Sweet Subterfuge

Chapter 42

As soon as Larissa left Travis‘ room and went by the nurses‘ station, she was stopped by the nurse who’d given her the ice packs earlier.

“Oh, perfect timing.”

The nurse beckoned. Confused, Larissa walked over to her.

“Here!” The nurse handed her a bill. “You can pay downstairs.”

Larissa looked at the bill in her hands. It was yet another five–thousand–dollar bill.

“I think you’ve made a mistake.” She smiled at the nurse. “I’m not related to Travis. I think it’s better if you have his parents pay for this.”

“What?” The nurse was evidently surprised. “Aren’t you his wife? I heard his parents say he’s married, but his wife-” She hesitated, looking embarrassed.

Even though the nurse did not say anything else after that, Larissa was well aware that whatever the Hardys had said about her, it couldn’t have been flattering.

You’re the only one besides his parents to visit him in the hospital, and you’re a woman too, so I just assumed,” the

herself to voice the question she’d been harboring in her mind since she heard of Travis‘ accident. What kind of injury does

ward, Larissa supposed there was a problem with his spine. And problems related to the spine–they

Travis‘ room. When she was certain that no one was coming out anytime soon, she lowered her voice and continued, “Poor Travis. They say he’s married, but ever since he’s been admitted, his wife has not been here once. It was always just his parents. They took care of him, and, speaking of his parents, they look like good, honest people–they really do, but their tempers are simply unbelievable! They would start fighting in the ward, almost never for good reason, and they even got physical a few times. Sometimes, the commotion would be so great that the other patients in the

we don’t have any other

not pay much attention to what the nurse said next. Her attention was entirely focused on the phrase “paralyzed for the rest of

understood why Mrs. Hardy had been so adamant about getting her to the hospital.

was paralyzed. His life was

to Amber, Larissa guessed that Amber was either the reason why Travis had

because she had hoped that Larissa

sneered coldly. It looked like they’d really

Mr. Hardy finished smoking and returned to the ward, Larissa was

gone.

on her forehead had slipped down to the side

“Where’s Larissa? Where did she go?”

hurriedly.

motionless, his lifeless eyes staring blankly at the

ceiling.