CHAPTER 116:
SIGNATURE PEN
Liam’s P.O.V.
“Don’t worry, big bro. My eldest sister had always been a fighter all her life, and who knows? She would soon open her eyes. Later, or tomorrow perhaps, I believed that she would wake up. Big sis would never leave us.” Denise tried to comfort me. Her nose was as red as a tomato due to her non-stop crying.
She then hugged me, and I returned the same hug to ease her pain too. At these times, I didn’t know where I could get the additional courage to be strong.
Actually, I admired Denise. At the age of three, she was deprived of a chance of having a real father to look up to, but she still remained bright and cheerful. She was like Diane, strong-willed, and I hoped that my fiancée would surpass the operation.
That was when I saw how Shey and the rest of our company rushed in our direction. Apart from Uncle Greco, Diane’s friends, and officemates, Shey was accompanied by some police officers.
“Liam, what about those wounds? Where are the doctors and nurses here? Why aren’t they treating you? We’ll never know what could happen next. Your wounds might get infected!” Shey hysterically snapped at me before pulling me into a warm embrace.
“Don’t blame them. I told them not to take care of me. I’m fine, Shey. I promise to get medical treatment later,” I assured her, but my eyelids were contradicting my decision. They were drooping low, urging me to plunge into the world of oblivion.
From my peripheral vision, I could see how both Karen and Lorenz hugged Mommy Cecille and Diane’s siblings. Diane was indeed blessed to have best friends like them.
“Auntie, don’t worry. Diane had always been a fighter, and you’ve always known that more than anyone. We just have to believe that she can survive this! She will,” I even heard Karen say that.
That was when Shey brought out some wet tissues from her bag and wiped off the blood on my face. She was indeed a caring sister I never had.
“Are you sure that you can handle everything? I’m afraid that you would have to suffer convulsion later on because of your injuries. But how’s Diane? Is she getting better now? Anyway, the policemen who investigated the accident scene earlier are here. They wanted to talk to you, and they said that it was crucial.”
“I’m really fine, Shey. Can’t you see? I’m still alive and kicking. I have to be here for the sake of my fiancée. We are still waiting for the doctor’s findings on Diane and if the operation was successfully done—” I cut off the rest of what I was going to say to her when the doctor came out of the operating room while removing his surgical gloves.
For a moment, I closed my eyes after feeling a bad headache. It was a kind of headache that commanded me to rest and get the medical treatment needed, but I was too stoic not to mind it.
It was like an iron bar trying to cage my whole system, but I was stubborn enough to treat that everything was fine. I had to convince myself that everything would turn out okay after this horrible night.
“Doc, how’s my daughter? Is the operation successful?” Diane’s mother worriedly asked while clasping her hands in front of her chest. She approached the male doctor instantly.
My mind went blank whilst waiting for the doctor to respond. ‘Oh, God! Please save Diane.’
“Good evening, I am Dr. Salvatore—the one who operated on the patient. The operation was a successful one, so I can assure you that you don’t have to worry now. I must say that the patient was indeed a fighter considering that we had to revive her twice.”
“She suffered hypothermia, but her vital signs are now back to normal. She also endured traumatic brain injury caused by her head contusion and internal hemorrhage, so, unfortunately, your daughter is in a comatose state right now.”
The doctor paused for a while before he continued. “I’m afraid that it would take days, weeks, or even months before she wakes up. We already transferred her to a private room, Ma’am. Let’s just hope for the best for now,” Dr. Salvatore explained. I guessed he was only about my age.
It was as if a massive stake was pulled out from my chest. I breathed a sigh of relief after learning that Diane’s vital signs were stable already. However, I couldn’t help but get upset while hearing the words comatose, brain injury, contusion, and internal hemorrhage.
Another fear crept me up when there was no definite amount of time that Diane would not wake up. If I could just exchange myself with Diane, I would have already done that. Being a powerful CEO would never have control over these things, so I just had to pray and leave everything to God.
‘Trust Him… everything will soon be okay, Liam.’
‘But is this a punishment for me to patiently wait and learn not to rush things?’ My mind was screaming, pushing every part of me to be remorseful as I hurled a deep sigh out of anguish.
Then, the doctor turned to me. “Are you the one who had the same car accident with the patient? You have bruises and wounds that should be treated right away. You might have also had some bone fracture, or worse, internal bleeding.”
“And even if you wouldn’t say, I knew that you also got a head injury. Bea, you know the health protocols here! You should have taken him to the emergency room earlier!” Dr. Salvatore strictly growled at the nurse, who immediately obeyed him. He might have undergone a lot of stress.
“You don’t have to blame her, Doc. I can vouch for her ethics as a nurse. She was adamant in providing immediate medical assistance to my wounds a while ago, but it was me who refused.” I informed the doctor, but he looked like he was never interested in my explanation.
Dr. Salvatore just slightly bowed his head instead, to pay respect to Diane’s mom as he uttered the words, “I’ll go ahead. You can visit me in Room 318 if you have any concerns. Diane’s private room was located in Room 312.”
“Let’s go, sir.” The nurse, who was called Bea, invited me.
All I had to tell her were the words, “I’m sorry.”
After everything that happened, I no longer protested in getting myself treated. Now that Diane was already okay, even though she was still unconscious, I had to fulfill my promise of getting proper treatment here.
Desiring to be the first person that Diane would see the moment she opened her eyes, I didn’t want my fiancée to see me in this condition once she woke up. As much as possible, I always wanted to be the same Mr. Handsome she had ever loved.
With the extent of urgency, it was a good thing that my CT scan result showed that I only had a mild head contusion. My X-ray film also showed a small shoulder-blade fracture.
The fracture affected the one that connects my right upper arm bone to the collarbone. I thanked the Lord that both injuries no longer needed an operation. The male doctor, who was different from Dr. Salvatore, only prescribed me some pain relievers.
After they bandaged my head, as well as my right fist, they put some band-aids over the wounds on my face. I also had a shoulder brace and an arm sling support, preventing my right muscles from any movement that would further strain the injury.
At my request, they moved me to a private room just next to my fiancée’s room. I didn’t mind paying for two rooms, despite the fact that I would only stay in Diane’s room until she got fully recovered.
I was about to go to Diane and see her when the policemen who were with Shey cornered me and spoke to me in the corridor. Neyrah was left all alone inside my room to take care of the food and fruits.
Diane’s family, as well as her friends, seemed to be already inside her room and watching over her. It might have been probably the best thing since I didn’t want them to get stressed a little bit further, with whatever would be the investigation result.
It was because I had an instinct that it was not just an accident caused by malfunctioned brakes. Someone might have plotted everything, and I should get myself ready.
“Nice meeting you, Mr. Evangelista. I am Chief Inspector Roland Cortez. I used to work with Diane’s late father before, so it would be better for me to investigate this case. By the way, these are SPO4 Henry Aragon and SPO3 Solomon Lopez.”
Chief Inspector Cortez shook hands with me, as well as his two companions. The three all showed their badges.
“We are here to report to you about what we just found out during our initial investigation. I’ll be going straight to the point, Mr. Evangelista. It wasn’t just a mere accident because the brakes were deliberately removed from your car.”
“Wait, what? Are you sure with your investigation and everything else wasn’t just a surmise, sir? But who will do that? You don’t have enemies! Right, Liam? So, who could be that heartless demon who sabotaged your car? Oh my God!” Shey alarmingly chimed into the conversation, with her forehead creased into a frown.
With what happened recently, I only had one person in my mind. However, I didn’t want to believe that he could do that to me… but what the other policeman said next confirmed it.
“This is also what we found at the crime scene, Mr. Evangelista…” SPO4 Aragon stated while handing me a transparent bag containing a piece of substantial evidence. With my trembling fingers, I slowly took a hold of it.
It was a signature pen.
“Did you know who owns that signature pen? If you did, we might be able to solve this case as soon as possible,” said SPO3 Lopez.
There were initials engraved on the signature pen, and I could never go wrong. It was one of my gifts to him after I came back from the States last year.
And of all the people I knew, he was the only one who had the strongest motive to do this to me. I could still remember our fight in his office where I told him that he could only get Diane from me over my dead body.
Devastated, I swallowed first because something seemed to get stuck in my throat. I replied as my scorching gazes never left the initials L.J. on the signature pen. I was intently looking at it as if I was ready to kill him and put the law in my hands.
“This pen belongs to my brother… to Leandro James Evangelista.”