"Oh, my God. What am I going to do?" Esme muttered. With her trembling fingers, she combed her hair and smoothed down her rumpled dress.
"Calm down."
Esme was not in the state to hear his words. Her mind was a frantic storm, consumed by the memory of Victoria's furious glare and the searing sting of a slap across the face. She instinctively touched her cheek. The thought of Victoria discovering her here sent a fresh wave of terror through her.
"I-I should leave," Esme said.
"Wait…" Before Silas could stop her, she was already out of the ward. Disbelief painted his face. "What? Why is she behaving like this?"
He was still her boyfriend, wasn't he? Shouldn't she want to stay, to care for him while he was injured? Esme's flight left him utterly confused. This was the perfect chance to prove her devotion to his mother, but she had just inexplicably thrown it away.
