16/17
ARRANGED LOVE❤️
Episode 16
Valeria!
I ran up to her side as the doctors and nurses wheeled her out of the operation room. Her appearance made my heart break into pieces. The doctors had bandaged her right arm. I as-sumed that her right leg was bandaged too. She had a cast around her che-st.
Her head was bandaged up but, her hair was still intact and we-t. She had a oxygen mask on. Her face had some bruises and scratches. I reached over to her face and ca-ressed her cheek. Her skin felt a bit cold. Valeria . She was breathing steadily.
“We are moving her to recovery right now. Excuse us,” a nurse informed me. “When can I see her?” I asked her. “We’ll get you once she is situated into her room,” she told me and walked away with the doctors.
I watched Valeria disappear at a corner. “See. She made it,” Matthew told me. ba-rely . My hands closed in a fist. “Mr. Minetti.” I turned my head to see Dr. Seeley and two other doctors. “This is Dr. Bach and Dr. Fletcher,” he introduced them to me.
I shook each their hands. Matthew and Angela shook their hands too. “Adrian Minetti. My brother Matthew and sister in law Angela,” I introduced us to them. “It’s nice to meet you all,” Mr. Bach said to us.
“How is she?” Angela beat me to it. “She is doing very well. She is stable but, in critical condition. She has sustained a certain amount of spinal injury,” Dr. Fletcher told us. “What does that mean exactly?” I asked him.
“She may not be able to walk. We will only know when she wakes up. If she shows leg movements, she can go into rehabilitation. She is expected to go into rehab once she has recovered,” Dr. Fletcher told us.
Great…another thing to worry about.
“What about her concussion?” Matthew asked them. “From looking at her br@in, there was some signs of trauma to the head. She is most likely will have memory loss when she wakes up. Hopefully, her memory loss is not too severe,” Dr. Bach told us.
“How bad can her memory loss be?” I asked him. “From looking at her br@in from the MRI scan, I have to say that it could be from Lacunar to Retrograde amnesia,” he told me.
Lacunar? Retrograde? What the hell is that?
Dr. Fletcher s-en-sed my confusion. “If you like, you three can come to my office and I can tell you the details of her head injury,” he told me. “I would like that,” I told him. “Follow me,” he said and excused himself from the other doctors.
We followed him to the elevator and into his office at the psychiatric/neurology dep@rtment. “Have a seat,” he said to us. We sat in front of his desk. Looking around the room, he was one of the best doctors in the field.
He had his Doctorates in neurology and psychiatric. Also, he degrees in biology and life sciences. He had gotten many awards and his work was known in several magazines and medical journals across the world.
Dr. Bach took his seat and started to type something on his computer. “Let me pu-ll out her MRI scan,” he told us. After a few long minutes, he shifted the computer screen towards us. It showed Valeria’s br@in.
“You can see here that it has swollen a bit,” he pointed out to us. “She didn’t have anything broken on the skull right?” Matthew asked him. “Luckily no but, she does have a large bruise on her head. She also has some signs of head trauma due to her head being slammed against the steering wheel and the door window,” he told us.
When did she get a car? I knew that I nee-ded to look into everything. “You said something about different types of amnesia. Can you tell us in detail of each one of them?” Angela asked Dr. Bach kindly.
“Certainly. The first type is the lacunar amnesia. Basically, a person lose a memory about one specific event. The second type is source amnesia which is the inability to remember where, when, or how previous information has been acquired even though the person was able to retain factual knowledge. I am going to tell you right now that I hope it’s one of these two,” he told us.
Worry started to build. “Why?” I asked. Dr. Bach let out a de-ep ha-rd breath. I could tell that it wasn’t good. “The other types would require much patience for memory recovery,” he told us. “What are the other types?” Matthew asked.
“The first one would be post traumatic amnesia. It’s the inability to recall memories moments before an event such as an accident. Also, the person may lose knowledge of who people are. Depending on the injury to the head, it may take a long time for a person to remember,” he told us.
“The second one would be….” I really wanted to know the other ones. “Retrograde amnesia. It’s the inability to recall memories before the onset or beginning of the amnesia. A person is able to remember general knowledge but, not specifics. Also, overtime, older memories will be easier to recall than newer memories. If the person is expo-sed to something from their newer memory, that memory may return,” he told us.
“In other words, the condition is temporary,” Angela said. He gave her a nod. “The last one is Anterograde amnesia that is the inability to create new memories. A person may have memories of their past but, are not able to create new ones,” he told us.
I began to feel more worried. What happens if she has that amnesia? I wouldn’t be able to make things right.
“Also, she can have a combination of amnesias,” he told us.
“So, which type do you think she has then?” I asked him. He looked at me. “We won’t know until she wakes up,” he told me. Great. More waiting will kill me. I gave him a nod. Mathew placed his hand on my shoulder.
“You should go and see your wife. If you have any more questions, I’ll be here,” he told us. “Thank you Dr. Bach,” I said and made my way out of the office to Valeria’s room. The hallways were filling with nurses and doctors.
Valeria….will you remember me? I continued to walk towards the recovery ward.
“Adrian.”
I turned my head towards my brother and his wife. “You should go home and rest. You have been for hours,” Angela suggested to me. I shook my head. “I want to be here when she wakes up,” I told her. I am not leaving her side again.
“Matthew. I think he should stay. He alre-ady feels guilty enough for not being at her side for four years,” Angela said. Thanks Angela . Matthew gave her a nod. We walked throu-gh the hallways and found ourselves at the recovery ward.
“I’ll go ask where her room is,” Matthew said and walked away to find someone. Angela stayed with me. I paced back and forth. plea-se God. plea-se help me. plea-se help Valeria. “God. What’s taking Matthew so long.” I was getting impatient.
“Look who I found.”
I turned my head to see Matthew and Stephen. How did he get here so fast? Stephen opened his arms and gave me a hvg. “Hey. How are you?” he asked me. I pu-ll-ed away and brushed my hair back with my f!ngers.
“How am I? I’m in a hell of worry right now. How did you get here so fast? Aren’t you suppose to be in Hong Kong?” I asked him. He gave me a smile. “I was but, I got to San Francisco two days ago to be with my girl,” he told me.
I raised an eyebrow. “Who? Dana?” He had d@t£d so many girls. His last relationsh!pinvolved with a girl name Dana Paredes who was a model from California. I met her three years ago when they c@m£ to my office for a short visit. She was more worried about her looks and image than her relationsh!pwith Stephan.
Stephen shook his head. “She has been old history for two years. I’m d@t!nga girl name Eugenia Balestra. I think she’s the one,” he said. Matthew had a sm-irk on his face. “You say that to every girl you d@t£d,” he told his younger brother.
“I’m serious this time. She is different from the other girls who I d@t£d,” Stephen said to me. “How did you two meet?” Matthew asked him. “We met in Italy at a cafe. She was a waitress there. I fell in love with her. We started d@t!ngsince,” he told us.
Very unlike him.} “Anyways, for our anniversary, I took her to San Francisco to meet grandfather and grandmother. They approve of our relationsh!p,” he told us. “So where is she now?” Matthew asked him. “She’s at a h0tel near here right now. I told her to wait for me there,” he told him.
Matthew gave him a nod and looked at me. “A nurse said that she is in room 411,” he told me. quic-kly, I walked down the hallway until I found the room She’s in here. Quietly and slowly, I opened the door.
The room was dark but, I could see the figure on the be-d. Slowly, I made my way next to the be-d to see Valeria. The heart monito-red show that her heart was still beating. She breathed in oxygen from the mask.
I pu-ll-ed a chair and sat down. Looking at her left hand, I saw bruises. Gently, I held her hand that looked very fragile. Instantly, I felt like I wanted to break down but, I had to be strong for her. I want to be the man who she was going to depend on.
Footsteps were head behind me. I forgot that my siblings were with me. “So, this is my other sister in law.” I turned my head towards Stephen who was meeting Valeria for the first time. “Yes. This is her,” I said to him and turned my attention back to my wife.
Angela walked around the other side of the be-d and looked at Valeria. “I hope she remembers us,” she said with worry. Matthew walked up to Angela and wra-pped his arms around his wife. “She’s going to be fine. Don’t worry,” he tried to reas-sure his wife.
Stephen stood next to me. “So…what happened to her?” he asked. That’s right…I didn’t tell him.
“She got into a car accident. A truck ran throu-gh a red light and hit her car. She was on her way home from seeing some friends of hers,” I explained to him.
“What is she like?” he asked another question. Great….How am I going to answer that question . “She is selfless, innocent, and loyal. She is a great cook. She makes great pasta and the best coffee that I have ever tasted,” I said to him honestly.
That’s all I know about her .
“I hope I get to eat some of her cooking,” Stephen said to me. I nodded my head.
Ring…ring……
I took my phone out to see that Lorenzo was calling me. I answered the phone call. “Did you find anything?” I asked him. “Yes but, before that I want to let you know something,” Lorenzo said to me.
What could he want to tell me….
“What is it?” I asked. “It seems that your wife has been using one of the room downstairs. The one at the end of the hallway. It has her l@pt©p, clothes, and some other personal items,” he told me. The rooms downstairs were for guests. I hadn’t finished furnishing many of the rooms except that room.
“Do you mind if you can bring her l@pt©p here? I would like to see what she has been up to,” I told him. “Of course sir,” he told me. “Now, what did you find on Mariah?” I asked him. I really nee-ded her off my back.
“It turns out that she had been seeing another CEO on days where you aren’t spending time with her,” he told me. So…she was seeing someone. On t©p of that, it’s another CEO . “Do you know who the CEO is?” I asked him.
“You aren’t going to like the name. He is one of your competitors and enemies,” he told me. “Just tell me the name.” I was getting impatient in my seat. “Dario Nazari. CEO of Nazari h0tels & Resorts,” he told me.
Nazari h0tels & Resorts had been a big competitor and enemy to my family for years. They were also trying to out compete us in providing a great Italian experience. The CEO tried to outbid me for the property in San Diego recently.
“Is there anything else?” I asked him. “Yes. From looking into her things, it appears that she had been conspiring with Nazari on the San Diego property,” he told me. “I kind of figured that considering how interested they were on trying to outbid me,” I told him.
“And there is something else,” he told me.
He told me something that I could get Mariah in hell.
Few days later……..
I never thought that I would have to live like this. I had been living in the hospital for the past few days. My siblings c@m£ to visit in the afternoons to check on us. They brou-ght me clothes to change into as well as some ess£ntials so that I could freshen myself up.
My parents c@m£ two days ago to see us. I explained to them everything about the accident to my behavior with my wife. They were very disappointed with me and would think about what to do with me as well as my position in the company.
My fate in the company were in their hands.
As for Valeria, she was showing little signs of improvement. When I held her hand, she would give my hand a squee-ze at times. Doctors said that it could be just impulses from the nerves. I convinced myself that she was responding to my t©uçh.
A nurse would come into the room and check on Valeria’s vitals as well as change the IV. The nurse showed me how to stretch Valeria so that her muscle’s wouldn’t become stiff. I was careful on to hurt Valeria in the process.
Right now, I was in my office expecting Mariah to show up. Matthew and Angela were watching Valeria for me. I told them my plan and they agreed to let me do what I nee-ded to do for Valeria’s sake and mine.
Ring……Ring…..
I took the phone from my desk. “Yes.” “Mr. Minetti. Miss Winslow is here to see you,” Lorenzo informed me. Right on time. Time to get this once and for all. “s£nd her in,” I told him and hung up the phone. I looked at the door and waited.
The door opened to reveal Mariah in her usual black office suit. Her hair was neatly put into a bun. She wore de-ep bredl-ipstick and fake eye lashes. Her stilettos increa-sed her height. She was more like a model than an employee.
She walked up to my desk in a flir-tatious manner. “Hello Adrian. I knew that you would come back to me,” she said to me. “Have a seat,” I gestured to the seat in front of me. She sat in the seat and crosse her legs to show a lot of skin.
“So, what is this about?” she asked me with a smile on her face. What is this about? I opened my desk and pu-ll-ed out my weapon.
I slammed the evidence in front of her.
“This is what it’s about.”
Episode 17
(Semi finale)
“What is this?”
I showed the pictures of her with Nazari at different h0tels, my plans that she showed to Nazari, and financials records that showed that the large sums of money used to aid Nazari on large projects. “I don’t know. You tell me. After all, you are the one who had been betraying me and the company,” I told her and crossed my arms.
She blinked her eyes fast and looked nervous. “I…I don’t know what these are,” she said me as she tried brush things off. I slammed my hands onto my desk. “You had been conspiring with Nazari for the past two years. The exact same time when I started to become dissatisfied with you,” I told her.
“That is ridiculous! I am loyal to you and only you. I wouldn’t do this to you Adrian. I love you too much,” she tried to convince me. Love me too much? “You know what, maybe I bec@m£ dissatisfied with you because I felt like you weren’t being satisfied with me,” I told her.
Her eyes wi-den a bit.
“What do you mean?” she asked. “What is it that Nazari do to satisfy you? Was there something that he could give to you that I can’t? Gifts? Money?” I asked.
She shook her head. “NO! Did you ever think why I bec@m£ close to him? I was trying to get into his company so that I could find out what he was up to! I thought that I could help you by being in there!” she said to me.
“That has to involve you going into a h0tel with him and slee-ping with him!” I yelled at her. “I was doing whatever it takes to make your company the best even if I had to sacrifice myself to him,” she told me.
“Even if you had to sacrifice your virtue to him.” I rephrased what she meant. In the media, people as-sumed that I sle-pt with many girls who I d@t£d in the past. The fact was…I never sle-pt with anyone. I never gave myself to any girl.
Growing up, I was told to wait until the wedding night. Matthew told me that it was worth waiting. When Matthew and Angela returned home from their honeymoon, I could tell that they had the great time of their life. They spent most of their time indoors. I committed myself to wait with Mariah but, it would never happen.
“You know that I am all about being faithful and loyal! Back then, I meant everything including your b©dy because I thought that one day, I would be able to divorce my wife and marry you!” I told her. We discussed about it many times. To be honest, we never sle-pt together. We only went far as having make out sessions because I told her that I wanted our wedding night to be special.
She got up and wra-pped her arms around me. “And I still do want to marry you,” she said with tears sliding down her face. I pu-ll-ed her away from me. “No. I was wrong about you. You couldn’t even keep your legs close. You are not an ideal woman. You are a pr©st!tût£who wants nothing but money,” I said as I gritted my teeth so that I would st©p yelling out that someone outside could hear us despite the room being soundproof.
She fell on her knees and wra-pped her arms around my w@!st with desperation. “plea-se. I beg of you for forgiveness. I want you back. plea-se,” she begged me. I re-moved her arms around me and took a step back. She looked very pitiful.
“You aren’t right for me and the company. If you ever show your face here again, I’ll take you to court for the damages that you had caused on the company,” I said and walked out of the office. Lorenzo walked up to me.
“Makes sure she leave with nothing in her hands and have the security guards make sure that she never step foot in the company ever again,” I instructed him. “Yes sir,” Lorenzo said and stood next to my office door.
I better get back to Valeria.
“When will you be returning sir?” I heard Lorenzo ask me. I st©pped and looked at him. “Honestly, I don’t know. I might not be the CEO of this br@nch soon,” I told him. Lorenzo gave me a nod. I walked up to him and placed a hand his shoulder.
“If I don’t, I want you to take care of the next CEO like you did to me,” I told him. “Thank you sir,” he said. He looked a bit sad. I gave him a smile. “Thank you Lorenzo for as-sisting me and my family,” I said to him. He gave me a nod.
I nodded in return and walked out of the building that I may never step into again.
Couple months later…….
“I think that’s enough for the day,”
I rest Valeria on the be-d and pu-ll-ed the covers up to her shoulder. The nurse helped me stretch Valeria’s muscles. She began to develop some so-res on her skin so we had to place extra cushions around her to keep her comfortable.
“I’ll be back later to check her vitals,” the nurse said and walked out of the room. I pu-ll-ed a chair and sat down. I took my l@pt©p and started to re-ad some news articles. One story was was the t©p story in the past few days.
A Faithful Man!
Adrian Minetti kicks Winslow Out!
Mariah Winslow was seen dragged out of Minetti Resorts International USA br@nch. According to some sources, Adrian Minetti had cut off Mariah when he found out that she had secretly revealed business plans to Dario Nazari, CEO of Nazari h0tels & Resorts.
Nob©dy has been able to interview the CEO due to his wife in the hospital. He was seen rushing into the hospital to see her. It was the first picture of him in the media.
Surprisingly, his wife’s identity is unknown.
That’s how I like it. For Valeria’s protec-tion.
I looked up to see Valeria’s hand twitch. Instantly, I placed my l@pt©p on the nightstand and held her hand. “Valeria?” I could see her eye ba-lls moving from un-der her eyelid. “Can you hear me?” I asked as I brushed a loose hair away from her face.
Next thing I knew, she opened her eyes slowly. She’s awake! quic-kly, I ran to the door. “I nee-d a Doctor in here!” I yelled out and ran back to Valeria. “Valeria. It’s me Adrian. Wake up for me honey,” I said to her softly.
I heard footsteps behind me. “Mr. Minetti.” I turned my head to see Dr. Bach behind me. I moved away and let him do his work. He took his small flashlight and shined it on her eyes. “Mrs. Minetti? Can you hear me?” he asked her.
“Yes.”
Her voice sounded dry and weak. I got a glas-s of water with a straw from the table nearby. “Here drink this,” I said. I placed the straw in her mouth. She took a small sip of the water. I could feel the relief on my shoulders and the worries started to melt away.
After a while, she was able to open her eyes fully. God…I missed those eyes . “Do you remember who you are?” he asked her. “Yes,” she answered. “Do you remember who he is?” he pointed towards me.
Valeria looked at me. “Yes. He’s my husband,” she said. A smile grew on my face. She remembers me. “Do you remember what happened?” he asked. She shook her head. “I remember…we had…our wedding,” she told him.
“When was the wedding?” Dr. Bach asked. She was de-ep in thought for a minute.
“Yesterday.
My heart dropped to my stomach.
Yesterday! “Dr. Bach.” I bec@m£ concerned about her memory. “Mrs. Minetti. I’m going to nee-d to have your br@in check. I believe you are suffering from amnesia,” he told her. She looked concerned and nodded her head.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” he said and walked out of the room. She looked up at me. I sat on her be-d and held her hand. “You were in an accident. You were on your way home from seeing your friends. You don’t remember?”
She shook her head. I hate this . “What does…. he mean that I have…. amnesia?” she asked. I should try getting her memories back. “We’ve been married for four years,” I told her. Her eyes wi-den. “F..four years?” She was very surprised. I guess she really doesn’t remember.
“Don’t think about it too much. Everything will be alright. I promise,” I said to her. She gave me a nod. I gave her a k!sson the forehead. That you God for hearing my prayers. I was very thankful to the big man.
Dr. Bach returned with some nurses. “We are going to wheel her to get a MRI,” he told us. I gave him a nod and looked at Valeria who was a bit confused. “I’ll be here waiting for you. Okay.” She gave me a nod.
Dr. Bach and the nurses wheeled her out of the room. I better call everyone . I got my phone and started to call Matthew. “Adrian. Did she wake up?” he asked me without saying hello. A smile grew on my face. “She woke up a few minutes ago,” I told him.
“How is she?” he asked me. I knew what he meant by the question. I let out a de-ep sigh. “She only remembers the wedding and nothing after,” I told him. “Sounds like she has retrograde amnesia,” he told me.
“Yeah. That sounds right. Anyways, can you tell everyone that she woke up. I’ll call when there is any other news. Valeria is getting an MRI done,” I told him. “Will do. Hey Adrian. “What?” I said. “Think of this as a second chance with her. Make things right,” he told me.
Thanks for reminding me. A second chance.
“I know. I will,” I told him and hung up.
“I will make things right.” I looked at my wedding band and k!$$£d it.
I will
“Mr. Minetti.”
I turned my head at the door to see Mr. Bach. quic-kly, I walked up to him. “How is she?” I asked with concern. His facial expression didn’t show hints of happiness. “It seems like she is suffering Retrograde Amnesia,” he told me.
$h!t!
She just has to suffer one of the bad ones ! “She is able to recall memories from childhood but, she is unable to recall memories about three to four years prior to the accident,” he told me. She won’t remember the affair and our whole failing marriage.
“But, it should be temporary. If you expo-se her to places where memories were made, she should be able to recall the loss memories,” he told me. I gave him a nod. “When will she be able to go home,” I asked.
“If everything goes well with her recovery, she can be re-lease by the end of the month. But, she will nee-d to come back for rehab if she shows signs that she can move her legs,” he told me. Worry melted a way a bit.
“Thank you Dr. Bach,” I told him. We shook hands and went our separate ways. I returned to Valeria’s recovery room to see her in the be-d with a tray of food in front of her. She turned her head toward me and gave me a small smile.
I returned the smile. “How are you feeling?” I asked as I walked up to her be-d and sat down on the be-d facing her. “Fine,” she said to me. I gave her a nod. Gently, I took her small hand in mine. Her hand felt delicate and fitted in my hand perfectly.
“You really gave me a scare,” I told her. She frowned a bit. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. I shook my head. “It’s okay. It’s my job to be worried about you. I’m your husband after all,” I told her. She gave me a nod.
“So…you don’t remember anything from our marriage?” I asked her. She shook her head. “I don’t remember anything,” she told me. I was feeling mixed feelings. I was debating if it was a good thing or a bad thing that she doesn’t remember anything.
One, she wouldn’t remember our last conversation. Two, she wouldn’t remember that I was having an affair. Three, she wouldn’t remember that we didn’t have an actual honeymoon. These were all the bad memories.
The most important thing was, I could redo the memories. I could redo the bad memories and make them into memorable ones in the process of getting her memories back. I knew just how to do it.
I ca-ressed her cheek with my other hand. un-der my t©uçh, she moved away a bit. Right, she is not used to my t©uçhes yet in her mind. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you regain those memories and make new ones with you. One memory at a time,” I as-sured her. She looked a bit hesitant and shy but, she gave me a small smile.
I’m going to do this right even if it takes me a lifetime.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I’m home.”
Everyone was in the living room having wine. Matthew stood up. “How is she?” he asked. Their eyes were at me like lakers. I took my jacket off. “She has retrograde amnesia,” I told him and set the jacket on the couch.
“$h!t,” Stephen said as he brushed his hair back his his f!ngers. A girl next to him gave him a glare. “Watch the language Stephen,” she scolded him. Immediately, he gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry love,” he said and looked at me.
“This is the love of my life, Eugenia,” he introduced her to me. She didn’t look too bad. She had dark long hair with blue eyes. She had an average built for a female. Looking at her clothes, she was dressed very well.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Adrian,” I introduced myself. She gave me a smile. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Stephen told me so much about you,” she told me. I sm-irked a bit. “Hopefully good things. Nothing embarras-sing,” I told her and sat on a couch.
“Very nice things,” she said and looked at Stephen with love. I turned my attention to my Mother and Father who were looked like they wanted to talk to me something important. I could feel my heart racing.
“Adrian. I have been thinking about your future in the company,” he told me. I gave him the nod. “I have to say that I am disappointed in you of your actions. I saw recently that you have cut off ties with that girl Mariah,” he told me.
“Yes sir,” I responded. He let out a de-ep breath.
“I think for now…you should take a break from the business and spend time with your wife,” father told me.
Huh? I was surprised by his verdict. I was sure that he was going to fire me or something worse.
“I see that you are willing to change for your wife’s sake. I would have done the same for your mother,” he told me. Mother’s smile grew on her face. My brothers nodded their heads. A hvge weight was lifted off my shoulders.
“Thank you father,” I said to him. He gave me a nod. Mother was very happy. “You should wash up and have some rest. We brou-ght our cook to make you some food,” Mother told me. “I think he would want Vera’s cooking than Lucy’s cooking,” Matthew said to mother.
I got up from couch and walked towards the bathroom in my room.
“I better get everything re-ady for Valeria to come home.”
Tbc
DROP YOUR COMMENTS