On the Ruins of His Regret I Soar novel Chapter 144

Nathan’s words extinguished any thought Jessica had of going to the George estate. She looked at him with pleading eyes.

He sighed again. “Alright, alright. I’ll go over to the estate after my shift tonight and see if they’ll let me in. I’ll let you know if he’s okay.”

A wave of relief washed over her, and she thanked him profusely.

“So, you’ll stay in the hospital now?” he asked.

Jessica nodded eagerly.

***

Lance Smith was dialing his phone for the tenth time.

Amy leaned against him, clutching a toy car. “Daddy, who are you calling?”

“Your mother,” he said, his attention still on the phone.

Last night, after dropping a scraped-up Catherine Brown at the hospital, he had started calling Jessica. Every single call went unanswered. She was probably furious with him. By now, he’d called at least thirty times without a single response. His frustration was quickly turning into a gnawing worry.

He gently moved his daughter aside. “You be a good girl. Daddy has to go out for a bit.”

Just as he stood up, Catherine limped into the room. “Lance, have you heard?”

He rushed to support her.

Leaning on him, she steadied herself. “I heard that last night at the club, one of the George family’s bodyguards got into a fight with Lawrence Harris over Jessica. Apparently, the bodyguard… well, he permanently injured Lawrence. He can’t have children now. Mr. Harris spent most of today at the George estate. Do you know where Jessica is? Is she okay?”

Lance’s hand, which had been supporting Catherine, dropped to his side, his fingers curling into a tight fist. His jaw clenched. “Is this true?”

“Lance, I know you’re upset,” she said softly. “Let me give you a massage.”

“I don’t need one. Go spend time with Amy.”

She frowned. “But I’m worried about you. I think this is when you need someone the most.”

He rubbed his temples, his patience wearing thin. “I said, get out!”

Catherine flinched as if struck. She forced a pained smile. “I’m sorry. I overstepped. I just thought we were… kindred spirits.”

Her eyes welled with tears as she turned and ran from the room.

Lance instinctively started to rise but forced himself to stay seated, motionless.