Chapter 152: Chapter 152

Chapter 154: Getting Further and Further Away

Elly walked into the room and stood quietly by the bed. Looking at Gerald lying motionless, breathing faintly and seeing a life supported by machines, her heart became heavy.

"Was it worth it? Sacrificing yourself to save a person who should not have been saved in the first place. Brandon wasn't worth saving."

Elly went to the bedside table, poured a glass of warm water, soaked a cotton swab, and gently smeared Gerald's cracked lips. "Ugh, this is useless. It's too late for me to say anything now. I don't care. Can the people in bed still listen?" She talked about a lot of things. "Well, you're just his secretary, but you've done a lot of work for Alex. You're the first one who supported my work, and tried to convince me to forgive your boss. Are you mad at me? I didn't take your advice, so do I come here as some kind of fool? Gerald, are you mad at me?"

Her eyes turned red sentence by sentence, and the self-hatred in her heart grew louder and louder. No one knew that Gerald kept wanting to see her, to persuade Elly to give up her hatred and wait for Alex to investigate the truth and give her a reasonable answer. But Gerald was seen as crazy that even a thoughtful person like himself wouldn't let it go.

Outside the ward, Brandon was comforted by Alex. They watched Aaron just stare off in space, with a glimmer of sarcasm from his non-verbal attitude.

"Aaron, what is the purpose of your coming here? Are you here to boast to Alex that Elly is your girl?"

Aaron once heard Elly mention Brandon and knew that he was not a good man. He also heard from her that he's a very shrewd two-faced man. But today, he saw with his own two eyes that he had underestimated Brandon for a long time, and the plot of this man was unimaginably high.

Brandon's provocation attempted to move further away from Elly, but Alex regarded him as a brother no matter what he said.

Aaron is not a docile person, so his face was calm, and his cold and leisurely voice hit the enemy with a deadly blow.

"Now that the benefactor of saving people is in danger of lying in a hospital bed all his life, Brandon here is still thinking about other people's feelings with fear. You're sincere to your friends, cool. But your remorse is definitely paramount."

These words changed Brandon's mood instantly, and he was so complacent that he was caught off guard. Brandon unwittingly glanced at Alex and realized that he wasn't moved by Aaron's little monologue, so he secretly took a breath of relief.

Alex was a master at the art of composure, with a cold exterior, but a fiery interior.

Seeing Aaron and Brandon preparing to quarrel in the hospital, Alex quickly tried to change the subject. "C'mon gentleman, quit it. Brandon, you've been here in the hospital for a few days. Go back to the hotel and get some rest."

Brandon wanted to resist, but nodded when he saw Alex's natural and comfortable eyes.

"Alright, you keep an eye on Gerald for me and I'll change shifts with you at night."

After Brandon left, Alex pointed to the exit at the end of the corridor and they shook hands goodbye.

Aaron impolitely sat down to look at him and mocked him constantly. "Isn't it strange for the two of us to sit down and talk?"

Alex smiled faintly. "I didn't expect Elly to go to the US under these circumstances. I was even more surprised to see you here by my side."

"Leila said that Gerald had always taken good care of her, always checking in. No matter what their relationship is or was, she had to come here for Gerald." Aaron shrugged his shoulders and went on, "I admire her friendships with other men. I admire and respect Leila's honesty and style of emotion. Of course, I couldn't leave her on a trip alone. How could I?"

Alex knew Elly's personality well, too. "No wonder that woman sees the good side of you. Aaron, you just really care about her."

Alex's words were very gentle, but Aaron read between the lines, which made him very angry. He said with sarcasm, "Of course I have to care, otherwise I would miss out on a good girl and regret it for the rest of my life. It's not that some people don't know how to cherish it, it's just the way it is. To regret something? I will never let myself make that stupid mistake."

The words were both hostile and hidden. Aaron didn't hold back towards Alex, but he knew he did not care and was immune to any provocation.

Alex, a man who seldom smiles, did so and patted Aaron on the shoulder. "I am very glad that you found a lover and cherish her as much as she does. Take care of her."

Without waiting for Aaron's reaction, he stood up and said calmly that he needed to consult the doctor about Gerald's situation, and left.

Maybe Alex really let go this time. Aaron stared back at him suspiciously as he left. He did not know if Alex left because of instinct or just did not want to stay and listen to Aaron brag about his feelings for Elly. Maybe Alex was just hiding it, so he doesn't show that he's hurt.

When Elly walked out of the ward, Aaron was the only one in the hall. She was stunned with her mouth open. "Why are you alone? Where are they? Didn't anyone stay to take care of him?"

Her heart was filled with anger because Gerald was abandoned.

Aaron was surprised that Elly got mad easily, so he pretended to explain. "Brandon went back to his hotel to get some long-awaited rest. Alex went to see a doctor, hoping to come back soon."

Elly did not respond to his explanation. As long as she thought that Gerald would lie alone in the room, her heart couldn't take it and turned into a heavy stone.

It took a long time for Alex to come back, and he was surprised to find that the two had not left yet. Before he could open his mouth, Elly questioned, "Is this another one of your tricks? You just want to stay quiet, don't you?"

Her conviction was equivalent to piercing Alex's heart with a sharp knife. His demeanor became sour, tired and powerless. "In your eyes, am I the kind of person who has no humanity? Gerald has worked with me for many years. I regard him as family. Don't insult your feelings to me like this, Elly. Besides, why would I leave him alone?"

Elly changed topics bluntly, "You've been investigating John's case for over a year."

"Investigating John Elliot?" Alex redundantly asked the question with dizziness.

As Gerald had to manage a lot of Alex's work, he still investigated John's murder and handed it over to Brandon. Gerald personally investigated, and he never mentioned it to him. Why would he keep it a secret?

Seeing that Alex was speechless, Elly said calmly, "Gerald still believed that you would go back to an innocent personality after investigating the matter. He certainly did not expect that his kindness and efforts would be rewarded with these current results."

"No, no, no. No, no. Don't talk to me like that."

"You sound terrible. Mr. Hargreaves, I'm sure I can find evidence to make you pay."

Still shocked by Gerald's accident, Elly was becoming more emotionally unstable. She judged everything and couldn't set aside her emotions.

This made Alex more and more hateful, with no love in his eyes and no emotions shown.

All the explanations told through Elly's hatred have become faint and fragile. Alex watched Elly and Aaron leave, filled with indescribable sadness.

Alex and Elly were drifting apart, and he didn't know how to close the gap.

With dreary eyes, he walked into the ward and watched Gerald puff his breaths from the respirators.

"Why did you do everything without telling me. You are just a secretary and a subordinate paid by the company. Why did you sell your life for me?"

If Gerald woke up and heard what he was saying now, he would have appreciated that Alex wasn't scolding him like always.

"Over the years, you have done your best to help me, from corporate work to personal work. I've never seen a person so addicted to work as you, and that's who you were until now. It's my fault. I agreed to let you go on that business trip."

The phone suddenly rang, interrupting Alex's one-sided conversation. Alex answered the phone without a response.

A hasty voice sounded. Someone has obtained the investigation results from the scene of Gerald's accident. It was not an accident, though. Someone committed the crime on purpose. The back of the billboard support column has been damaged by a culprit. Other traces were hard to follow, but the matter at hand was great enough to be investigated.