Alexandre was shocked.
Not because Ellise could do such a thing but because Nadine could go through such an extreme length to make everyone dance to her tune. He knew that Ellise wouldn't do such a thing. That was why he why he didn't believe a word Nadine had said. He turned to look at Ellise who looked really pale. She looked sick.
"Dre, you believe her, don't you?" She said, furiously.
"No, I don't" he said, shaking his head. Ellise frowned at him.
'Doesn't she trust me?' he thought.
"Alex, listen to me. She's the one responsible. I heard her and decided to record it. Maybe she saw me there too and she sent some men to beat me up. Look at me!" Nadine cried, moving her hair away from her face. The left side of her face that was previously covered by her hair was bruised and bloody. There was another bruise on her right cheek. Dre wondered why he hadn't noticed it before. She had to be lying. He knew that she was a psychopath, but with this.... he realized that she was really crafty and tricky as well.
'She expects me to believe her?' he thought, incredulous.
Ellise frowned, her teeth sinking into her lower lip.
Her chest started to tighten and her hands were trembling.
"Do you believe her?" Ellise asked, a flicker of hope in her eyes. Dre wanted to tell her that he still didn't believe Nadine but his tongue felt heavy and his throat was constricting. He didn't know what was happening to him, but it was bad.... really bad. His gaze met hers as he silently pleaded for her to understand that something was wrong.
Tears rolled down her cheeks and she stormed out of the house. Dre's knees buckled and he collapsed to the floor, unable to breathe. Nadine began to laugh hysterically. She walked up to where Dre was lying and took out her phone.
He kept gasping for breath, sweat appearing on his skin.
"Your dear Ellise isn't so observant after all. She probably thinks her loving husband now believes the psycho. She doesn't trust you anymore and you know, there's a limit to what we women can take. You have finally broken her. Congratulations, honey" she said, grinning maniacally.
He closed his eyes, trying to breathe. But, the oxygen was leaving his lungs so quickly, he was terrified. She giggled.
"Look at you, so helpless. Do you know what I did to you? Oh, don't worry you don't need to know. But, I'll tell you what's going to happen if you don't get help. Your limbs becomes useless, your lungs will collapse. Oh! And then, your brain cells dies... and oh! Your heart stops beating and you'll be six feet under" she said, smiling.
He groaned, feeling his limbs become numb.
He didn't want to die. Especially not by Nadine's hands.
"Don't worry, I won't kill you" she said, brushing his damp hair away from his face. His vision had become blurry and he was at the brink of unconsciousness.
"Since Ellise has decided to make it easier for me, I'll take my chances. Good night, darling" she whispered and he felt himself sink into a spiralling darkness.
...
Xanthis' phone rang and he picked the call lazily.
"Your brother is dying. He needs your help" an unfamiliar voice said from the phone. He stood up, his attention piqued.
"Where is he? Why are you with his phone?"
"He's lying helplessly on the floor. If I were you, I would be breaking all speed limits to get here. He isn't breathing, though. You better be quick" the line went dead. Terrified, he grabbed his car keys and rushed out of the house. "Xan? What's wrong?" His fiancee said, running up to him.
"I don't know, something is wrong with Dre" he responded as they got into the car. He sped off, his mind replaying the words of the mysterious woman. By the time he got to Dre's house, he was panicking. The entrance door was open and the place was eerily silent. Ellie's car wasn't even in the parking lot.
"Dre!" He yelled, rushing in.
"Dre!"
"Oh my God! I've found him!"
He rushed up to where Tasha was kneeling beside Dre's unconscious form.
"Dre?!" Xanthis yelled, shaking him.
Shakily, he touched his neck to check for a pulse. It was barely there. "He isn't breathing" Tasha said, terrified.
Xanthis brought out his phone and called the emergency health line. He was totally disorganized. Tasha was giving Dre a CPR but it wasn't working.
Valentino was in the hospital, fighting for his life. Xanthis dreaded loosing the both of them. The ambulance arrived in no time. They quickly set up an oxygen mask, rambling something about his lung at risk of collapsing and inhaling a poisonous gas.
....
Ellise took a deep breath, wiping the tears away from her face. Earlier, she'd received a call informing her that her mother was awake. She'd also gone to the hospital and it was confirmed that she was two months pregnant. Ellise was feeling so many emotions at the same time. She opened the door and stepped into the hospital ward.
She switched off her phone, not wanting to hear excuses from Dre or any one else.
"Mum" she said as she walked towards her bedside.
Mrs Sumners smiled weakly.
"My baby girl" she whispered, reaching out to cup her daughter's cheek.
"I'm sorry for putting you and your father in pain. I promise I'm okay now" she whispered.
Ellise nodded, pressing a kiss to the back of her palm.
"What's wrong?" Her mum asked.
She bit her lip to keep the tears at bay. "Everything has gone wrong" she croaked.
"Is it that bad?" Her mum asked, looking very concerned.
Ellise told her about the pregnancy. She was excited.
Then, she told her about Nadine.
She was heartbroken.
"But is that what you want?" Her mum asked for the third time after she'd informed her that she was leaving for Sydney and that she was going to stay there for a few months.
"Yes, that's what I want" Ellise said.
"Are you sure about this? You can't just leave your husband behind because of a misunderstanding?"
"He doesn't care anymore. I'm sure he won't even notice that I was gone until after a few days. His priority now is Nadine"
"Did you tell him that you're pregnant?
"I was going to but I can't do that. He probably trusts Nadine now. Promise me you won't tell him where I'm going to"
"El-"
"Please, promise me. Promise me you won't tell him about the baby. I'll tell him myself" Ellise said and she sighed.
"If that's what you want" Mrs Sumners said. "Bye, mom" Her daughter said.
"I'll see you soon"
...
Noelle drove to the hospital a soon as Xanthis called her. There was good news and a bad news. The bad news was that Dre was in a critical condition and the doctors weren't certain of when he would wake up. The good news was that Noelle's boyfriend was awake and was going to be okay.
Fortunately, he didn't have a kidney failure and there was no need for a surgical operation.
Noelle sat beside her boyfriend's bedside, watching him sleep. She smiled and held his hand. Then, she pressed a kiss to his forehead. He opened his eyes, a small smile curving his lips.
"Hey princess" he whispered.
She grinned, placing butterfly kisses on his face.
"I'm so glad you're okay" she said, stroking his hair.
"I missed you" he said and she smiled. "I was right here by your side everyday" she replied.
He grinned, his green orbs lighting up.
"Welcome back, tiger" Xanthis said, leaning on the door jamb.
Valentino smiled.
"Well, it feels great to be back" Val said and Xanthis chuckled.
"I always knew you were such a tough cookie. While I'm glad that you're awake, there's something else you need to know" Xanthis said.
Noelle frowned, glaring at him.
Val had just woken up, he wasn't not supposed to be burdened yet.
"But, I'll tell you later"
Valentino frowned.
"If it's really important, you have to tell me" he said.
"Not now. You just woke up, honey" Noelle said.
He looked at her, incredulously.
"You know about this too? Okay, now you have to tell me" Val said and he wasn't smiling.
'Oh well, so much for not telling him' Noelle thought, disappointed.