life.”“He’s so obstinate sometimes.”“I told you to trust him more, Alden. If it were me, I would have been upset too. I know you love him, but you’ve got to stop coddling him!”“You don't understand, Marie. The boy is the light of my whole life. He’s everything William is not. And he was so young when he took over. And it infuriated many people.”“But that was over ten years
“Nice of you to stop for a chat and all but I'm very busy.” Steven said as Marie took her seat and folded her legs. It was like seeing a woman he hadn't met before.“I told him this was a waste of time. You don't work for someone for ten years without knowing how conceited and set in their ways they are.” Marie begun“Look, Marie. I don't know why Alden keeps trying. Isn't the work you've done for him in the past ten years impressive enough?” Steven asked.“Sneer at me, all you want. I'm not here because of Alden, I'm here because James asked me to come to talk to you.” She retorted, leaning forward to place her hand on his desk.While he didn't care about what she had to say, he figured the faster he allowed her to talk, the quicker she’d be out of his hair.“I'm listening.” He said, as leaned back in his seat.“First. I'm sorry I didn't disclose that Alden and I have a relationship.”“He was your boss, and…”“He was my guardian.” Marie cut in.Steven let out a sardonic laughter.“Gu
“What do you mean they're citing reputation issues as their reason for pulling out? We've committed to vendors, paid for the spaces for this exhibition and they're just canceling it?”Zed shrugged as Steven paced furiously. He sighed and leaned over his desk as Zed replied.“They also cited budget constraints and explained that it wasn't top priority for the foreseeable future.”“That's a load of bollocks and we both know it, Zed. Find out the real reason they're pulling the plug.”“I thought so too as well and tried to do some findings. My source alleged that top stakeholders were having cold feet due to our recent…err…”“Recent what?” Steven half yelled as he glared at Zed.“Due to your recent PR fiasco.”“What? They're canceling their activation because some reporter did a story on me?”“Well, Sir. You have to respond. You haven't addressed the rumors yet.”Steven thought about his phone call with Smith three days ago. He vehemently refused to believe what Smith was alleging until