Chapter fourteen: Gone
The white ceiling, beeping machines and the smell of antiseptic hit her nose.
Elena's eyes fluttered open, her mind foggy and disoriented. Hospital again. How many times would she wake up in these sterile white rooms?
"You're awake." Dr. Morrison stood beside her bed, checking monitors with the same gentle efficiency he'd shown before. "How are you feeling?"
"How did I…" Elena's throat was raw. "What happened?"
"You collapsed. Severe exhaustion, dehydration, malnutrition." Dr. Morrison's expression was kind but concerned. "Elena, you're pregnant. You can't keep pushing your body like this."
Reality crashed back. The eviction. The confrontation at Steele Enterprises. Alexander's cold eyes, calling her a liar. The rain. The bench.
"Who brought me here?" Though she already knew the answer.
Dr. Morrison hesitated. "Mr. Steele. He found you at the bus stop and brought you in himself. He was... quite insistent about your care."
