When Love Comes Late

She swallowed hard, unsure of what to say next, her hands gripping the wheelchair’s armrests tightly.

Matthew’s piercing gaze, filled with wariness and defense, scanned the room before settling on her.

“Where are we?”

He gazed at Lindsay, his face etched with a frown and pain.

Overwhelmed by nervousness, Lindsay avoided his probing eyes.

Talking softly, she admitted, “You’re hurt.

We’re at the hospital.

”

Matthew struggled to raise his hand, touching his swollen temple, his frown deepening.

He opened his mouth as if to talk, but before the words could escape, he passed out once more.

Panic surged through Lindsay.

In a rush of fear, she pressed the internal call button and cried out, “Doctor! Doctor! He’s passed out again!”

Before she knew it, Stella had spent half a month in Sothrea.

During that time, she was constantly restless and found it hard to sleep at night.

Her grief and stress had even caused her to faint several times.

She was aware that Fernando and Neville were tirelessly searching for Matthew.

She forced herself to hide her despair, worried it might distract them and hinder their efforts.

Meanwhile, back home, Waldo noticed something was amiss.

Matthew had been gone for quite some time, and Stella was also missing.

News of the gunshot incident in Sothrea had gone global.

Considering Matthew was in Sothrea on business, Waldo naturally became concerned.

Before Waldo could reach out to Matthew, rumors started swirling within Prosperity Group due to his prolonged absence.

Waldo caught wind of these rumors.

Some at the company secretly speculated that something grave had happened to Matthew, perhaps preventing his return.

Disturbed and frustrated by the gossip, Waldo dismissed those spreading rumors and then worked to reassure the board of directors.

Eventually, he stabilized the situation at the company.

After handling the corporate issues, Waldo tried calling Matthew but couldn’t reach him.

Having lived a long and eventful life, Waldo was concerned but chose to remain composed until he had concrete information.

So, he called Stella.

When Stella saw Waldo’s name flashing on her phone screen, she felt nervous.

She gathered herself and answered the phone with a feigned ease, smiling.

“Waldo? What brings you to call?”

Waldo’s voice was stern.

He asked gravely, “How long do you plan to keep this from me? What happened to Matthew?”

Stella’s heart raced.

It seemed she could no longer keep the truth from Waldo.