She strides right in front of me, not wasting any time.
“I knew from the day I set my eyes on you that you were trouble, but I never imagined the trouble you would bring would almost cost him his life.”
I stare at her. “This isn’t the time for accusations, Samantha. Logan is fighting for his life. If you have something to say, now isn’t the moment. And I didn’t do anything. We were just arguing,” I say, trying to defend myself.
She mimics me. “Just having an argument that cost him being shot three times? If anything happens to Logan, I’ll hunt you down wherever you try to hide and gun you down,” she says, moving past me.
I don’t know how to handle this situation. Samantha thinks I’m responsible, and God knows what she will tell Logan’s family when they eventually hear about this. I need to find a way to contact them.
I’m about to rush out of the hospital when I see Florence walking toward us. “Thank goodness,” I mutter silently.
I look at her and notice that her eyes are puffy; she has been crying.
“Nadine,” she cries out, “What happened to my Logan?” She holds onto my shoulders.
I try to steady my voice as I face Florence. “Florence, Logan was shot. He’s in surgery now.”
Her face pales, and she grabs my shoulders tighter. “Shot? How? Why?”
I look up and see Lucas. He gives me a nod in greeting, and I respond.
I finally found my voice. “I’m as shocked as you, Florence. Everything happened so fast.”
Lucas notices Samantha and looks at her with surprise. “What the hell is she doing here?” I hope she had nothing to do with this.
Samantha gives a sinister laugh that makes everyone look at her.
“I have a hand in it? Funny how you make it sound like you don’t know the wife he married. He wouldn’t have been in this situation if she hadn’t pressed him down, suffocating him. He was pissed, stepped outside, and then he was shot,” she explains without batting an eyelid.
I feel a wave of dread wash over me. I doubt they will want anything to do with me ever again.
I know I have a relationship with them, but the fact that I’ll be haunted by the knowledge that I caused his accident is something I’m not ready to deal with.
Florence’s face pales, and she clutches her chest as if trying to steady herself.
Lucas moves closer to her, supporting her with a concerned look.
“Mum, please try to stay calm. We need to focus on Logan right now.”
Florence looks at me with tears in her eyes. I slowly sit in a nearby chair, avoiding eye contact with anyone.
“Nadine, tell me this is not true,” Florence asks.
I look down at my fingers, twisting them as if they are the most fascinating thing in the room.
“The thing is,” I start, my voice trembling, “we argued, and… I don’t know. Everything just happened so fast. I’m so sorry.”
Florence’s tears continue to flow, and Lucas steps closer. “Nadine, you need to explain exactly what happened. We need to understand what led to this.”
I nod, struggling to keep my composure.
“Logan and I argued. It got heated, and he went outside to cool off. I didn’t know he was in danger. I should have gone with him, but by the time I realized something was wrong, it was too late.”
Florence’s eyes search mine, looking for any sign of deceit. “And you’re telling me this was just an argument?” she asks.
“I never meant for any of this to happen. I never imagined things would turn out this way. I wasn’t responsible for the shooting; I didn’t know it would get this far. I’m sorry. My husband is lying there, fighting for his life. I don’t know how the damn gun was fired, and now you think I’m responsible. You know what, Samantha? Get a life!”
I shout, finally realizing that I shouldn’t be blamed.
Samantha’s face flushes with anger, but she says nothing.
The rest of them just stare at me as if I’ve suddenly grown two heads. I refuse to take responsibility for the chaos that went down.
The truth is, Logan has been ruthless in business, and he has enemies-people who would be willing to gun him down for the things he’s put them through.
Should we talk about what he did to Jake, to Nathalie, and even to me? Those are just the few I know about. What about the people I don’t know?
Florence finally breaks the silence, her eyes fixed intently on me. “So, what’s the doctor saying about him?”
“The doctors are still working on him, no one has come out to tell us what’s going on yet.”
Florence sighs, her shoulders slumping. “We need to be hopeful. Logan is strong, but he needs all the strength he can get.”
Lucas moves to sit beside Florence, wrapping an arm around her. Samantha stands off to the side, her expression unreadable, but I can still feel her eyes on me.
We are all seated, lost in our thoughts. From the look of things, I can tell that we are all exhausted.
My body is slowly giving way; I look pale and malnourished. I haven’t been able to keep food down the entire day and combined with the stress I’ve been through all morning, the whole experience is overwhelming.
It’s surprising to see that Samantha is still waiting here too.
She is sitting stiffly, her eyes fixed on the floor. I can’t tell what she’s thinking, but there’s no denying the strain on her face.
For once, she’s not glaring at me, and the silence between us feels strange.
I notice Lucas standing up and making his way outside. I know I need to stay until a doctor comes out to say something about Logan’s condition, but sitting here feels so suffocating.
I finally decided to stand up and head outside, just to get some fresh air. As I near the entrance, I see Lucas ahead of me. He suddenly turns around, and our eyes meet.
He stops and waves me over, inviting me to walk with him. With my hands tucked in my pockets, I make my way to him.
“Hi, Nadine. Are you okay?” he asks.
I shake my head slowly, feeling overwhelmed by everything that has happened. “No, I’m not, but I’ll be fine.”
He nods, offering a small, reassuring smile. “You know, you shouldn’t take to heart the things Samantha said. She was just angry.”
I look up at him, noticing how similar he is to Logan-tall, muscular, with the same strong features. But Logan’s jawline is more chiseled, more defined than his.
“Never mind, Nadine,” Lucas says, trying to reassure me.
“I know Logan. He’s too stubborn to die. And just to put your mind at ease, Logan is a ruthless businessman. He’s stepped on toes bigger than his own, which is likely why this happened. But don’t worry-he’ll be fine.”
Finally, someone is speaking the truth. I am a victim of his ruthless nature, but I won’t say it to anyone; it’s between Logan and me.
“I’m going to grab some food for everyone. Would you care to come along?” Lucas asks, pointing toward a nearby restaurant.
“Oh sure, I’m relieved at the chance to get away from everyone, especially with Samantha still inside.”
“Glad we’re on the same page,” he says, and he tugs me right into the restaurant.
I guess he isn’t a fan of Samantha either.
We order takeout for everyone. The service is fast, and soon we’re making our way back to the hospital.
I hope to hear good news about him being awake when we get inside, I say as I step into the hospital, grateful for Lucas helping me open the door.
“You love him?” he asks, sounding more like a statement than a question.
I am taken aback by his question, not expecting it. Do I love Logan? I ask myself in my head, unsure if what I feel for him can truly be called love.
“Uh, he’s my husband. Of course, I love him,” I say nervously.
“That’s good because I know he feels the same about you. You know, there’s something he doesn’t know that I do,” Lucas says with a twinkle in his eye.
“What is it?”