?<strong>Chapter 518:</strong>


    Morgan took a sip of water, her eyes flitting between Elyse and Jayden. Sheughed softly. “It’s clear you both care deeply for each other. If there’s a misunderstanding, it’s best to discuss it openly. It could hurt your rtionship otherwise.”


    Elyse slowly turned her gaze to Jayden, her voice steady. “There’s nothing misunderstood between us, is there?”


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    Jayden remained silent, fearful that any further words might upset Elyse, risking harm to the baby she was carrying.


    Scratching her head, Morgan sensed tension brewing between them. Feeling awkward about intervening without their invitation, she decided to steer the conversation away from their issues.


    Momentster, a nurse walked in and addressed Jayden, “The olddy Ms. Dorothy Conner in Ward 1102 is awake. You’re wee to visit her now.”


    Elyse’s face lit up with excitement. “She’s awake? I need to see her.”


    After delivering the message, the nurse exited the room.


    Driscoll, who had been tidying up the table, was ready to suggest he could apany Elyse to see Dorothyter. However, his eyes inadvertently met Jayden’s. Jayden, silent as ever, gripped the armrests of his wheelchair, clearly eager to go as well but too shy to express it.


    Driscoll sighed silently, convinced that Jayden deserved the frosty reception he was getting. He had attempted several times to show Jayden how his actions could damage his rtionship with Elyse. Lies were never kind. Once Elyse discovered the deception, their marriage would surely face a crisis. Trust, after all, was the foundation of any solid partnership.


    Having watched Jayden grow up, Driscoll felt a duty to intervene. He couldn’t just stand by and watch Jayden risk losing his wife.


    Therefore, with a grave tone, Driscoll told Elyse, “I need to clean the table and can’t apany you right now. Would it be alright if Mr. Owen goes with you instead?”


    Elyse, tilting her head, gave Jayden a silent nce. She then pulled back her nket and slowly rose from the bed. Taking Morgan’s hand, she headed toward the door of the ward.


    Jayden saw the reluctance in Elyse’s demeanor, a flicker of disappointment crossing his eyes. Driscoll noticed Jayden wasn’t moving and grew anxious. “Sir, why are you still sitting there? Hurry up and follow her!”


    Jayden muttered, “She didn’t ask me to apany her.”


    Elyse had already disappeared from view. Driscoll snapped, frustrationcing his words, “Her silence is consent! If you keep acting like this, I fear you won’t be able to keep her by your side.”


    Jayden’s expression darkened at Driscoll’s words. He couldn’t grasp how a woman’s quiet agreement could be seen as genuine consent. The idea struck him as absurd. It reminded him of a phrase Peyton and his friends often tossed around: “Women areplicated and unpredictable.”


    With a click of his tongue, Jayden resigned himself to the fact that women were indeed a puzzle too intricate to solve easily. Determined, he strode faster to catch up with Elyse, and just as he reached her, the elevator doors slid open. He stepped inside alongside Elyse and Morgan.


    Morgan, sandwiched between the pair, sensed the tension hanging thick in the air. Looking to lighten the mood, she chimed in, “Who’s Dorothy Conner? You seem really concerned about her. Is she your grandma?”


    Elyse shook her head and replied, “No, she’s just an olddy I know.”


    Her thoughts drifted to a recent conversation with Dorothy, who had urged them to look for someone named “J.” Time had passed, and still, there had been no word of J.


    As the elevator reached their floor, they exited and made their way to Ward 1102.


    Elyse led the way, pushing the door open. Upon seeing Dorothy up and about, she eximed in surprise, “Why did you sit up?”


    Dorothy remained silent, her gaze unblinking as she stared through Elyse. Feeling unnerved by the intensity of Dorothy’s stare, Elyse hesitated, caught between moving forward and stepping back.


    Upon closer inspection, she realized that Dorothy was not actually looking at her, but at someone behind her.


    “What’s going on? Why are you just standing there? Let’s get inside!” Morgan’s voice interrupted her thoughts from behind. She ced her hands on Elyse’s shoulders and nudged her gently forward before stepping aside to see Dorothy herself.


    Upon seeing the elderly woman, Morgan felt an inexplicable tightness in her chest. Though she didn’t recognize Dorothy, there was something painfully familiar about her that tugged at her heartstrings, almost bringing her to tears.


    Meanwhile, Elyse, fixated on Dorothy, didn’t catch Morgan’s emotional turmoil. She did, however, notice a subtle shift in Dorothy’s expression as her cloudy eyes met Morgan’s.


    A mixture of recognition and confusion swirled within them, emotions that seemed both foreign and familiar to Elyse.


    After a moment of contemtion, a thought struck Elyse with rity. “A mother, driven to the brink by the loss of her child, finds sanity once more upon their return,” she mused, the words bing distinct in her mind.


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