anwhile.
After calling for an ambulance, the butler hurried to the study to report the situation to the group talking there.
Owen didn’t even wait for the butler to finish. The mont he heard that Ethan and Stella had fallen down the wine cellar stairs together, he was the first to rush over.
By the ti he arrived, Ethan was just coming to.
He stood at a distance, watching as Ethan called Stella to his side, watching as Ethan took her hand to comfort her.
Owen’s face was terrifyingly dark. His hands, hanging by his sides, were clenched into fists, the veins on their backs bulging from the force, yet he didn’t dare take a single step forward.
A faint, almost imperceptible tremor in his hands betrayed the violent struggle raging within him.
In the wine cellar, tears suddenly began to stream uncontrollably from Stella’s eyes.
Ethan, unable to get up due to the pain in his back, was still lying face down on the floor, yet he stubbornly reached out, wanting to wipe away her tears.
"Stella, don’t cry. I’m really okay... COUGH COUGH..."
Stella pulled his hand away. "Don’t move. The ambulance will be here soon."
She bit her lip, holding back for a mont, but couldn’t stop herself from saying, "Why don’t you ever learn! Have you forgotten you were in a coma for half a year? Why did you have to bother with ..."
Ethan frowned. It was unclear if it was from the pain or his heart aching for her.
He forced a smile. "I don’t know either... My body had a mind of its own... By the ti I realized... I had already lunged forward..."
Stella was at a loss for words.
’What is this supposed to an?’
’From now on, the two of us could have gone our separate ways, our lives like two parallel lines...’
"What’s going on!"
Bernard Rhodes’s voice ca from above. He glanced down, and his body swayed.
"How did it get this bad! Ethan! How’s Ethan!"
Leila Rhodes gave Ethan so basic first aid for his external injuries before going upstairs to calm the old man.
Oakhaven Hospital wasn’t far from the Rhodes Estate, so the ambulance arrived quickly.
Ethan was loaded into the ambulance, and Yolanda Thorne went with him to the hospital.
With the matter temporarily settled, Leila Rhodes turned around and noticed sothing was wrong with the arm Stella had been keeping at her side.
Just as she was about to go over and say sothing, Owen was already by Stella’s side. "Is your arm hurt?"
He carefully lifted Stella’s left arm, which had gone numb with pain. Despite his gentle movents, she still winced and frowned.
Owen froze. He lowered her arm even more carefully and said, "Let’s get this treated at the hospital first."
Her head was throbbing from the pain. Stella nodded, letting Owen take her other hand and lead her away from the Rhodes Estate.
After all the commotion, the cheerful atmosphere in the estate vanished without a trace, replaced by a heavy, suffocating pressure.
Kiana Sterling remained silent the entire ti, standing in a corner as if she were a wisp of air in the estate.
She frowned, staring in the direction Stella had left, her nails digging deep into her palms. unbelievingly
’She was his fiancée! Did he even think of her when he rushed to protect Stella?’
’Has he forgotten how badly he was hurt last ti?’
’And he still risked his life for Stella.’
’Is Stella really that important?!’
’And then there’s Owen.’
’He saw Ethan showing signs of regaining his mory, saw him being so intimate with Stella, and he had no reaction at all!’
’He was only worried about Stella’s well-being.’
’What’s so great about Stella, anyway?!’
The injustice she felt made her want to scream.
’Why?!’
’If Stella hadn’t suddenly pulled her back, she would have rather fallen and cracked her head open. That would have felt better than this.’
Her chest heaved with the emotional turmoil, and her eyes, reflecting her unbalanced heart, turned as red as if they were stained with blood.
Suddenly—
"Why didn’t you ntion that Auntie fell because of you?"
Her outward emotions instantly receded.
Kiana’s eyes widened in shock. Her body went stiff as she turned around.
Faye Rhodes was standing not far away, her sharp eyes, which seed to see through everything, fixed on her without blinking.
Kiana panicked instantly.
"Faye, what... what are you talking about?"
Faye Rhodes walked up to her. "Don’t tell you were just scared stiff. I saw everything. Auntie only fell because she was trying to stop *you* from falling. My brother just happened to be coming over, and he only jumped to protect her because he saw her fall. It was all your fault, but you? You’ve made yourself completely invisible."
Unconsciously, Kiana had dug her nails into her palms so hard they drew blood. But on her face, her eyes reddened, and tears welled up instantly.
"Faye, you’ve misunderstood ... It was so chaotic just now... I... I didn’t notice..." she said, choking back sobs. "Besides, it was Stella. Stella was trying to force to stay away from Ethan. She said if I didn’t agree, she’d push down the stairs. I panicked, and that’s when..."
Her story was full of holes, but Faye Rhodes didn’t call her out on it.
Instead, she only said, "I hope you can stick to that story when my uncle asks."p>With that, Faye Rhodes turned and walked away.
As she passed, she gave Kiana a look heavy with intimidation.
Kiana didn’t even et her gaze directly, but her heart seized, and a chill shot from her chest to her fingertips.
’It’s fine,’ she told herself. ’Faye only saw the end of it. As long as she didn’t hear what Stella and I were talking about before, I can explain it away.’
Everyone still vividly rembered Ethan’s long coma after his car accident a year ago. Now that he was so seriously injured again during a family banquet, the whole family piled into their cars and rushed to the hospital.
On the way, Audrey Rhodes rembered that her daughter had followed Ethan over. Seeing Faye’s tense expression, she guessed she must have seen sothing.
Audrey Rhodes didn’t press for details, only saying, "If sothing happened, tell your uncle first. Let him know what’s going on."
Faye Rhodes nodded. "Where is Uncle?"
"Your Auntie was probably hurt too. Owen took her to the hospital first."
Faye Rhodes got angry just thinking about Kiana’s pretentious act.
She ran a hand through her short hair and kicked the inside of the car door in frustration. "Ethan must have really damaged his brain. How could he fall for a woman like Kiana?"
Audrey Rhodes glanced at her. "Quite the righteous crusader, aren’t you? Faye, this is Ethan’s family’s business. Don’t stick your nose in it. No matter what Kiana is like, she’s the daughter-in-law your third uncle and aunt have chosen."
’They must be blind.’
Of course, Faye Rhodes only dared to mutter that thought to herself.
Ethan had been wide awake for a while.
Lying in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, he kept his eyes closed, resting, but the mories in his mind were only growing clearer.
The hand resting at his side slowly clenched into a fist.
’I suddenly don’t care if Stella knows the truth about those letters anymore.
It’s better if she doesn’t.
Owen just took advantage of the situation. But I have over a decade of history with Stella. I know I’m her rock, her emotional support. What does Owen have that can compare to ?
Owen already has Kyros, so on what grounds does he deserve to have Stella too?
Just wait. I’ll win her back.
As for Kiana...
She’s so sensible. She’ll surely understand the need for an amicable breakup.’
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