Chapter 196

Leslie’s heart squeezed tight, and in a flash, cold sweat soaked her back. She grabbed a mask, pressed it over her face, and bolted for the door.
The hallway outside was completely empty. Only the sharp smell of disinfectant hung in the air; there wasn’t a single person in sight.
Did she just imagine that?
She stood there, gasping, hand pressed to her chest, trying to slow her wild heartbeat.
She was sure she’d caught a glimpse of someone moving just outside the door a second ago. How could they disappear so quickly?
Her eyes flicked up to the security camera on the ceiling. The little red light was still out. Only then did she let herself breathe a little easier.
Still on edge, she glanced around one last time. When she was certain the coast was clear, she hurried away.
Back in the room, Mr. Ratcliff lay quietly under a thin gray blanket, his chest rising and falling so gently you could barely tell he was breathing.
Once Leslie was gone, the nurse’s aide took off her headphones and walked over to check the IV bag.
Then her gaze slid over to Mr. Ratcliff’s face, and her whole body went cold.
His oxygen mask was crumpled, the tube connecting it to the tank snapped clean in half. His chest barely moved now. Every so often, a faint, raspy sound rattled in his throat.
The aide’s legs nearly gave out. She almost collapsed, panic surging through her until her mind was blank.
Just a few minutes ago, when that woman was here, Mr. Ratcliff had been fine. How could he be like this now?
She’d been tricked.
That woman had said she just wanted to visit Mr. Ratcliff to thank him for his help in the past, to have a quick chat.
She’d seemed so sincere, and she really did know Mr. Ratcliff. That was the only reason the aide had reluctantly agreed. She never imagined things would turn out like this.
If Mr. Ratcliff’s family found out she’d let someone in and put him at risk, she’d be in serious trouble.
Fear washed over her, drowning out everything else. All she could think about was getting out of there-fast.
Meanwhile, downstairs-
Reese sat by Annie’s bed, turning a little charm over and over in her palm.
She knew Sebastian wanted to fix things between them; she could see he was trying. But she just couldn’t do it. She didn’t dare gamble her heart on him again.
“Auntie?”
Annie blinked awake, catching the worried look on Reese’s face. Her eyes dropped to the charm in Reese’s hand. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ
“Did you get that for me?”
Whenever Annie was sick, her mom always brought her a charm and prayed she’d get better. So when she saw Reese holding one, that’s what she thought.
Reese’s fingers froze. Seeing the hope in Annie’s eyes, she couldn’t bring herself to tell the truth. She smiled gently and put the charm in Annie’s hand.
“I hope this keeps you safe, Annie. No more getting sick, no more nightmares.”
She slipped the cord over Annie’s head, tucking the charm under her collar. “If you keep it close, it’ll always be with you.”
That was it. She and Sebastian were over. It wasn’t worth making a fuss to give the charm back; it would only make things messy with her divorce plans giving it to Annie was better At least Sebastian’s good intentions would be passed on.
Annie touched the warm charm resting on her chest and looked up at Reese.
“Thank you. Auntie, what were you thinking about just now? You looked really worried.”
“You’re welcome.” Reese reached
out, gently fixing Annie’s messy bangs. was just thinking about your great-grandpa. I’m a little worried about how he’s doing upstairs.”
“Then you should go see him,” Annie said, pushing Reese’s arm. “Don’t worry about me. I’m already feeling much better, and the nurse is here with me.”
She glanced down at her hospital gown. “I wish I could go too, but if great- grandpa saw me like this, he’d only get upset. So you have to come back and tell me how he is, okay?”
“Okay.”
Reese patted Annie’s head, her heart aching at how mature this little girl was.
She gave the nurse a look, silently asking her to take care of Annie, then walked out of the room.
As she stepped off the elevator, she nearly bumped into the aide rushing out of Mr. Ratcliff’s room. Reese
noticed the door sy open
and felt a knot of worry tighten in her chest.