Chapter 5
Carroll stared Rainer down, his tone cold as ice. "Rainer, just look at where you've dumped her. Is this place suitable for a person to live?
"She just woke up. What she needs is peace and a chance to recover, not to be left to rot in some dark, miserable corner!"
Rainer sneered, lips curled in mockery.
He looked at me with open annoyance and said, "Carroll, what did she do to get you so hooked? Three years of sticking by her wasn't enough? She's my wife now, and what I do with her is up to me."
He paused, his voice dripping with contempt.
Then, he added, "The Thornton family is letting her stay here and have a doctor's care out of old ties. Do you expect me to kick Lola out and treat her like she's some kind of treasure?"
Rainer's eyes turned back to Carroll as he assessed him with a hint of barely hidden anger.
Rainer added, "Is she even worth it?"
Those words hit me like a poisoned ice pick, stabbing straight into my heart.
I squeezed my eyes shut and turned my face into Carroll's chest, not wanting to see that cold, indifferent face anymore.
Carroll's body tensed up, and I could feel his chest heaving beneath me.
He drew in a sharp breath, his voice tight as he forced the words out between clenched teeth. "Rainer, you really must be blind.""Rainer, you really must be blind."
With that, he ignored Rainer, held me close, and walked straight out.
As we brushed past Rainer, I caught his icy warning. "Carroll, mind your own business."
Carroll didn't even slow down.
Lola's gentle, almost fragile voice floated over from behind, carrying just the right touch of concern and a hint of calculated sweetness.
She said, "Rainer, don't be so harsh on Helena and Dr. Brown. Maybe they're just taking care of each other."
On the surface, it sounded like she was trying to defuse the tension, but it was more like tossing oil onto an already blazing fire, only making things explode.
Rainer's expression grew even uglier.
Carroll carried me out of that stifling side building, taking me straight to his temporary room on the far end of the Thornton villa complex.
Since he was often here to look after the elders from the Thornton family, he had his own guest room.
His place was bright, spotless, and airy, with sunlight streaming in and the faint smell of books in the air.
He gently set me down on the soft sofa, then crouched in front of me, his eyes filled with raw concern for me.
He murmured while pressing a warm cup of water into my hands, "Don't be scared, Lena. I've got you."
He'd never called me that before.
The warm water soothed my dry, aching throat, but that gentle name was like a key, softly breaking through the defenses I'd built around my heart.
For the past three years, I'd been drifting in darkness.
When I finally woke up, all I faced was the man I loved forgetting me, taunts and humiliation from another woman, the servants ignoring me, and the cold, unwelcoming emptiness of the place I once called home.
All the hurt, all the toughness I'd been clinging to, just fell apart the moment Carroll softly said, "Don't be scared."
Tears slipped out before I knew it, landing on the back of my pale hand and leaving little marks behind.
I didn't make a sound, just let the tears fall in silence.
Carroll didn't say a word. He simply reached for a tissue, softly wiped my tears away, then held my cold hand in his.
His palm was warm, dry, and steady.
Just then, footsteps echoed at the doorway.
Rainer returned, this time alone.
He stood at the door, his eyes fixed on me, crying quietly on the sofa, and on Carroll, crouched close, holding my hand protectively.
His gaze was sharp and chilling as a cold, mocking smirk tugged at his lips.
"You are getting back on your feet so quickly with Dr. Brown around." Rainer's gaze cut across my face like a knife. "Guess that makes sense since he has been waiting for you all these years."
His voice was dripping with undisguised malice and scorn.
He added, "Helena, you sure have a way about you. Three years out cold, and you still manage to have people obsessing over you."