Gabby bolted upright, her head throbbing persistently, while a distinct buzzing filled her ears.
Confused, she glanced around and found herself in a hospital bed. The faint smell of antiseptic filled the air. She frowned. The last thing she remembered was the explosion. Almost immediately, a dull ache pulsed through her body.
"Ugh…" Before she could process everything, the door opened. Soft laughter immediately caught her attention.
To her surprise, the first person she saw was her grandmother in a wheelchair. Behind her was Sebastian! Why was this person here? Gabby's eyes widened as they met his gray ones. Questions immediately filled her head.
Sebastian wore a light blue shirt and well-pressed jeans. Even though his hair was a bit messy, he looked organized and neat—completely different from when we first met.
"You are awake…" Gabby's grandmother smiled. Meanwhile, Sebastian pressed a button that would call a doctor into the room.
"Why are you here?" Gabby immediately asked while looking at Sebastian. He does not have any guns, right? She examined his clothes and was somehow relieved that he couldn't possibly hide a gun in his shirt.
"Gabby, is that how you talk to your man?" her grandmother immediately frowned.
"Eh?" Her man?
"Sebastian was kind enough to bring fruits and some food for us, giving your sister a break and time to rest." Gabby gritted her teeth in silence.
"Well… I thought he was not in the US." Gabby seamlessly lied. She did not need to hear the full story to know that Sebastian was currently pretending to be her man in front of her grandmother.
"Obviously, I immediately went back when I heard about the accident."
"Accident?" Gabby blinked.
"Right… you must be confused. We should let the doctor do some CT scan to make sure you're alright," Sebastian approached her with a glass of water. "Allen is in the next room. The doctors are waiting for him to wake up too."
"The car accident!" Gabby said. She was clearly here not because of the car accident but because of the explosion. How about the pharmacy?
She had so many questions but had to restrain herself from her grandmother. Her thoughts, however, were interrupted when a doctor arrived.
After a few examinations, the doctor said that she was alright but needed to do a few more tests. These conversations made her aware that she had been asleep for two days.
Actually, she did not sustain any injuries other than a few cuts on her body, but the doctor wanted to make sure that she would be fine since she was catapulted out of the car during the accident.
"Sister, I immediately came when I heard that you woke up," Alessandra said the moment she arrived, concern etched on her face.
"Alessandra had been staying with you since we heard about the accident. Then Sebastian came and took over," her grandmother said.
"Grandma, you must be exhausted. Why don't you let Alessandra take you back to the mansion? I will be fine here with Sebastian." Gabby found a way to hopefully make them leave.
"My secretary will drive grandmother back to the mansion," Sebastian said. He was sitting on Gabby's bed, his face gentle. It was the exact opposite of the face that he made that night. Gabby shivered inwardly.
"Secretary?" she asked.
"Agustin… you already met him."
"Oh…" Gabby nodded. It seems that the man inside the pharmacy survived as well. To her grandmother and Alessandra, it was such a kind gesture, but to Gabby, this was Sebastian's way of telling her that Agustin could harm her grandmother if he wanted to. This was clearly a threat!
"Of course…" Gabby faked a smile.
"Grandma, Gabby is right. There is no need to stay here now that she's awake. You need to rest." Alessandra chimed in. "And Gabby, you really should not make grandmother worry too much. I know that you love your work, but working on Christmas Eve was definitely too much. Moreover…" Alessandra's gaze landed on Sebastian.
"Why didn't you introduce your boyfriend to grandmother earlier? Letting them meet her was a little awkward. Good thing Seb has some images of you together or we would not have let him see you."
Seb?
She already started calling him Seb? Somehow, this did not sit right with her.
Gabby's lips lifted. "I know…"
"Sebastian, you should also leave. After I send back grandmother, I can watch over Gabby for some time. You have been staying here for more than twenty-four hours… We don't want to take too much of your time away from your company," Alessandra said. As always, her tone was gentle—too gentle. For some reason, this only made Gabby more irritated.
"How could I leave Gabby alone?" Sebastian said. "Don't mind me… I can work even when I'm here." Alessandra gave Gabby a knowing look before she nodded. "Alright, I am going to leave the two of you now… I will come back tonight with food. Do you want to eat something specific?"
"You don't have to do that…" Sebastian said. "I already asked my personal chef to make some soup and a healthy meal for her," Sebastian said.
"Hmmmm…" Alessandra said. After bidding Sebastian goodbye, Alessandra left with Gabby's grandmother. "Really?" Gabby immediately asked the moment the door closed. She could not believe that he would actually pretend to be her boyfriend and shamelessly introduce himself to her grandmother!
"I am no longer taking you to Aetheria…" Sebastian said the smile on his face was no longer there. He then handed her a few newspapers. "Read…" he ordered.
She frowned and started reading the article. This time, she gasped. Their laboratory had been robbed! However, the thing that surprised her the most was the fact that Mr. Gomez's body was found in the lab! They said the robbers attacked the old man and ended up killing him.
"This…"
"Do you believe me now?" Sebastian asked as he sat on her bed again.
"And you decided not to bring me to Aetheria because of this?" she asked.
"The stone is gone. We need to find it."
"Where?" And How? The ones who took it clearly have the means to steal something that heavy without attracting too much attention.
"They have yet to enter Aetheria. They are still here."
"And why would I help you?" Gabby asked. Wouldn't this complicate her life even more? Helping him would be akin to suicide!
He leaned forward, a smirk apparent on his face. In response, she instinctively leaned back.
"Who told you that you have a choice?" he said, his voice low.
"You—" she narrowed at him. How dare he?
"Consider this as payment…" Sebastian leaned back, his eyes bored at her as if he wanted to read her thoughts.
"Payment?"
"When I saved you?" Sebastian said as he held three of his fingers at her. "Three times."
Gabby's lips thinned. "Does this mean you are going to follow me around?" This man's presence is going to stir up more than just trouble!
"I have my ways…"
What is that supposed to mean?