Corporate Bride

16.

There was a knock on the door, before it creaked open. Anderson walked in and moved over to the bed. "How are you doing Mrs Whyte?" He asked, and she glanced at him with a questioning look. "Anderson Niles, your daughter's fiancé."

Adeline looked at Sydney, and then returned her gaze to him. Anderson waited for her to speak, but she did not. She only gazed deep into his eyes until tears started forming in her own. Puzzled, he asked.

"Mrs Whyte, is something the matter?" He tried to touch her.

"No, this can't be! No!" She screamed while pulling her knees to meet her chest. "It can't be!" She pushed her face into her palms. "Aaaah! Get away from me!" She yelled, surprising both him and Sydney. Adeline broke down in tears, crying uncontrollably.

"Mother," Sydney went to touch the wailing woman, but she pushed her away. Her ankle twisted and the heel bent on one side. She was about to fall to the floor, when Anderson caught her.

The door burst open and a doctor rushed in, together with two nurses. Adeline continued to scream on top of her voice, kicking and crying loudly. Sydney tried to reach for her, but Anderson held her close to him. He could not risk the out of control mother, hurting the daughter.

The nurses tackled with and tried to get their patient under control while Anderson tried to keep Sydney from getting close to the bed.

"Let me go!" She demanded, but he did not listen.

Sydney's eyes watered as she watched the nurses pin her mother to the bed and then the doctor gave her an injection. Slowly, she stopped struggling and then shut her eyes.

"Please leave for the patient to rest." The doctor told them.

As soon as Anderson helped Sydney out of the room, they clashed into a man. He looked ragged in an oversized T-shirt and baggy jeans with filthy shoes and unkempt hair. His eyes showed sadness and miserable, which made Anderson pity him.

He was about to move Sydney from blocking the man's path, when she broke out of his arms and run into the ragged man's arms.

He was stunned, but then quickly got over the shock when he saw Hansen. When they arrived at the hospital, Sydney had asked Hansen to go pick up her brother so that must be him.

"How is she?" Cage asked his little sister when they separated.

"Not good." She replied.

Glanced at the man standing beside Sydney, Cage asked her. "Who is he?"

"Anderson Niles," Anderson extended his hand to him, but Cage did not shake it. He put his arms around his baby sister and walked her down the hallway.

"Looks like the brother doesn't like you very much." Hansen said and Anderson could not agree more.

MARY'S POV

She got home trembling all over. Her heart raced in her chest and Goosebumps rose on herskin. Throwing her bag to the floor, she leaned against the door for support asher knees had turned to jelly.

She rushed her hands through her hair, and slid all the way down to sit on the floor. She could not believe it. Was it really her? It could not be. She refused to believe it.

"No, it can't be!" She said to herself. "No, it isn't her!"

Mary wanted to scream at the top of her lungs, but her husband was sleeping in the next room. She could wake him. Scrambling to her feet, she rushed to the bathroom and started opening one drawer after another.

"It can't be her. It can't." She repeated. Pulling out a drawer, she emptied its contents on the floor and rushed her hands through the pile of paper. Searching and cursing, she found what she was looking for: a picture.

With shaky hands, she took the image. On it, were two women. They looked happy with arms wrapped around each other. One was a younger version of Mary and the other, a youthful and loving Adeline, her childhood friend.

Mary's knees buckled and she fell to the floor on her buttocks. This picture confirmed it, that miserable and wasted woman she saw was her childhood friend, Adeline.

"No, no, no!" She screamed this time. "Aaaaaaah!"

Adeline was supposed to disappear from her life. They agreed on it. She even gave her a lot of money, so she would not return. However, why was she back? What was she doing at the party? How was she able to find her? Had she been following her around? Whom has she met? Has she told anyone what they did twenty-seven years ago?

"No!" Mary yelled and tore the pictures into pieces.

Adeline was back in her life and that was not the worst part. Her daughter was engaged to her son!

* * * * * * * *

 It's an update! How do you feel about this chapter?

  Mary and Adeline know each other. What do you think about that? And what did they do twenty-seven years ago? Any guesses?

 Thank you for reading and voting. Your support is deeply appreciated.

 Until the next update, love Sameeha.