Chapter 77
[INSIDE THE PRIVATE WARD]
The room carried a heavy stillness.
Not peaceful or calm.
Just... still.
The soft, rhythmic beeping of the monitor filled the space, steady and mechanical, the only thing confirming that Aurora was still here... still breathing.
She lay motionless against the white sheets.
An oxygen mask covered her nose and mouth. Her chest rose slowly beneath the thin hospital gown, each breath shallow, like her body hadn't fully decided if it wanted to keep going.
Dr. Nina stood near the foot of the bed, eyes scanning the monitor one last time before turning to the couple beside her.
"You can sit with her now."
Gemma didn't wait.
She moved immediately to Aurora's side, her fingers trembling as they reached for her daughter's hand.
Melvin followed, quieter, heavier. He took the other side, his presence firm but shaken in a way he couldn't hide.
Nina watched them for a moment.
Then she spoke again, softer this time.
"Even while unconscious... she hasn't stopped crying."
Gemma's breath caught sharply.
Melvin's jaw tightened, his thumb pressing gently against Aurora's hand as if grounding himself.
"She's not fully gone," Nina continued carefully. "Her mind is still active. She's reliving something... over and over."
A pause.
"She needs something stronger than that memory."
Gemma looked up at her, eyes already wet.
"She needs you," Nina said simply. "She needs to feel that there's something here worth coming back to."
Silence settled.
Then Nina gave a small nod and stepped away.
"I'll be outside if anything changes."
The door clicked softly behind her.
And just like that... it was just them.
Gemma's composure broke almost immediately.
"Oh my baby..." her voice trembled as she lifted Aurora's hand to her lips, pressing a lingering kiss against it. "I'm so sorry..."
Her tears fell freely now, landing softly against Aurora's skin.
"I should have told you... I should have protected you better... please forgive me..."
Across from her, Melvin leaned forward, his hand moving to Aurora's hair, brushing it back gently from her face.
"Princess..." he murmured, his voice low, strained. "You can be angry. You can hate us. Just... wake up."
He swallowed hard.
"Do whatever you want. Just don't leave."
His voice broke on the last word.
"We're not losing another child."
Gemma inhaled sharply at that.
Her body shifted closer, almost folding into the bed as she leaned toward Aurora.
"Baby..." she whispered, her voice barely holding together. "Do you know you have a sister?"
The words hung in the air.
"A twin..."
Melvin closed his eyes briefly, like the truth still hurt to say even now.
"She was taken from us," Gemma continued, her voice cracking under the weight of it. "Right after she was born... we didn't even get to hold her properly..."
Her grip tightened around Aurora's hand.
"Her name is Annora."
Tears streamed down her face unchecked.
"I imagined everything..." she whispered.
"Both of you growing up together... playing... fighting... arguing over dresses... throwing silly parties..."
She shook her head slowly.
"I imagined a life we never got."
Her voice dropped.
"And I can't lose you too."
Melvin leaned closer, his forehead almost touching Aurora's arm.
"You hear me?" he murmured. "Stay. Just stay."
Gemma's hand moved gently to Aurora's cheek.
"You're not there anymore," she whispered urgently. "You're not in that room. You're here. You're safe. You're with us..."
Her voice broke completely now.
"Come back to me, baby... please..."
The monitor continued its steady rhythm.
Unchanged.
But Aurora's lashes... trembled faintly.
So slight it could have been nothing.
Or everything.
★
[OUTSIDE THE WARD]
Oma stood by the glass panel, arms wrapped tightly around herself.
Watching.
Listening.
Feeling like her chest might collapse inward at any second.
She turned suddenly to Elara.
"What did you mean earlier?" her voice came out sharp, strained. "When you said she came home like that?"
Elara hesitated, glancing briefly at Xander before answering.
"Her eyes... they were red. Puffy. Like she'd been crying for hours."
Oma froze.
The pieces connected too quickly.
Leonard.
Her jaw clenched hard.
Xander frowned, stepping closer. "What are you not saying?"
Oma didn't respond.
She was already pulling her phone out as she walked away.
Dialing.
Once.
No answer.
Again.
Still nothing.
"Pick up, you bastard."
Her breathing grew heavier.
Again.
Voicemail.
Her laugh came out bitter.
"Of course."
The tone beeped.
She didn't hold back.
"So you're telling me she had an episode..." her voice shook, barely controlled. "And you took her with you."
A pause.
"You took her away... and she went back home broken."
Her grip tightened around the phone.
"And now she's in a hospital, Leonard."
Her voice dropped, dangerous.
"She just found out something that shattered her completely... and you were the last person with her."
Silence.
"What did you do to her?" she demanded.
Her voice cracked into something raw.
"What did you do to my best friend?"
A breath.
"You don't get to disappear now."
"You motherfucker."
She ended the call.
Her hands were shaking.
And this time... she didn't even try to hide it.
★
[HOTEL ROOM]
The room was dim now.
The bright lights from earlier had been switched off, leaving only the soft glow of a lamp at the corner.
The sheets were no longer neat.
Neil sat on the bed, his hands resting on it for support as Kiara took him in her mouth.
Groans left his mouth as she sucked on him with her eyes closed. She didn't like tgis one bit, she felt disgusted.
But what could she do?
Anything to get the money.
"You're too stiff." Neil pushed her head with a hand, his length almost hitting her throat. She gagged and withdrew her mouth.
He sighed, unimpressed.
"Is this your first time?" He gave her a look.
She didn't respond, just kept catching her breaths and coughing.
"Relax," he added.
Kiara lifted her head, exhaling deeply.
She swallowed quietly, her throat dry.
"Is this your first time doing this?" he asked again.
There was something in his tone.
Curious. Amused.
Kiara's jaw tightened.
"No," she lied.
The word came out flat.
Well it wasn't really a lie, given she's done this before.
But the fact that he asked. Was she that bad?
He hummed like he didn't believe her.
But he didn't push.
"Look at me," he said.
She didn't.
Not immediately.
Her eyes stayed fixed on the floor.
"Kiara."
That made her blink.
Slowly.
She looked up to meet his smirk.
"It's either you're too innocent for this or you're not a pro yet. Else you should've known deep throating is the real deal while giving head." He said with a smile, almost a mocking one.
He patted her head with yet another mocking smile.
"We'll try this another time."
Another time?
There won't be another time.
Gawd, she felt so embarrassed right now.
She stood up and went for her bag immediately, put her heels on and started leaving the room.
"Your payment"
His voice stopped her immediately.
She turned.
He stood up and walked nakedly to her with his phone in hand.
She stayed silent.
" I don't do cheating. Your digits." He opened his phone.
"I... barely did anything..." She mumbled.
"You had me in your mouth, I groaned a little. So yeah, it counts." He shrugged.
"Digits" He repeated.
Kiara stayed silent for a while then called it for him.
His fingers tapped on his phone for a few seconds.
" Done." Neil said, going back to the bed." Have a nice night. I'll call again."
Kiara's phone dinged, she took it out of her bag and her eyes went wide at the top notification.
Half a million? For what?
She looked at him on the bed, still tapping on his phone as if je didn't just send her....
Kiara opened her mouth to speak, nothing came out.
All she could do was stare at him then her screen.
He finally looked up. "Any problem?" He raised an eyebrow.
"No.... No." She turned and left the room immediately.
Oh, she was definitely meeting him again. Half a million for her amateur moves? Imagine if she did more?
She smiled as she walked down the hall.
She was gonna learn more, and earn more too.
Her smile broadened.
★
[NEXT MORNING - DR. NINA'S OFFICE]
The exhaustion on Gemma and Melvin's faces was undeniable.
They looked like they hadn't slept.
Like even breathing took effort.
Dr. Nina sat across from them, calm but careful.
"She's stable."
Gemma exhaled shakily, her hand moving instinctively to her chest.
"But she's not fully responsive yet," Nina added.
Melvin leaned forward slightly. "Explain."
"Her body is holding on," Nina said. "But her mind is still... somewhere else."
A pause.
"She's processing something severe. The kind of shock that doesn't just pass overnight."
Gemma's fingers intertwined tightly.
"She cried through sedation," Nina continued quietly. "That tells us her brain is still actively reliving the trauma."
Silence filled the room.
"But-" Nina added, and this time her tone shifted slightly, "she didn't crash."
Both of them looked up.
"There were moments her vitals dropped last night," Nina explained. "But every time... she pulled herself back."
Melvin's throat tightened.
"That's not coincidence."
Gemma blinked, tears gathering again.
"She's fighting?" she whispered.
Nina nodded once.
"Yes."
A beat.
"And that's why I believe she'll wake up."
Hope.
Fragile. Careful.
"But when she does," Nina added gently,
"she might not be the same again..."
That truth sat heavy between them.
[PRIVATE WARD - LATER]
The room was quiet again.
Too quiet.
Oma sat beside Aurora, holding her hand.
"You know..." she started softly, voice uneven, "you're actually very annoying. And you have anger issues, and hate almost everyone."
A small, broken smile touched her lips.
"But I love you anyway."
Her thumb brushed against Aurora's fingers.
"You don't get to leave me now. That's not how this works."
Xander leaned against the wall, arms folded.
"You stress everyone out with your temper issues" he muttered. "This place is boring without you."
Elara stood nearby, quieter.
"You don't realize how loud you are... until you're not talking."
Silence settled again.
Oma stood after a moment.
"I'll go call Ivy and Rose."
Elara nodded. "We'll stay."
"You need to eat something. You haven't had anything since yesterday." Xander said.
"I'm fine-"
"Lara. Not today. You get greatly affected when you don't eat. C'mon you're eating now. Let's go."
"Fine," Elara sighed. "Let's go together."
We'll be back."
A nurse was called in.
"Stay with her," Xander instructed.
The nurse nodded.
They stepped out.
[MINUTES LATER]
The hallway felt longer than before.
Quieter.
Xander pushed the door open first.
Then stopped.
Completely.
The bed-
Empty.
The sheets were slightly disturbed.
The monitor still running.
But Aurora-
Gone.
Elara stepped in behind him.
Her breath hitched.
"...what?"
Oma rushed in seconds later.
"What's wrong-"
She froze.
Everything inside her dropped.
"Aurora...?"
Nothing.
No answer.
No sound.
Just the faint hum of the machines.
★
[INSIDE THE VAN - MOVING]
The engine hummed low beneath the silence.
Mr. Thorne drove without a word, eyes fixed on the road ahead.
In the back-
Aurora lay still.
Unconscious. Sedated actually. Fragile. Unaware.
Someone sat beside her, watching.
Zane.
His fingers brushed slowly through her hair, almost gently.
A smile curved his lips.
"You made this easy for me, baby..."
His voice was soft. Possessive.
"Walking out like that... all on your own."
He tilted his head slightly, studying her face.
"I wonder why."
A pause.
Then a quiet chuckle.
"Too much, wasn't it? Wanted to end everything? Not on my watch.... "
His hand slid to her cheek.
"Couldn't let you make my plans futile. I travelled immediately for you. You see how much i love you?"
"You wanted to end your life?"
"Everything crashing down at once... you couldn't take it."
He leaned closer.
"Don't worry."
A whisper.
"I'm here now."
His smile deepened.
"And this time... we're not being separated."
His fingers tightened slightly.
"We'll start over."
A breath.
"Together."
His eyes darkened.
"Forever."
TBC...