Edward pursed his lips, debating with himself for several minutes. Finally, he decided to head home. (2
He didn’t know why Macie wasn’t answering his calls. He wondered if it was because she didn’t have her phone or if she had blocked his number.
Edward had bought her a new phone. If it wasn’t at home, it meant that she was using it. If she were using it, then it seemed that she had indeed deliberately blocked him. That would give him something to confront her about, at least.
But if she wasn’t using her new phone, how had she been managing at the hospital all these days? Edward pondered if Macie had been using herputer instead.
He returned to their apartment feeling slightly hopeful. He took the elevator up, stepped inside, and headed straight for the guest bedroom.
The door wasn’t locked. He pushed it open and froze.
The bed was stripped bare. There were no sheets or pillows, just a bare mattress staring back at him.
Edward’s heart skipped a beat and then began to race. His back stiffened, and a wave of unease washed
over him.
Why was it so empty? Where’s Macie? Did she leave again?
His eyesnded on the phone sitting on the nightstand. He walked over and picked it up. A thinyer of dust coated the surface, and the stic film was still intact. There was even a small dent from when he’d
thrown it.
His fingers tightened around the phone as a mix of panic and denial surged through him.
He figured that Macie must be staying at the hospital to recover. She almost died from gas poisoning, so it was likely that she was staying there for longer. Naturally, she’d take her bedding to make herself morefortable. Edward was convinced that that was it. He was certain that it was.
Macie wasn’t answering Edward’s calls because she had no phone. She wasn’t ignoring him and hadn’t
blocked him.
Clutching the new phone, Edward bolted out of the apartment.
He drove back to the hospital, but he didn’t wait for the elevator this time. He took the stairs<b>, </b>racing up eight flights, two steps at a time. His breath came in ragged gasps, his heart pounding harder with every step. His fingers tingled with anxiety. (1
Edward tried to reassure himself that Macie had taken her bedding to the hospital. However, his mind kept circling back to the emptiness of the guest room. Her mug was gone, and her bath towel was
missing.
He wondered if she had really taken everything and if she was moving all her things to the hospital.
When he reached the eighth floor, his footsteps echoed loudly in the stairwell. He burst into the hospital room, his voice loud and desperate.
“Macie!”
Everyone in the hospital ward was shocked. A middle–aged woman, presumably a family member of the patient, shot to her feet and snapped, “Who are you? How dare you barge in here like this! Are you going to be responsible if my parents experience a heart attack from the shock?”
Edward stared at her, then at the elderly patient lying in the bed. His expression went nk, his mind struggling to process what he was seeing. <fn7d80> This update is avable on f?ndnovel</fn7d80>
“I’m sorry. I must have the wrong room,” Edward muttered as he backed out.
Once outside, he double–checked the room number, his heart sinking as he confirmed that it was indeed the one Macie had been in. Panic surged through him again.
He pushed the door open once more and asked, “Excuse me. Do you know where the previous patient in
this room went?”
The family member red at him. “Are you insane? Why are you asking me? Ask the nurses if you want to know about thest patient!”
Edward blinked, realization dawning. He hurried to the nurses‘ station and asked, “Do you know where the previous patient in Room 9 went? Her name is Macie Smith.”
The nurse, noticing his frantic state, quickly checked the records. “Macie? Yes, she was in Room 9.”
“Where is she now?<b>” </b>Edward demanded.
“She checked out yesterday at 8:00 am,” the nurse replied.
Edward staggered back in surprise. He gripped the counter to steady himself.
He couldn’t believe that Macie had checked out of the hospital yesterday.