His Wife (A Contract Marriage Story) by Heer Mangtani

Chapter 49

1 don’t know how long I remained asleep for, because every time I stirred, I could sense different people around me.

“I failed her, Damien. Gabriel’s voice.

“I need to go… take care of something. A foreign voice.

“You need to go?” Gabriel sounded… angry..

Then, I faded back to sleep. The next time, the voices were different.

“You need to freshen up.” A feminine voice was speaking, I think Alice.

“I’m not moving from here. Gabriel replied. “The doctor said shell wake up any minute now.”

I wanted to wake up, but I couldn’t. I felt like I was being pulled into an unending sleep cycle.

“Is there anything I can do?” Sam was speaking.

Yeah… leave. Gabriel again.

I wanted to laugh at Gabriel’s pettiness, asking him to stop being like that towards Sam. That we had resolved everything in our past and both moved on.

I wanted to turn my body because my back felt stiff.

I wanted to turn to Gabriel, who I knew was sitting next to me, his hand often caressing my forehead. I wanted to put my arms around him and never let go.

Once, he placed a little kiss on my head, whispering, Wake up now, baby?”

After what seemed like forever or trying and failing, I could finally manage to open my eyes.

There was pain.

My stomach was hurting. My head was hurting. My throat was hurting. My back was hurting.

Everything hurt.

the man who had saved me. But I couldn’t speak. Instead,

in the foreign surroundings I was at,

expect me to wake up. Sof. Sofia, oh, you’re awake. Oh, thank Jesus. She paused, pressed a button, and then turned back to me, cupping my face Are you okay? Are you

but all I could produce was

her hand through

again, and this time, no sound came up. So I gave up, hoping Gabriel will hear fin awake and come

He didn’t

1a

Chapter 49

me to not speak, just nod. He asked me if I knew who I was, what year

vocal cord. Nothing serious, nothing a few days of rest and warm water wouldn’t heal. But I need to talk in whispers till

didn’t remember screaming that much. Just once, when the man hit

more. Everything was a

A pathetic, painful blur.

tried touching my throat, quite possibly to palpate any swellings,

my head, looking at

man who kidnapped me

was sent away, and a female one was

sob while the female doctor helped me sit upright and then checked me, and once she confirmed that the swelling had reduced and I would heal in a

promised myself I wouldn’t cry.” She

I wanted to say, but I didn’t. I wanted to hug her while she cried, but I didn’t want

And then his wife peeked from

excused herself, and Zach and Anna stayed. They both said a few things, and I

me that she was always there for me, I could come stay with her for a few days if I

although that she was just a week ago, it

stared at Zach a little longer, and I knew he knew why

“He didn’t leave your side for a minute since he found you,

my eyes, the only way I

hand softly before

didn’t know I went missing. He would be the first one here if he knew. I didn’t want

door remained shut for so long that I started believing he’d never come, but finally, he came. The man I had been waiting to see

Gabriel this way. He was always put together down to his last hair strand, but today he wasn’t. His hair was messed up, his stubble was grown more than he maintained, his clothes looked worn out, but it was his eyes that

attention.

were hollow even as

chair next to the bed like everyone else did. He sat on the

front of me