*THE HOLLEN SERIES*
????????????EPISODE 36????????????
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*??COFFEE AND PAPER??*
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Ethan’s POV
My phone rang in my pocket as I sat in the
helicopter. Detective Sam had gotten some
news. Emma was at a local hospital north of
my current location. I instructed my helicopter
pilot to change course. I was relieved that she
was found and at a hospital. She would get the
treatment that she nee-ded there.
We landed on the hospital’s roof t©p and
moved towards the entrance. I took the
elevator down and arrived at the fourth floor. A
receptionist stood behind a desk fli-pping
throu-gh papers. She gave me a plea-sant smile
as I approached.
“Hello, I’m Ethan Hollen. I’m looking for my
fiancee, Emma Cole.”
She fixed her hair with her f!ngersand drew out
her large che-st as she smiled. Maybe she
wanted to impress me, but it wasn’t working. I
was only attra-cted to one woman.
“Yes, Mr. Hollen. She’s in recovery 0-10 on the
third floor. It’s only one floor down.” She
batted her eyelashes like a doll.
“Thank you,” I said back before looking at her
with disgust and turning my back. I headed
downstairs. “Ethan Hollen. I’m here to see my
fiancee, Emma Cole,” I said to three nurses at
a table on the entrance of the ward. I didn’t
care about being discreet anymore. All I
wanted was to see my Emma.
“We’ve been expecting you, sir. Right this way,”
one of the nurses instructed and she led me to
the room.
She opened the door and I walked in slowly,
eyes affixed on a motionless Emma lying on a
be-d with an IV and a SATS monitor above her
head. There were bruises and cuts on her face.
Her eyes were swollen un-derneath, showing
signs that she had been crying ra-pidly.
I couldn’t st©p the tears that flooded my eyes
and fell upon my cheeks. I sat down on a
chair beside the be-d, studying her face for any
movements.
“Baby, I’m here. I nee-d you to wake up,” I said
in a whisper, taking her hand into mine.
“Mr. Hollen, she hasn’t woken up since she
arrived, and that’s not a good sign,” a doctor
said as she walked in.
“How is she?”
“She has been unconscious for hours without
any signs of movement. Her vitals are stable
enough to make a recovery soon, hopefully
today or tomorrow. She has been given fluids
and medication to as-sist, but we cannot
administer any other sort of medication in case
it posses risk to the baby. You do know she’s
three weeks pregnant?”
I heaved a sigh with a little happiness as she
mentioned the word “baby”. The promise of
being a father gave me hope and kept me
together, otherwise I might have been falling
ap@rt.
“Thank you so much, doctor.” I ru-bbe-d my
temples, not taking my eyes off Emma.
“You’re welcome. I’ll give you some privacy
now. If there are any changes, plea-se press the
red bu-tton against the be-d,” she pointed to a
red bu-tton with the word “Alert”.
When she left the room I turned to Emma.
“Emma, baby I nee-d you to wake up. If you
can hear me, plea-se show me a sign, baby.”
She only lie there, eyes closed and small rise
and fall of her che-st. She was breathing on her
own but she just wasn’t waking up. Why?
I sat for two straight hours until my bu-tt
bec@m£ numb and I nee-ded to stretch my
legs. I got up and paced the room as I cast
quic-k looks at her. I exhaled de-eply. I couldn’t
ba-re it anymore. I couldn’t stand to see her
like this, as if she were in a coffin. Dead.
“Emma. I’m right here, baby. I nee-d you to
wake up. The baby and I nee-d you to wake up.
You can’t continue like this, baby. I nee-d you to
fight and wake up, plea-se, Emma.”
I was in tears again as I said those words to
her. If she didn’t wake up soon, the baby could
be in danger. Still, nothing happened. I left the
room for a cu-p of coffee in the cafeteria. I
was exhausted.
I sat beside the be-d again when I returned
back to the room. She was still motionless. I
sipped the coffee and immediately wanted to
throw it away because it wasn’t like Emma’s. I
was add!çted to her coffee.
She seemed peaceful, despite the cuts and
bruises and other pains she may have endured.
The door opened slightly and the doctor
walked in again. “Nothing?”
“Nothing,” I answered, disappointed, and rose
to my feet.
“I want to keep her here for observation.”
“Like hell you will. I’m taking her with me.”
“Mr. Hollen, I’m not authorized to let you do
that. She nee-ds to stay here.”
“For what? There’s nothing more y’all can do
for her, and I’m not asking you for your
permission to take her.”
“Sir, with all due respect, you may be a
billionaire, but money won’t be able to save
her, or the baby, if something happens in
transit. Just give us one more day.”
I wanted Emma un-der my pri-vate doctors’
care. They were trained, certified and the best.
I trusted them with my life. There was nothing
more this hospital could do, other than monitor
her. What if she never woke up on her own?
She couldn’t be given any specific medication
and drugs because they could harm the baby.
I brushed her off as I called it in. Emma was
transported to the helicopter on the roof t©p
and we flew out with her, still motionless.
My medical team was alre-ady waiting at the
mansion when we arrived. Emma was placed
in the mansion’s medical room and they
tended to her immediately.
Halley was in a panic as I pu-ll-ed her out of the
room.
“You nee-d to be strong Halley, she’ll be
alright.”
“I hope so,” she cried and buried her face in
my che-st.
I patted her back and told her to have a seat
in the living room to calm herself down.
“Sir, we have good news,” one of the doctors
said we met in the hall.
“What is it?” I asked with relief, hoping she
was now awake.
“The good news is, she’s awake and she’s
asking for you.”
I was happy and relieved to hear those words.
I approached the room.
Emma was sitting on the be-d. Her eyes shone
bright as they fell on me. She opened her arms
for a hvg and I rushed into her, tenderly
placing k!sses on her face and hands. I la-id
her back on the pillow, afraid she might pas-s
out again. She nee-ded good rest and not too
much excitement.
“Hi,” she said to me with a smile.
I was too happy to answer. I k!$$£d her
forehead instead. Tears of happiness c@m£ but
I brushed them away.
I left her to rest.
“Mr. Hollen, she’ll make a full recovery,” the
doctor said as we walked towards the living
room, “but, the bad news, she just miscarried.”
A fuse went off in my head.
*THE HOLLEN SERIES*
????????????EPISODE 37????????????
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*??COFFEE AND PAPER??*
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Emma’s POV
It’d been two weeks since I’d gotten back
home and recovered, but I was reliving a
nightmare. I kept envisioning Sharon and Mrs.
Hollen inside the room with me whenever I
tried to sleep. Their images were plastered in
my head and their words still repla-yed.
The swamp was another nightmare, too. How
close I c@m£ to my death and the struggle and
pain I endured trying to get out of it.
Now, I was no longer pregnant with Ethan’s
baby, and that just did a number on me. I was
traumatized, and had been since the doctors
told me the news when I awoke. My b©dy had
rejected the baby due to stress and the
ban-ging my b©dy had taken at the hands of
Mrs. Hollen and Sharon in the house, and in
the van on my way to the swamp. They
re-moved the fetus from inside me immediately
so it wouldn’t caused an infection.
I couldn’t wra-pped my mind around the fact
that the baby wasn’t inside me anymore, and I
had to get throu-gh it by myself. Ethan couldn’t
un-derstand how I was feeling and his entire
agenda changed after the news about the baby.
He bec@m£ distant and cold and harsh
towards me. It seemed like he was shutting
me out for something that clearly wasn’t my
fault. I nee-ded him in a time like this, but he
was nowhere to be found. He spent late nights
at the office, when he got home I would
alre-ady be asleep, and when I woke up he
would alre-ady be out the door. I hadn’t seen
him in days.
Was it possible that he wasn’t slee-ping with me
at all?
I gathered myself again for what seemed like
the thousandth time that day. I would break
down and start crying whenever I thought about
the baby, Sharon and Mrs. Hollen, or the
swamp.
I headed to the kitchen where I met Halley
and a new face. Halley was teaching a woman
how to use the coffee machine and the
difference between the types of coffee, and I
heard her mention how Mr. Hollen liked his
coffee.
“What’s going on here? And who’s this?” I
asked.
“Oh, good morning Emma, this is Hannah and
she’s the new maid Mr. Hollen hired.” Halley
turned to Hannah and gave a smile.
She had a tanned skin tone, slightly darker
than Halley’s skin. She had jet black, cut in a
short bob at the back of her n£¢k, and ban-gs.
Her eyes were hazel and bright. Her nose was
straight and herl-ips were small, which went
well with her narrow face.
“New maid?” I asked, as if Halley had just
stuttered.
“Hi, nice to meet you.” Hannah held out her
hand for a handshake but waved instead when
I didn’t return it.
I didn’t meant to be rude and come off like a
bit-ch, but I was surprised, and not in a good
way. I had no idea Ethan was hiring a new
maid, and someone else to do his coffee. Why
didn’t he said anything to me? Why was he
doing this to me? I was the only one who
made his coffee in this house, and had been
since I’d arrived. And I was still here, and
feeling better than I was two weeks ago, so
what was his problem?
I broke down every now and again, but that
was the healing stages of grief and a traumatic
experience. Besides, I was still young and
there was still life ahead of me. There could
be another baby in the future.
“What’s her job description?” I asked Halley.
“Oh, as-sisting with the house work and the
ma-king of Mr. Hollen’s coffee every morning,
or whenever he wants it,” Hannah answered;
she was plucky as hell.
“I’m the only one who makes coffee for him in
this house, so there must be some kind of
misun-derstanding here. But I’ll clarify it with
him when he gets in tonight.”
“Okay, Emma,” Hannah answered coldly with a
sm-irk.
She turned back to Halley who seemed
surprised by the sudden change.
I left the kitchen and let them go about their
daily duties. I went outside to the patio for
some fresh air, fli-pping throu-gh a magazine
and sipping on a glas-s of orange jui-ce.
I’d become bored since I was no longer a
maid. I didn’t work side-by-side with Halley
anymore but I missed talking to her, gossiping
and joking. But now she treated me like we
were no longer friends but employer and
employee, which was uncalled for. I was
nothing like Sharon. I would never demand
such formality between us. Halley was my
friend, the only friend I had, and I was losing
her because I was engaged to Ethan.
I left the patio and headed back inside. I took
a bucket and a mop from the sto-reroom and
headed to the living room with supplies in
hand. I began to mop when Hannah
approached.
“Emma, I alre-ady did the floors,” she said,
folding her hands over her che-st with
satisfaction.
I cast my eyes around and did noticed that the
floors were clean. I was too anxious to start
mopping that I didn’t even notice. I gave her a
plastic smile and moved my cleaning supplies
back to the sto-reroom in defeat. I went to the
laundry room but the clothes had alre-ady been
washed, dried, folded and placed in the
basket. I took the basket upstairs since that
was the only other thing left to do.
________
Ethan arrived home from work around ten that
night and he was not in a good mood. There
was a look on his face that made me think I
should run for the mountains and hide forever.
He didn’t even look at me or greet me, but I
was determined to get throu-gh to him because
it was tearing us ap@rt.
“Babe, we nee-d to talk,” I said softly.
He heaved a heavy sigh and sat at the edge of
the be-d with his back towards me. He
re-moved his shoes, loos£ned his tie and took
off his jacket.
“What is it Emma?” he finally spoke.
“You hired a new maid?”
“Yes,” he answered sharply. The sound of his
voice made me tremble in fear.
“She’ll be ma-king your coffee now?”
“Yes.”
I nodded as I swallowed my defeat and
replacement, but I wasn’t plea-sed with any of
it. She could be a maid, but not make his
coffee. That was why he hired me for in the
first place, that was how our love story began.
Would he fall for her too?
“I’m the only one who makes your coffee in
this house,” I said, silencing the fear in me as I
stood up.
“Emma, I’m not in a mood for this, okay? I had
a $h!tty day at the office alre-ady and I don’t
wanna argue with you now. Just leave it as it
is.”
“As it is? What is this to you, Ethan? What
have I ever done to you to deserve such a shut
out like what you’re doing?”
“Look, I hired a maid to make things easier for
us. I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”
He got up and headed to the shower. His
jacket was still laying on the be-d. I picked it
up to throw it in the laundry basket when
something fell out and fell onto the floor—red
lace un-derwear.
*TO BE CONTINUED