Chapter 49
+15 BONOS
Angeline dialed Zachary’s number as soon as she left the airplane. “How’s Anne?”
Zachary didn’t dare tell Angeline the truth. “She. She’s still undergoing surgery.”
After hanging up the phone, Angeline didn’t bother queuing up to get a taxl. She barged into someone else’s ride before anyone could stop her.
The driver originally wanted to force Angeline to go back in line, but when she told him the hospital’s address with reddened eyes, he immediately drove to the destination. He even consoled her, “Is your loved one at the hospital, kid? Don’t panic! We should reach the hospital in a jiffy. There’s not a lot of cars on the road right now.”
“Okay,” Angeline mumbled, her fingers turning white because of how hard they gripped her phone.
Zachary awaited Angeline’s arrival outside the hospital entrance with an umbrella in hand. He paced back and forth as he waited, repeatedly rehearsing how to break the news of Anne’s death to Angeline later.
But death was death. No matter how Zachary tried to tweak the message, it would do nothing to soothe Angeline’s pain.
Zachary hadn’t even prepared his words to say to Angeline when her taxi arrived at the entrance.
Zachary went over to raise the umbrella over Angeline’s head when she stepped out.
“Is the surgery not over yet?” Angeline was frantic. She closed the car door behind her and marched right into the hospital. “Which floor is she on?”
“Angie!” Zachary stopped, grabbing Angeline’s arm.
She turned around to see the saddened expression on Zachary’s face. Her entire body was strung tight with tension. She choked out, “Which… floor is it?”
Zachary swallowed nervously and gripped the umbrella tight before saying. “The doctor tried their best, Angie
But they couldn’t save her. Anne actually passed away before your plane arrived.”
Angeline’s mind went blank in an instant. All she could hear was the sound of the rain hitting the umbrella above her.
She felt weak all over. Her legs began trembling.
Tears filled Angeline’s eyes, but she didn’t dare blink them away. “Which floor is Anne on?”
“She’s already been sent to the morgue.” The moment Zachary said this, Angeline turned around to go into the hospital.
But her step caught mid-air.
“Angie!” Zachary swiftly helped Angeline stand before helping her walk into the hospital. He explained what had happened to her along the way, “Anne stayed behind in Oceanford to see Ned. She went to Gemstone Gourmet to find him when she heard he was having a meal there. Who knew a car would lose control to avoid
Angeline couldn’t imagine the scene that had happened. She was stunned and silent as Zachary helped her walk into the elevator.
She came to a stop outside the morgue, fingers tightly gripping her shirt. Tears threatened to fall from her eyes as her breathing harshened.
“I–I’ll go inside myself.” Angeline’s voice was barely audible.
“Okay.” Zachary helped her open the door.
Anne was lying silently beneath a white cloth inside the morgue.
The bracelet Angeline and Henrietta had made for Anne during New Year last year was still around her wrist, blood now coagulated on the skin.
Angeline’s legs felt like they were pumped full of lead. She took a long time to reach the tableside.
She swallowed nervously, gently held Anne’s ice–cold hand, and pulled the cloth back.
When Anne’s lifeless face appeared, Angeline clasped Anne’s hand tight and placed it on her cheek. Pain and sadness filled her chest, making it hard for her to breathe.
