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CHAPTER 38. A night in hell
Valeria closed her eyes for a second and her head bumped against the wall on which that row of seats was supported. She had slept, eaten, and waited in that chair for almost a week. Alice was very sick. The fever had taken five days to break, and Valeria could no longer remember when she had stopped crying. Her thoughts were dull and too painful. Although Alice's fever had finally gone down a little, she was still in danger, and Alan seemed as devastated as she was. The hospital bill was getting higher and higher, but she didn't care, even if she had to sell herself into slavery to save her little girl, she would do it without hesitation. She heard the shrill ringing of her cell phone and sighed before answering it. Both Oli and Lazlo called her every couple of hours to check on Alice's health. They were the only people in that company who cared a little about them, and she was grateful for that. Oli had a beautiful heart and Lazlo was a very tender boy, just right for her. They had
CHAPTER 39. A Difficult Conversation
Elliot and Richard looked at each other as if their father had hit them with a baseball bat. It was almost easier to believe he was sleeping with Valeria and that they might actually have a sibling from them than to believe they'd always had one without knowing it. “You're kidding, right?” Elliot asked with a somber look on his face, and Andrew denied. “But how? Wh-when?” Richard stammered. “Well, the ‘how’ I don’t need to explain, do I?” Andrew sighed and turned to the small bar he had in the office. “But as for the ‘when’ we'd better sit down.” The twins fetched a couple of glasses and let their father pour them some whiskey to take the edge off. “Believe me, I had no idea Valeria existed until I met her and realized that her mother was the same woman I'd had a relationship with many years ago,” Andrew said, sitting down in a chair across from them. “And apparently her mother told her that her dad had died, so she doesn’t know anything either. Elliot shook his head uncomfortabl
CHAPTER 40. A painful truth
The three Davies men swallowed hard when they heard Oli say that. The girl had an angry, pained expression on her face that was more threatening than any insult, and next to her, Lazlo looked rather uncomfortable as well. Andrew ushered her into the office, and Oli saw the twins come in as well. “Are you sure this concerns them as well?” she asked Andrew. “I don’t keep secrets from my children anymore, so you can speak freely.” “Mr. Davies, do you have any ties to Miranda Jones?” Oli blurted out without a drop of tact. “Her parents are my work competition... but beyond saying hello, no, I have no other ties to her,” said Andrew Davies earnestly. “Did you have a paternity test done for Valeria's pregnancy?” she asked again. Richard was getting upset. “Miss, is this an interrogation?” “Yes, that's exactly what it is,” Oli replied. “Did you have it done or not, Mr. Davies?” Richard let out a grunt of discomfort, but his father put a hand on his shoulder, it was obvious that Oli c
CHAPTER 41. Three idiots and two princesses
Alan was amazed at this new family that Valeria had conjured up out of nothing, but he finally acknowledged it and couldn't be happier for her, although apparently her brothers had every intention of bullying anyone into helping Valeria. “Just tell us what we should do, doctor,” Andrew said. “We will spare no expense or effort.” “Well, it may be a bit extreme, but I would feel more at ease if we started Valeria's treatment with a blood transfusion. It won't be much, but it will give us a good push on the way,” the doctor explained. “No problem, we should be compatible, right?” asked Elliot. “Yes, you should. I'll have some quick tests done for all three of you.” “And then?” “Depending on her progress, she'll have to stay in the hospital for at least a week, with an IV for her medication to take her out of the worst of it. After that... the treatment is long. She needs exercise, to eat well, to maintain her regular cycle of injections... but above all, she needs peace and quiet. S
CHAPTER 42. Some unforgiving men
Oli's words sounded to Nick like a verdict, and even though he wanted absolutely nothing to do with Valeria... and even though the mere mention of her name bothered him, he couldn't help but get a knot in his stomach knowing that both Alice and Valeria were in the hospital. Valeria was a lying bitch... but Alice wasn't to blame for anything. He drummed his fingers on the table for a long time, until he finally stood up and went off in search of his car. Although Oli hadn't told him which hospital the girls were at, he could pretty well imagine where they had taken them. He made his way to the same place where Alice had been admitted earlier, and felt overwhelmed as soon as he set foot inside the hospital. The smell of medicine, alcohol, and disinfectant was almost as strong as the scent of desperation from the relatives of those who were admitted there. He stopped at the reception desk and asked about the condition of Valeria and Alice Williams, but the receptionist wouldn't give hi
CHAPTER 43. A necessary journey
Fourteen days, not one more, not one less. Fourteen days had passed since Valeria had been admitted to the hospital. The twins hadn't left her side except to get something to eat or to take a bath, and Andrew had kept a safe distance away, but Valeria knew he was outside, waiting in case she changed her mind about having him around. There had been no office, no work, nothing that mattered to them more than Valeria and Alice, and now Alan had finally agreed to discharge her, with ten thousand recommendations, but at least he felt sure enough to let her go. “Richard,” Valeria called when they were alone. She was already able to distinguish one from the other well. Her brother approached her. “Yes, doll, what is it?” “I'd like to ask you something. I'm a little ashamed to do it, but... I guess I have no one else to ask…” Richard sat down next to her. “You don't have to be ashamed about anything with me. Tell me what you need.” Valeria wriggled her fingers in her lap. “Can you... c
CHAPTER 44. The woman is back
Valeria took a deep breath. Returning to Los Angeles brought back too many memories, and the vast majority of them were painful. She climbed down the steps of the plane and watched Alice frown from the top, not wanting to come down. The last six months had been incredible for her, and going back also brought back bad memories, but the wonderful smile of the twins waiting for her dissuaded her. Richard was the first to lift her into his arms, while Elliot hugged Valeria and shot a flirtatious glance at Emma. “How are the princesses?” Elliot asked, and the answer made him smile. “Ready to fight,” Andrew said, getting out of the plane, and the twins gave Valeria a grateful look. At last that family could be complete. “Well. There's something we haven't decided yet,” said Richard. “Val, I know that you and Alice are used to your privacy, and if you want you can go to an apartment by yourselves; you choose the one you want and we'll buy it. I have my apartment and Elliot has his, too.
CHAPTER 45. A debt to pay
The phone rang insistently, but Nick didn't bother to pick it up. Miranda had acquired an unpleasant habit of calling him as soon as he got up in the morning, and it was already wearing on his patience. But she was his girlfriend again after all, so there wasn't much he could do about it except not answering her and lying to her about it later. He adjusted the cufflinks on the sleeves of his shirt and his tie. When or how exactly had he resumed his relationship with Miranda? He couldn't remember. He had accompanied her to a lot of events to get Valeria out of his head, at some point the press had started talking about them as a couple, and suddenly Miranda had begun to behave as if they were... He hadn't consciously accepted that, but it seemed that—eventually—that would have been the natural outcome for the two of them anyway, especially after Valeria had disappeared. And she really had disappeared. Nick had been left with so many doubts, so many incomplete thoughts after the alterc