Mitchell snapped back to reality, watching Effie and Lyman disappear down the corridor. He felt as if something had been hollowed out inside him.


    He turned stiffly toward the doctor, forcing the words out. "I''m... her boyfriend."


    Those two words felt as heavy as lead.


    The doctor gave a nomittal grunt, then said, "The patient experienced some bleeding. Her condition is concerning, but we''ve handled the immediate emergency."


    He lowered his voice, speaking more firmly. "But I suggest you stop putting her through so much stress. Let her rest and take proper care of her. If something like this happens again, no one will be able to save her and the baby. You could lose them both."


    Adeline swayed, nearly copsing.


    Mitchell caught her just in time. "Mom," he said quietly.


    Adeline clung to Mitchell''s hand, her voice trembling as she murmured, "The baby... the baby must be okay."


    At that moment, Suzan was wheeled out of the room. Her eyes were red and puffy -she''d clearly been crying.


    Spotting Mitchell, she let out a choked sob. "Mitchell..."


    Seeing her like that, Mitchell''s chest tightened with pity. He hurried over to her side.


    Suzan grabbed his hand and broke downpletely, her tears flowing even harder.


    Mitchell spoke to her gently,forting her until, after a long while, she finally began to calm down.


    He asked, "What happened today?"


    At first, Suzan hesitated to answer.


    She didn''t want Mitchell to know everything she''d done. She finally said, "I went to


    meet Mr. Hoffman about the partnership."


    Mitchell nodded. "I know about that."


    Originally, he''d nned to go with her, but something urgent hade up at work, so he''d asked Suzan to handle it. Their proposal had been solid he was confident they''dnd the deal.


    Suzan''s eyes filled with fresh tears as she faltered, "When I got to the stables, I ran into my sister. She... still won''t forgive me..."


    Her voice broke, and she started crying loudly again.


    She didn''t add anything else, but her reaction left plenty of room for suspicion.


    Mitchell''s brow furrowed deeply. He clenched his jaw. "So, Effie really didy a hand on you?"


    Suzan didn''t answer. She just kept crying, refusing to say another word.


    Mitchell would draw his own conclusions.


    Her sobs grated on his nerves. "Enough, Suzan," he said. "Stop crying. Lyman told me he''s not letting this go. If Effie hurt you,! haven''t even begun to settle things with her. If anything happens to your baby, I swear I won''t let Effie off the hook."


    Suzan froze, her sobs abruptly cut off.


    She clung to Mitchell, panic etched across her face. Her hands trembled, knuckles white with tension.


    Mitchell noticed her distress and felt a prick of suspicion-she was hiding something.


    He asked carefully, "Are you keeping something from me?"


    Suzan snapped to attention, biting her lip. She shook her head, trying to look innocent. “Mitchell, I''m scared,” she whispered.


    "Even if Lyman doesn''t really care for Effie, he''s still with her. If Effie tells


    himing bad about us, wilkhe


    Suzan''s eyes were rimmed red, her voice trembling between sniffles—she looked like a helpless littlemb.


    Mitchell''s heart softened instantly, and any lingering doubts melted away.