Chapter 279 A Hard Head, Another Concussion
When you're staring down a death threat, all that tough talk and bravado just crumbled. In those moments, even the worst enemy might look like a friend.
Ashley, feeling the weight of the situation, decided to spill a secret she swore she'd take to the grave. "Actually, we have a..."
Before she could finish, the room's partition buckled under the pressure. The wooden board, freed from its rivets, tilted and flew forward, spinning like a frisbee caught in a storm.
Ashley didn't even have time to scream. She saw Damian make a sudden move, but the board veered off course and smacked her instead.
The hit sent her spiraling into darkness. She couldn't see a thing, and her mind was swallowed by the abyss.
When she awoke, it was already the next afternoon.
Her head pounded, and her whole body felt like it had been through a meat grinder. She barely managed to crack her eyes open.
She tried to sit up, but the pain from her injuries forced her back down.
"You're awake?" A strange but gentle female voice said.
Ashley fought through the headache and opened her eyes enough to see a woman in a white coat.
She was in a hospital.
The memory of that stormy night hit her like a ton of bricks. She grabbed the nurse's clothes and blurted out, "Where are they? What about the others?"
The tsunami was over, and she was saved. But what about the rest?
Damian had been protecting her. Was he okay? What about Hendrix?
Seeing her freak out, the nurse tried to calm her down, "Relax, don't stress. They're here, too. When our ambulance got there, the ship had already docked. Some were pretty banged up, but most just had minor injuries. You were one of the more seriously hurt."
Ashley shot out, "A tall, skinny guy, under thirty, wearing a white shirt. Is he okay?"
The nurse looked puzzled, "There are two young men. Which one do you mean?"
Ashley said, "The handsome one." She figured most people would agree on who was better looking.
The nurse thought for a sec and then smiled, "You mean the really tall one, about six-three, fair skin, clean-cut, wearing a fancy watch?"
That could be either Hendrix or Damian. Both were rocking white shirts.
"Where is he?" Ashley asked.
The nurse, worried she'd get worked up again, said gently, "He's still out cold, but he's stable. Our best docs are on it."
Ashley couldn't chill. She needed to see him herself. She struggled to sit up, "Nurse, please help me. I need to see him."
The nurse quickly pushed her back down, thinking she shouldn't be stressing about others, "Miss, don't move! You have a concussion and can't be moving around. I'll check on him for you. Just stay calm."
How could Ashley stay calm?
She had a concussion, so Damian must be in even worse shape.
To avoid making things worse, she stayed put. She didn't want to be more of a burden.
A concussion, another concussion. Her skull was tough, she'd survive a few bumps.
In the same hospital, in a top-floor room.
When Damian woke up, Thomas was already there. Seeing his eyes flutter open, Thomas quickly stepped closer. "Mr. Hearst."
Damian's mind flashed back to the last thing he remembered before blacking out. He'd tried to shield Ashley from that flying board, but his angle was off, and he failed. He could only watch as it nailed her.
Then, the ship got slammed by a massive wave, and he hit something hard and passed out. "How is she? Have you seen her?"
Thomas, knowing Damian would ask about Ashley first thing, nodded, "Yeah, I checked on her. She's awake and mostly okay. Doc said she has a concussion and needs to rest."
Damian's face went cold, "A concussion is mostly okay? What do you call serious then?"
Thomas, looking worried, said, "Mr. Hearst, your arm's in worse shape. You’ve got a comminuted fracture in your forearm. The doc did surgery overnight and put in a titanium plate."
Damian finally noticed his arm was wrapped up in thick bandages and a splint. He frowned deeply, "A fracture?"
So, he had managed to take some of the hit for Ashley?
That was good. It meant he succeeded in cushioning some blow for her.
Thomas could tell Damian wasn't gonna let this slide easily. "Sven and Freya got off with minor injuries and will be out soon. What’s our next move?"
Damian had gone out to negotiate but ended up hurt. Worse, Ashley was hurt, too. Knowing Damian, he wouldn't let Sven off the hook.
What was a piece of land compared to this? If Sven wanted to walk away unscathed, he’d have to pay big time!
Thomas felt bad for Damian and Ashley, and even a bit for Sven. Sven never imagined his carefully planned three-way conflict would turn into such a mess.
Damian said coldly, "Handle it. Leave this to Mr. Moretti."
Mr. Moretti was the perfect guy to deal with Sven!
Thomas nodded, "Got it, Mr. Hearst. I'll get in touch with Mr. Moretti."
When Mr. Moretti got the call, he rushed to Limehof and immediately started giving Sven a hard time.
When Sven found out Damian was hurt, he freaked. He and his wife tried to visit the hospital, but Damian's bodyguards blocked them from even getting to the top floor.
For the first time, Sven realized that even in Limehof, he wasn't in control.
Later, Mr. Moretti found him and said formally, "Mr. Bergstrom, we meet again."
Seeing Mr. Moretti, Sven's smile disappeared, "Mr. Moretti?"
Mr. Moretti handed him a business card across the table, "Mr. Bergstrom, looks like your info network needs an upgrade. I've been the head of the legal department at KM for about five years now."
Sven picked up the card and smirked, "Head of the department? To hold such a high position under Mr. Hearst, you must be pretty capable."
When he first met Mr. Moretti, he was just a fresh grad. Because he refused to take Sven's case, Sven had someone teach him a lesson.
Times had changed, and he never thought they'd meet again like this.
Mr. Moretti opened his briefcase, placed his laptop on the table, crossed his hands, and sat up straight, "Mr. Bergstrom, on behalf of Mr. Hearst, I am formally suing you..."
Hearing this, Thomas left the conference room.
He left the rest to Mr. Moretti.
Afterward, he went to check on Hendrix, who was laid up in a hospital bed.
After all, Hendrix was a son of the Long family. It wouldn't be right not to check on him.
Hendrix lay there with a neck brace, his right leg in a heavy cast suspended high.
"Hendrix, you okay?" Thomas asked.
Hendrix couldn't move his head. He strained to see the man at the foot of the bed and immediately sneered, "So it's one of Mr. Hearst's guys. Your visit is an honor!"
