Page 183 of Forgotten Prejudice

I didn’t look back, so I had no idea if he’d listened, but then I heard footsteps, and I assumed he left.

Thank God.

Now, I could give Jessie more of my attention.

Soren

I walked down the white hall as I watched the passersby, nurses, and doctors rushing to different rooms, among them families and relatives of those getting treated in this hospital. My skin still itched from the rash, although it was feeling much better than when I’d woken up this morning. Wearing a shirt didn’t help as the fabric kept sticking to my body, increasing my discomfort. I would have skipped leaving my house and stayed home to rest if it weren’t for how important this meeting was to me.

The traffic of people significantly declined once I reached the right floor, as now, the corridor almost stood empty. Being here again was nerve-racking, but since visiting him the last time, Shay-Lee had hardly left my mind, and I had to see him again before I went back to NYC.

Since I still didn’t know what would become of Ashton and me, returning to my home in New York was inevitable. However, calling that horrible penthouse a home was a blunt lie as it hadn’t felt like one for the past seven years. Spending the last few months in California had reminded me of my love for the sun and the warmth it carried with it, and my thoughts of returning here for good became much stronger after the meeting I had with Daniel last week, where he’d offered me a partnership in his NYC office. I planned to refuse Daniel’s offer, but until it was final, I wasn’t going to tell Ashton. If things went wrong, he’d get hurt. On top of that, I didn’t want to pressure him by telling him I was planning to move back here. I knew he was struggling with making a decision, and although him staying with me last night gave me the confidence that he might have made his choice, he was already gone when I woke up this morning. Only unlike before, this time, he’d left a note, telling me he’d call me later with a cute smiley face. Being the desperate bastard that I was, I kept the little sticky note in my wallet, eagerly waiting for that call.

Putting those thoughts aside, I cleared my throat and fixed the collar of my shirt, ready to get inside Shay-Lee’s room. The poor boy still had a long recovery ahead of him, and somehow, I hoped to help him. I also felt bad for not visiting him in the two weeks since he’d helped us win the case, but I planned on making up for it now. Only as I walked inside the room, I found it to be empty. Confused, I walked back to the hall and stopped the first nurse I saw.

“Excuse me, but could you please tell me where the patient of room 401 was moved to?”

The nurse checked me out through her glasses. “Are you talking about Mr. Rogers?”

So she knew who he was. Then again, I assumed most people did.

“Yes.”

“He isn’t here anymore,” she simply said, ready to go back to her work when I stopped her.

“What do you mean? Where is he?”

The older lady looked around us before she leaned a bit closer, a glint of satisfaction on her face, probably due to the gossip she was about to share. “I’m not allowed to say it, but have you heard what happened to his father?”

In a shocking turn of events, Christian’s plane had crashed into the ocean, killing him and all the crew members that were on board.

I nodded, and her smile grew bigger.

“So, after hearing the news, the young boy lost his mind. We needed to inject him with sedatives. Afterward, he was transferred to a psychiatric ward. Can you imagine? That poor kid.”

She didn’t sound worried at all as she kept on speaking. Clearly, she was having the time of her life, telling everyone other people’s business.

“From what I heard, he went through a mental breakdown, but can you blame him?” She moved a bit closer. “From what they said at that trial, he was abused by the dad. One would think he’d be happy the bastard was gone.” She paused for a second to rethink her words. “But, if you ask me, I bet he made this whole thing up to get his boyfriend out of jail and get his hands on his father’s fortune.”

Sickened by her ignorance, I didn’t say anything before walking away. And while this vile nurse’s mindset disturbed me, I knew many would think the same. This whole case was a scandal that would follow Diesel and Shay-Lee for many years to come. Yet, I had greater concerns than public opinion based on what she had told me. So Shay-Lee had a mental breakdown upon hearing of his father’s death? That wasn’t surprising, given their unpalatable relationship. Knowing a thing or two about abuse, I knew that, more often than not, victims might develop an unhealthy dependency on their abuser. Especially in a complicated case like Shay-Lee’s, in which the abuse went on for years and reached levels of torture no one should ever experience. In a way, until Diesel arrived, Shay-Lee’s dad was his whole world, and while being ripped apart from him was good, it wasn’t so simple. And on top of all, Diesel just left? Shay-Lee was probably in utter darkness, all alone and scared. I knew this feeling all too well, and I ached to help him in some way.

I could hear the rain pouring even from the parking lot, and I hurried into my car when my phone rang. Once inside, I pulled it out of my pocket to see it was Ashton. At last. A giddy smile spread on my lips with just the thought of hearing his sweet voice, and I quickly took the call that connected to my car’s speaker.

“I’ve been waiting for your call—”

“Soren,” Ashton gasped, out of breath.

Upon hearing the panic in his voice, I straightened up in my seat, one hand gripping the steering wheel as I tensed with worry.

“Ashton, what’s wrong?” I immediately asked, my heart racing up.

“I need your help.”

“What do you mean he hit you?” I rasped, my body throbbing with rage over what he’d just told me.

The rain was coming down hard on my windshield, but that didn’t stop me from driving my car as if the road was my personal racetrack.

“That’s beyond my point!” Ashton eagerly claimed.