To Love a Shadow, To Be the Sun novel Chapter 163

The police arrived quickly, pulling Ryan out of the losing fight just in time.

Elara sat in her wheelchair by the window, watching as Brian left with the officers. Their eyes met for the briefest moment—a fleeting connection—and then nothing more.

At this point, what was left to say?

She had destroyed his reputation and career—there was nothing left between them but the formalities of divorce.

Summer hadn't gone out for breakfast that morning.

Instead, she ran into the Calloways' housekeeper at the elevator.

The housekeeper brought her a thermos of nourishing homemade soup—enough for two—and a fresh change of clothes.

As Elara sipped the soup Mrs. Calloway had lovingly prepared, she understood the gesture all too well.

Charles had tampered with her medical records, concealing her miscarriage, and she had promised not to pursue it. She wasn't about to go back on her word.

"Ryan's injuries are serious. He'll be in the hospital for a while. The Vincents and the Lawrences have never gotten along—there's no way the Lawrences will let this go. Brian's going to be absolutely swamped," Summer said.

Elara barely reacted.

In the days that followed, she drifted in and out of sleep more frequently, always waking from nightmares, exhausted, only to fall asleep again. This cycle repeated for three or four days before she finally started to feel human again. Her wounds were healing quickly.

By the time she was transferred to a regular hospital room, the team of specialists from the capital had already left, but the hospital assigned her their best attending physician.

Summer, meanwhile, was run ragged. Ever since she'd announced at the summit that they were seeking an exclusive strategic partner, her phone—and the company's—had been ringing off the hook.

Feeling guilty, Elara hired a nurse to handle the night shifts so Summer could get some rest, but the two of them still talked several times a day.

One afternoon, Summer brought important news: Brian was facing a no-confidence vote and was barely holding on. If Ignition Dynamics signed a deal with another company, it would be a devastating blow to the SiliconCrest Group.

Elara was noncommittal.

The doctor had just finished his rounds when the door to her room swung open.

Elara glanced up and met Jason's eyes. She sighed, looking away.

"What, am I that stressful to look at?" Jason said, stepping inside with a bag of ginseng and deer antler tonic.

Elara only laughed. "You have two choices."

Jason closed his eyes briefly. "We're not afraid of competition."

With a smile, Elara hung up.

Jason pointed at her. "That's twice now!"

Elara's smile never faded. "Believe me or not, there's bound to be a third."

He'd never met a woman who dared tease him like this.

Jason was caught somewhere between annoyance and reluctant amusement.

"So, what about the favor you owe Ryan? How are you going to repay him?"

Elara blinked, confused, so Jason added, "Because he stood up for you in front of Brian, my brother's still in the hospital."

Elara's eyes widened in feigned innocence. "Oh, I see—you're worried that I'll give my favor to Ryan instead of you?"