Chapter 93 Do You Know How Much Trouble You've Caused Me?
Bella couldn't figure out why Katniss wasn't pregnant; she was all hyped up to see Katniss crash and burn.
With everyone staring at her like she had two heads, Katniss got up, ignored the pain in her back, fixed her clothes, and then just stood there, clueless about where to go.
Adelaide shot a look at Tristan, her brow furrowed. "What the heck is going on?"
Tristan, cool as a cucumber, checked his watch. "I'll fill you in on Katniss later. It's not what you think. But it's getting late. If anyone's sticking around for dinner, now's the time."
It sounded like an invite, but it was more like a "get lost." People got the hint, and half of them bailed.
Bella wasn't going anywhere, though. She was dead set on seeing Adelaide deal with Katniss.
She started walking towards Adelaide, but Tristan slid over a couple of steps, blocking her way.
Tristan shot Michael a look, and Michael stepped in, grabbing Bella. "Bella, let Grandma Forbes handle Katniss. We can come back another time."
"Michael, let me go!" Bella struggled, but Michael had a firm grip and dragged her away.
The Astor couple left, looking pissed, and faint sounds of their voices could be heard from outside. "I knew Bella rushing over here was bad news. Why's she so obsessed with Tristan?"
The Astor family always had Bella's back, and Katniss couldn't help but feel a bit jealous.
Unlike Bella, Katniss was about to face Adelaide's wrath all alone.
She thought about saying she was Tristan's wife to dodge Adelaide's anger, but she couldn't risk pissing off Tristan.
Adelaide sat down, her eyes sharp as daggers, staring at Tristan and Katniss. "What's going on?"
Tristan spoke up first, sounding super dismissive. "I had too much to drink, that's all. She's already suspended. If you're still mad, I'll fire her."
Katniss stiffened, biting her lip until she tasted blood.
'He's probably worried that spilling the beans about this crazy deal would piss off Adelaide and mess with her health,' Katniss thought.
"Katniss, you tell me!" Adelaide's eyes were locked on Katniss, not missing a thing.
Katniss's eyes flickered, and she looked up at Adelaide, steadying herself. "Just like Mr. Forbes said, I messed up. I'm at your mercy."
She lowered her head again, leaving her fate in their hands.
Katniss thought she heard Adelaide sigh, but she didn't dare look up, figuring she must've imagined it.
After what felt like forever, Adelaide got up, and the butler rushed over to help her.
"She's your employee; you deal with her," Adelaide said slowly, heading for the door. "Let's go. Every second I look at Tristan, I feel like I'm aging a decade."
Just as she reached the door, she stopped and asked seriously, "You two aren't lying to me, right?"
"No," Tristan replied, his eyes flicking to Katniss, one hand in his pocket. "I have no reason to lie to you for her."
Adelaide turned and left with the butler.
On the way back to the Forbes Mansion, she sighed a million times in the car.
The butler couldn't help but ask, "Mrs. Forbes, what's on your mind?"
"I'm not worried about anything. But seriously, what's so great about Bella?" Adelaide's face was lined with concern. "Why is he so hung up on her?"
"Young love runs deep. It's normal you don't get it, but maybe don't push Mr. Forbes too hard. What if he..." The butler trailed off, worried Adelaide might push Tristan too far.
Adelaide seemed to think of something and sighed again, saying nothing more.
In the now-empty hall that was buzzing half an hour ago, only Tristan and Katniss remained.
Tristan stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, surrounded by smoke, looking all agitated and restless as he smoked.
Katniss, standing behind him, could barely stand from the pain in her back. Her lipstick probably couldn't hide how pale she looked.
Suddenly, he turned and leaned against the wall, motioning her over. "Come here."
She walked over, discreetly rubbing her lower back to ease the soreness, but it still hurt.
His long fingers grabbed her neck, pulling her closer, his fingertips lightly brushing her ear. "Do you know how much trouble you've caused me?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Forbes," Katniss quickly apologized.
She could faintly hear Tristan clenching his jaw. She bit her lip, and suddenly her waist tightened. His forearm pressed against her wound, pulling her into his arms.
The pain almost made her cry out.
But the way her brows furrowed deeply made him realize something was wrong. As if remembering something, he released her waist, saying, "Don't move."
His fingers pulled her shirt out from her skirt, revealing a large patch of skin.
He pressed her closer to him and saw a shocking bruise on her waist, about the size of a fist, and it was swollen.
Katniss leaned against him, feeling all kinds of uneasy as he checked out the bruise on her waist.
"Go home," he suddenly said, letting her go. "Wait for my call."
He still hadn't figured out what to do with her.
Katniss straightened up and tucked her shirt back in. "Okay," she mumbled.
Tristan's eyes followed her as she walked away, his expression shifting through a bunch of emotions in just a few seconds.
Finally, he took a deep breath and pulled out his phone.
Outside the hotel, Katniss stood by the curb, zoning out while waiting for a taxi that never came.
The midday sun felt warm and kinda nice on her skin.
She turned to look for a bus stop, but before she could spot one, a bright blue car screeched to a halt beside her.
The window rolled down halfway, and Nicholas leaned over, calling out, "Get in."
She bent down, eyeing him suspiciously. "Mr. Kennedy, why are you back? Need something from me?"
"Just get in, and I'll explain," Nicholas said, opening the car door.
With no other choice, she got in. As soon as she buckled up, the car zoomed off, pushing her back into the seat.
She wasn't used to being driven by anyone other than Tristan, and it made her feel weirdly unsafe, so she gripped the handle tightly.
"Where do you live? I'll take you home," Nicholas said, but then his phone rang.
He gestured for Katniss to be quiet and answered the call. Ellen's anxious voice came through.
"Mom, something came up. I'll reschedule, okay? Bye!" Nicholas replied.
Before Ellen could say more, he hung up and asked Katniss again, "Where do you live?"
'Did he just blow off something important to give me a ride?' Katniss wondered but still said, "Take me to the hospital."
"Okay," Nicholas said, then noticed something. "What's wrong? You feeling sick? What happened to your hand?"
"It's nothing, just a burn. I have a bad cold, and my sister made me go to the hospital," Katniss said, sniffling and trying to downplay it.
Nicholas gave her a look, like he was piecing something together, but didn't say more and drove straight to the hospital.
They got there around noon. After thanking Nicholas, Katniss got out and hurried inside, not noticing that Nicholas's car stayed parked for a bit.
He was on the phone with Tristan.
Nicholas said, "Mission accomplished. I postponed a date to help you out. My mom almost killed me. How are you gonna make it up to me?"
The call abruptly ended, and Nicholas stared at his phone for a few seconds before cursing and driving off to find Tristan.
Even though Katniss was staying at the hospital, she avoided visiting Sophia, worried that seeing her injured hand would upset her.
In the afternoon, while Matilda and George were away, she had a quick chat with the doctor and got the green light to be discharged the next morning.
When Matilda and George returned, she kept it to herself. Early the next morning, after they left, she handled the discharge papers on her own.
Back at Oakwood Hills, she shot Matilda a text to let her know.
Matilda responded with a storm of complaints and concern. After Katniss assured her she'd take good care of herself, Matilda finally chilled out.
She changed into a tracksuit, took off the bandages from her hand, applied the ointment she got from the hospital, and then headed straight to the Astor family to tutor Kieran.
She took the bus and walked nearly twenty minutes before arriving at the Neville villa and ringing the doorbell.
Cedric, knowing she had taken the bus, handed her a set of car keys. "It's a long walk from here to the bus stop. It's not convenient. I have plenty of cars; you can use one."
Katniss smiled and declined. "No need. I have plenty of free time now, and walking is a good way to relax."
Her firm attitude left Cedric with nothing more to say, so he stepped aside to let her in to tutor Kieran.
Kieran's grades had improved a lot.
Besides going over the mistakes on his test papers, she introduced topics related to his new lesson to spark his interest.
But Kieran noticed something was off. Several times, while he was working on problems, she stared blankly at one spot.
"Ms. Grey, what happened to your hand?" Kieran finally put his studies aside.
Katniss snapped out of her daze and shook her head, saying, "It's nothing serious, just a burn."
"Then why are you so distracted today? Is it because your hand hurts?" Kieran asked again.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Katniss quickly grabbed a textbook. "It doesn't hurt. Have you finished? Let's start the new lesson."
But Kieran pressed down on the book she brought over. "You're not yourself. Did something happen? Why are you suddenly able to come to my house every day to tutor me? What about your job?"
Katniss felt uncertain, likely facing dismissal. Just as she was thinking about it, her phone suddenly rang.
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