The Bullet Comments Called Me Stupid And Doomed Chapter 11

The Bullet Comments Called Me Stupid And Doomed Chapter 11

I came to in a hospital bed. A women’s hospital. Private room.

For a few seconds I just lay there, blinking at the ceiling, before everything came rushing back. The scooter. The fall.

“The baby!” I threw the blanket off and yanked up my shirt.

“The baby’s fine.” Julian’s voice. I looked up — he was in the doorway, carrying a washbasin.

The look on his face almost broke me — like he was the one who’d been hit.

Every grievance I’d swallowed for weeks came rushing up. My eyes burned. “Who called you?”

He set the washbasin down by the bed. “I’m still your emergency contact. The hospital called me.”

Right. We’d listed each other as emergency contacts back when we were together. I’d never had to use it, so I’d forgotten it existed. Never thought to change it after the divorce.

In the ambulance, right before I blacked out, someone had asked me for my phone passcode. I’d given it without thinking — figured it was the paramedics.

Julian wrung out a towel, sat beside me, and started wiping my hands. He didn’t look up. “I’m sorry. I should’ve been there.”

I jerked my hand away. “I don’t need you. Just pay child support and stay out of my life.”

A long silence. Then, barely above a whisper: “Stella. Once I’ve cleared the debt… will you marry me again?”

I bit down hard on the inside of my cheek. “You wanted the divorce. You got the divorce. And now you want to take it back? You think that’s how this works?”

His eyes were red. “I’m sorry. Whatever you decide, I’ll respect it.”

Julian didn’t cry. Not once during the bankruptcy. Not once through any of it. I’d never seen him even come close.

I couldn’t stand looking at him like that. I turned over so he couldn’t see my face either.

The silence stretched out, suffocating. I broke first.

“That woman at the steakhouse. Who was she?”

The words came out fast, almost tumbling over each other. “She’s a college friend. She helped me close a deal, so I took her to dinner – that’s it. There’s nothing between us. There never has been.”

“Do you like her?”

“No. She’s a friend. That’s all she’s ever been.”

“Then why did you divorce me?”

“Sloane said I was only dragging you down. That you’re young, you’re beautiful — you could do so much better than this.”

I grabbed the tissue box off the nightstand and hurled it at his head. “Someone tells you to throw away your marriage and you just do it? Are you out of your mind?!”

“I was scared that if I never came back from this… you’d be stuck with me. Struggling. Forever.” His voice broke. “Stella, I’m sorry. Please. One more chance.”

I opened my mouth to say absolutely not — and my phone rang.

I didn’t move. Just looked at Julian. He picked it up, exchanged a few words, then held it out to me. “It’s the police.”

It was Marcus Thorne — the officer who’d been my point of contact on the Trent case. “Stella, any chance you can come down to the station?”

My stomach tightened. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“Trent’s been talking. Some of what he said involves you.”

He didn’t spell it out, but his tone said enough.

“I was hit by a scooter — I’m in the hospital right now. I can’t make it to the station.”

A brief silence. “Which hospital? We’ll come to you.”

Julian leaned in. “Room 22, third floor, the inpatient wing at the women’s hospital.”

I repeated it to Marcus.

“Got it. We’re on our way.”

I hung up. Julian was watching me. “What’s going on?”

I let my head fall back against the pillow. “Someone’s coming after me.”

[Does anyone else feel like someone’s trying to hurt the ex-wife on purpose?]

[Same. What if Trent AND the scooter guy were both sent by someone?]

[…The female lead?]

[I mean, think about it — the first wife has no enemies. The only person with a reason to go after her is the FL.]

[There’s no way the female lead is THAT evil. Right?]

[Keep reading and find out.]

My eyes flew open. “Oh my God.”