"What happened to her?"
"Why is she not opening her eyes!?"
"Will you both keep your voices low? I won't hesitate to throw you all from here."
Voices bombarded in her ears before her mind functioned to recognize them. "Will she be fine?" It was Ty as he whispered to no one in particular. Ella wanted to answer but only her fingers were responsive. Someone must have caught that, as she felt someone close to her on that side. Thumb brushed her cheek while the other hand took hers, soothing it. She felt it in her heart it was Roy, but she didn't have the energy to find that out.
"Hey. Try waking up slowly. Relax yourself and slowly try opening your eyes," He spoke near her ears, knowing she was listening to him. Her hands stopped trembling and followed his words, opening her eyes blinking repeatedly, only to squeeze it shut due to the lights endangering her sight. Her discomfort was understood because after a while the blaring brightness dimmed for her to open her eyes fully.
Ella found Roy seated beside her which she didn't need to be confirmed for she heard his voice closer in her ears; her mother was on the other side as she tried seeing without straining her neck. "You are awake!" The familiar voice said, shifting her eyes to the corner she saw Ty standing at the edge of the bed as if afraid to get too close, but the concern in his eyes was inescapable for Ella.
"Wa-ater..." Her croaked voice requested, which was compiled willingly by her mother who was helping her in a sitting position. Observing the woman, Roy was convinced she wasn't hurt physically, but she had stayed unconscious the whole time when the Doctor had examined her, saying that she might have collapsed due to stress.
For the life of him, he didn't understand what event let her to be stressed out in such dire way leading her to black out in the middle of the day. Emma Kingsly inquired after all her daughter's needs and instructed the maids to follow accordingly. Even the boy was inching closer to her with his eyes full of concern; another thing Roy didn't ponder upon. His eyes stared at the woman's face which showed like she has found answers, but was unable to say anything. He noticed her giving glances to him mostly which only confirmed his thoughts.
Waiting for her to speak Roy sat by her side with his hands still holding one of hers by his side, rubbing them to get attention on him, which she gave and he showed his expression demanding her to tell what happened. He saw the acknowledgment of his question in her eyes, which only raced his heart wondering what has she discovered. He was feeling so compelled in knowing it that he had practically shouted at Emma to leave the room alone. Ty was already out on his one order, but the woman was making things difficult to know what Ella wanted to say.
"Mrs. Kingsly. Will you 'please' fetch something to eat for her." Before the woman could make an excuse of maids bringing the food here, he intercepted, "I think she would love to eat the food made by you. It has been a long time since she had one." Roy squeezed her hand he was holding met her eyes saying, "She missed it." That was enough to deter the woman from her position to indulge herself for her daughter's well-being.
After her mother left the room, Roy was sure to lock it and took his seat on the other side of the bed, not bothering to remove his shoes, much to the woman's irritation. He just sat beside her, putting his arms around her while shifting her to lean on him. He was rubbing her shoulders then massaging her back neck with his fingers. "I know something happened Elle." Gentle words poured through his lips, which added to the sensitivity Ella felt from his fingers.
A short silence later she responded, "I think I know where Cora is."
His hands paused. "Who?" Confusion etched in his face clearly as Ella gazed through her side. "Ty's sister. Her name is Cora." Then she saw his eyes turn in realization until he stared at her strangely asking, "Was that why you collapsed?" She didn't answer immediately as it was part of the reason, but also it seemed funny to the onlooker that she had collapsed due to stress for something out of her scope of profession. She was only a businesswoman.
"It wasn't your responsibility to look after his sister! I knew he was bad news when he popped on the door that day." He scolded at her actions, disappointed.
"I know. I didn't ask for it. It just happened." She could feel his stare yet, which she responded, "I... had a memory. Or I was trying to remember and the excessive pressure seemed to have put a strain like this." She shook her head to herself, unbelieving the state she was in after witnessing the blurred images which weren't even clearly visible.
"That boy will be leaving tomorrow." Roy declared. "What? No." Ella argued meeting his eyes completely while clutching her hands on his leg for support.
"Why not? He isn't helping if you are to end up like this." "It's not his fault. He will stay here until it is certain he is safe out there."
"He is not your problem to care for Elle. We can find for his sister even with him gone. I will deliver his sister to her home myself." He tried to persuade her but she was shaking her head in the middle of his sentence, she baited, "Either you find the girl or he stays here." Her body and mind weak but her eyes held the certainty that she won't back down until the girl was found.
Grunting at her stubborn self, Roy cursed in his mind and looked away, until he asked the most important question, "Where is she?"
"Not here." He turned to her formidable expression which said that the girl was not present in the country perhaps. "Where then?"
"I am unsure. But I think we should visit Dubai. To the Prince."
Roy tried to make a comfortable face with the news after last night but it was crumbling by the time. He wanted to ask her a lot of things with his mouth already open, but she disregarded it. Saying she will explain everything later on their way to the country, she took the role of a patient only then. Giving an excuse of being tired, he was shoved away from her and the entry of her mother was the final stop at the possibility of any questions that night. He barely slept after reaching his room, thinking of reasons why she wanted to meet the Prince when they were searching for the girl Cora. How were they related? What was the connection? Or is she playing around to take help from the Prince? The last question he wouldn't have minded, if she hadn't been recently almost betrothed to that man, only to be breaking off from that. She didn't endure the threats that he took form the man, but that was because he didn't want her to feel tensed about it.
He passed a glance to the boy eating his cereal quietly, which only added the ire in his body thinking it was all happening because of that boy. Ty must have felt angry glares from the scary man he had been trying to stay away from, for which he looked up from his food to meet dangerous eyes, widening his eyelids and wishing himself to have left the dining table at the moment. Returning his eyes on the cereal, he drank it up finishing in one go, and slid from his seat without moving the chair or making any noise. As if that would help in shifting the glares to someone else.
Following the retreating back, Roy calmed his breath wondering what Elle was thinking now. His mind conjured images of her being with that man, persuading him in a closed room, his hands closed into fists thinking about it. Just when he was being possessive about it, he was reminded of her words 'Only married people do that'. She thought they were nothing in the eyes of those feelings, just because they were not married. He was sure he would put a married couple to shame if he had her to himself. Only him.
They were travelling in the limousine for the airport when Roy cracked up, "What are we going to do there?"
She looked up from her view of the city towards him, "We will meet the Prince." She stated the obvious.
He leaned ahead in front of her clearly making her listen, "Tell me dear Elle. Considering the engagement, you had broken a month back, how do you prosper on meeting the Prince? And looking for the girl would be out of question, as he would ask for a bargain even if he would pour a glass of water." He watched his words coursing through her mind, which told him that she hadn't thought that part until now.
"Great! I am so relieved we are not out of the country grounds. We would be butchered as soon as we land in Dubai!"
"I actually forgot about that." Her guilty face followed by plead in her eyes made the man sigh to be in such compromising situations. Roy tapped on the front instructing the driver, "Take us to the main terminal in passenger line." The driver seemed to have gone rigid, listening it but he complied nonetheless.
Hence Ella asked the driver's question, "Why are we going through the passenger terminal?" She thought they would be going in a private jet.
"If we go there as the CEO and Heiress, we will be surely captured. That Khan would not hesitate to put a reward for your head. The best option is to visit as tourists, since you have so cordially managed to 'forget' about it." Taking in his words, she was grateful for the man to be by her side, she certainly can't manage everything on her own.
"Thank you." She relayed to him even when he was mocking her previously. "You can tell me what you are planning exactly." He met her eyes continuing, "That would be thanks enough. I don't like to be kept in dark."
Preparing herself she took a deep breath moving her head from him to look ahead. "The Prince could have captured Cora. I don't know why and for what? He hasn't made any contact with the family to demand anything."
"That isn't exactly assuring me." He commented honestly.