Echoes Of a Forsaken Heart

Chapter 120
Hamilton gripped Natalia's waist, lowering his gaze upon her with an
uncharacteristic tenderness in his eyes.
Natalia, momentarily dazed by the softness on his face, quickly snapped back to
reality. She flashed a wry smile at him and asked, “Mr. Fowler, having second
thoughts, are we?”
Watching her, Hamilton took a moment before releasing her, leaning against the
wall to light a cigarette. “Natalia, I've given you an out. Are you sure you don't
want to reconsider?”
Without a word, Natalia turned and strode towards the door.
“Quite sure,” she said, and with that, she was out the door and gone.
Hamilton stood there, his face a stormy canvas of displeasure. After a spell, he
whipped out his phone and dialed a number.
“Tonight, I want Orpheus’s assets turned upside down!”
Having made the call, Hamilton moved to the window, watching the woman
disappear into the night before taking a drag of his smoke.
He had intended to let her have her little rebellion for a few more days, but
tonight's events had stirred a regret within him for letting her go.
A canary belongs in its cage, he mused. Wasn't it better for her to stay put by his
side?
Frowning into the night, Hamilton dialed another number.
Natalia, after returning home, completed her nightly routine and fell straight into
bed.
Her slumber was broken by the shrill of her phone, and with bleary eyes, she
recognized the
caller — Tatiana’s doctor.
Her grogginess vanished instantly as she bolted upright, wincing at a sharp pain
in her side.
Ignoring the discomfort, she answered the call. “Doctor, what's wrong? Is it my
mother?”
“It's not that,” the doctor replied, and Natalia exhaled a sigh of relief.
Natalia bit her lip, “Then what is it?"
“The thing is, Ms. Jenkins, the medication your mother has been on is imported,
and it was heavily discounted because of Mr. Fowler. But it seems he no longer
wishes to extend those discounts.”
Natalia felt a jolt. This was surely Hamilton's tactic to force her return. She took a
deep breath, attempting to steady her emotions.
“If the discounts are removed, what's the monthly cost?”
1/4
12:39
Chapter 120
There was hesitance before the doctor spoke.
“Without the discount, you're looking at an additional two hundred thousand a
month.”
The room spun around Natalia.
“That much?” she asked, frowning. “Doctor, are you certain there's no mistake?”
The current medical bills for Tatiana were already a hefty two hundred thousand
per month.
“There's no mistake, Ms. Jenkins. You can come to the hospital to see the billing
details, or can email them to you if you prefer.”
Natalia’s heart sank. After a long pause, she finally said, “Alright, I understand. I'll
figure something out.”
“Please do, Ms. Jenkins. Your mother’s medication funds are running low.”
“Understood.”
Ending the call, Natalia couldn't help but massage her temples. Her struggle to
cover Tatiana’s medical expenses was hard enough as Hamilton had just cut her
commission in half.
Natalia let out a bitter laugh. Indeed, Hamilton knew exactly how to exploit one’s
vulnerabilities. Using Tatiana against her was far more effective than anything
else. After all, Tatiana was her last living kin.
She couldn't even blame Hamilton, nor could she confront him. Discounts were
never his
obligation.
Leaning back on her bed, Natalia was engulfed by a wave of helplessness. After
getting dressed, she visited Tatiana at the hospital.
Sitting by Tatiana’s bedside, Natalia felt a rare sense of self-pity.
She didn’t want to return. Truly, she didn’t.
She feared that if she went back, she might never muster the courage to leave
again. Nor did she want to be caught between Hamilton and Eveleen.
Holding Tatiana’s hand, Natalia's eyes welled up. “Mom, please wake up soon,
okay? I'm starting to feel tired.”
The tears fell as she spoke.
Wiping her eyes, she regained composure with a small smile, “But it's okay.
Someone has been helping me these past three years. His name is Hamilton.
Remember him? The crybaby from the little fishing village where we used to live.”
With a wistful smile, she continued, “He’s quite formidable now. Maybe you'll see
him once you're better. But... he probably doesn’t remember us.”
Giving Tatiana's hand a squeeze, she whispered, “Just wake up, sooner or later.
Don't leave me alone.”
12:39
After leaving Tatiana’s room, Natalia collected the billing statement and paid
every last dime she had at the hospital.
Only then did she leave. As she stepped out of the hospital, she bumped into
Caspian,
“Ms. Jenkins," he called out.
Startled, Natalia looked up and asked, “Mr. Spiegel, what brings you here?”
Instead of answering, Caspian simply asked, “Have you been crying?”
Natalia quickly lowered her gaze. “No, it was just the wind.”
Caspian frowned slightly, “Ms. Jenkins, I know it might sound presumptuous, but
you can think of me as a friend or even an elder. If something's troubling you, you
can always share it with me,”
Natalia forced a smile as she turned to Casplan, her voice carrying a tremble, “I
was just up there, visiting my mom. It got a bit overwhelming.”
Caspian’s face cleared with understanding, “Oh, is your mother here in the
hospital?”
Natalia nodded, about to speak again when her phone abruptly started ringing.
She glanced at the caller ID-It was Scarlett.
With an apologetic grin, Natalla said, “I've got to take care of something.”
Caspian nodded quickly. “Of course, go ahead.”
After a brief nod to Caspian, Natalia answered the call and simultaneously hailed
a cab from the curb.
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Caspian watched her slender figure
disappear into the traffic before
turning to the hospital. He had
wanted to accompany Natalia and
visit her mother, but on second
thought, he decided against it. They
i, . 3
weren't that close, and his earlier
inquiries had already been quite
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In the cab.
Natalia answered the call and Scarlett’s voice came through immediately.
“Natalia, let's book those plane tickets.”
Natalia frowned, suddenly remembering Scarlett's plans to take a trip.
She bit her lip slightly and asked, “Have we decided where we're going?”
Scarlett laughed, “How about we head to River State? Take a trip down memory
lane to where you grew up. What do you think?"
Natalia paused and then chuckled, “Sounds good.”
After the call, Natalia stared blankly out the window for a while before pulling a
document from her bag.
12:40
Chapter 120
The document was a deed transfer agreement that Hamilton had given her after
a miscarriage she'd suffered.
She had never wanted to part with that house. No matter what, it was bought with
her child's
life.
But now, faced with the choice of yielding to Hamilton or letting go of the house,
she preferred the latter.
With a wry smile, she signed her name on the document.
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At the office, Natalia, clutching the
paperwork, made her way straight to
the top floor. She knocked on the
) :
CEO's office door and placed the
document right in front of Hamilton.
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Hamilton picked up the document, glanced at it indifferently, and scoffed.
“What's this supposed to mean, Ms. Jenkins?"
Natalia’s posture stiffened as she said, “This is the house that you once promised
me.”
The man chuckled coldly, tossing the document back onto the desk and looked at
Natalia with
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. “
a detached expression. “I recall, Ms.
. . . p
Jenkins, you once said you didn't
p )
want this house. Now what? Can't
. ”
handle the game and want it back?
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