Chapter 2 - The Facade
The heavy door swung open before Noah could even step away from the table.
Garrett filled the doorway, his expensive designer suit looking absurd in the bright fluorescent hospital lighting.
His eyes immediately darted between me and the technician in the scrubs.
I held my breath, praying that Noah had changed enough over the past two years to go unrecognized.
Noah kept his face turned slightly away, expertly adjusting the settings on the X-ray machine.
"Is everything alright in here?" Garrett asked, his tone dripping with fake, sugary concern.
"My wife is pregnant and very fragile."
I forced a weak, trembling smile, playing the part of the clumsy, dependent victim he demanded.
"I am fine, Garrett," I lied, my voice shaking.
"The technician was just explaining the fracture to me."
Garrett stepped further into the room, his towering presence immediately sucking the remaining oxygen from the space.
He walked up to the screen, examining the stark white image of my broken bone against the dark background.
"A clean break," Garrett noted, shaking his head as if I were a foolish child who had dropped a toy.
"You really need to be more careful on those stairs, sweetheart."
He reached out and stroked my hair, his touch sending a violent wave of nausea through my stomach.
Noah remained perfectly professional, handing me a temporary sling without making direct eye contact with my abuser.
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"The doctor will be in shortly to set the cast, sir," Noah said in a deep, disguised voice.
Garrett dismissed him with a careless wave of his hand, entirely oblivious to the ticking time bomb he had just ignited.
