Chapter 4 - The Triage of the Soul
The master bedroom on the second floor was silent and warm.
The fire crackled softly in the stone hearth, casting a soft golden glow over the white king-sized bed. I had carried Emily up the stairs myself, refusing to let her feet touch the ground, and set her gently against the silk pillows.
A team of three private doctors—led by Dr. Chen, the chief of maternal medicine at Cedars-Sinai, whom Marcus had summoned on an emergency dispatch—were wrapping up their examination.
I stood near the foot of the bed, my arms folded tightly across my chest, my heart racing with every second the doctor remained silent.
Finally, Dr. Chen stepped away from the diagnostic ultrasound machine, pulling off his gloves and giving me a reassuring smile.
"The baby is strong, Daniel," Dr. Chen said softly. "Heartbeat is high and steady—152 beats per minute. A resilient little boy."
A massive weight lifted from my chest, so heavy that I had to catch my breath against the bedpost. "And Emily?"
Dr. Chen’s smile faded, replaced by a dark, professional frown. "Physically, she is suffering from moderate dehydration, mild malnutrition, and localized bruising on her wrists and ankles. Her stress levels were dangerously elevated. If she had remained in those conditions for another forty-eight hours... I don't think the pregnancy would have survived."
I closed my eyes, my fists clenching so hard my knuckles turned white. Forty-eight hours. I had come home just in time.
"I’m prescribing full bed rest, a specialized nutritional regimen, and daily monitoring," Dr. Chen added, handing me a file. "She needs quiet, love, and security, Daniel. No more trauma."
"She will have the entire world if she asks for it," I said.
After the medical team left the room, I walked over to the side of the bed and sat down on the edge. Emily had been changed out of the gray uniform and into a soft, cashmere robe. The diamond necklace still rested around her collarbone, sparkling against her warm skin.
I reached out, gently smoothing back a strand of hair from her cheek. "How are you feeling, my love?"
Emily leaned her head into my palm, letting out a long, shuddering sigh. "I thought I was dreaming when I heard the tray crash," she whispered, tears glistening in her dark eyes. "I prayed every single night that you would come through that door, Daniel. But every time I asked about you, Margaret told me..."
Her voice cracked.
"What did she tell you, Emily?" I asked softly, my chest aching.
"She told me... she told me you realized you made a mistake marrying me," Emily sobbed, hiding her face in her hands. "She said you were staying in Singapore because you were disgusted by my background... she said you instructed them to keep me in the service quarters so I wouldn't embarrass the family when investors came over..."
"They lied to you," I choked out, pulling her into my arms and holding her close, kissing her forehead, her eyes, her lips. "They lied to you because they are wicked, miserable parasites who knew you were the only thing keeping them from taking everything I built. I never stopped loving you for a single second. Every deal I signed, every flight I took, was so I could build a world where you and our baby would never have to worry about a thing."
"They took my phone, Daniel," Emily whispered against my neck. "They locked me in the housekeeper's room in the basement every night. Ashley took my mother's wedding ring off my finger... she said a beggar didn't deserve to wear gold."
The blood in my veins turned to liquid fire.
"They took your mother's ring?" I asked, my voice dropping into a deadly whisper.
Emily nodded weakly. "Ashley took it two weeks ago. She said she was going to have the stone reset into a pair of cufflinks for her husband."
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I squeezed my eyes shut, taking a deep, slow breath to keep the rage from consuming me entirely.
"I will get your mother's ring back, Emily," I swore to her, resting my hand over her belly, feeling the gentle, miraculous kick of my unborn son against my palm. "And I will make sure Ashley, Michael, and Margaret pay for every single second of pain they inflicted on you."
