A Replacement Bride

Chapter 86

Meanwhile, Joaquin continued to stand in place for a few more moments until he was surprised to realize just how well Katherine knew Beatrice's condition. Just as he was about to ask her something more, his phone rang. He then took a look at his phone and saw a phone call from the hospital, thinking it could be about Beatrice. Thus, he answered the call while making his way to the exit. "What's the matter?"

"Mr. Levisay, Miss Muller just tried to commit suicide."

An hour later, Joaquin returned to the hospital once again, just as Beatrice's rescue was over. However, she appeared to be unconscious because of the sedation effects. As soon as Joaquin walked in the door and saw the lady, he knitted his eyebrows and turned his attention to the doctor with an intimidating look. "Why did she try to kill herself?"

"Miss Muller was devastated after she learned that she must have her legs amputated. So, as soon as the nurse looked away, she smashed her drip bottle into pieces and grabbed one of the shards to slit her wrist. Fortunately, we were able to discover that and rescue her just in time." Wesley appeared to be covered in a cold sweat at the thought of what he had seen earlier.

"I see." Joaquin pursed his lips, his face darkening. In the meantime, Wesley, the doctor, and the nurse walked out of the ward, leaving Joaquin alone with Beatrice.

Ten minutes later, Theodore came to the hospital after being informed about his granddaughter's condition. The moment he saw Beatrice, he felt a stab of pain in his chest as his disappointment toward her was replaced by sympathy. Then, he went on to greet Joaquin and sat down next to the latter. As the professor's face was written with exhaustion, he seemed like he had aged ten years older.

"Mr. Muller…" Joaquin had no idea what to say, his mouth left wide agape.

"There is no need for you to apologize to me. In fact, you've done great enough. Beatrice is only left with the choice of accepting her fate." Theodore gazed at Joaquin, forcing a brittle smile on his face.

"Mr. Muller, you're an expert in biological studies, so isn't there anything you can do to help Beatrice?" Joaquin still had a glimmer of hope that Theodore was able to save Beatrice, knowing the man was revered for his expertise in the medical world. Besides, he also knew that Theodore had worked with Nexus Laboratory from Fontan. After all, that lab was well-known thanks to Mr. Q, who rose to fame for his unrivaled medical expertise in cell regeneration. Therefore, Joaquin was hoping Theodore could ask for Q's help to save Beatrice.

"No, there isn't." Theodore shook his head. In fact, the first thing he did was contact Katherine and send her some detailed information about Beatrice's condition when he learned about Beatrice's status. However, Katherine turned him down, saying that there was nothing she could do as she suggested that Beatrice should have her legs amputated. Because of that, Theodore couldn't see a way out for Beatrice either, thinking there was no hope for the latter because even Katherine, who was deemed to be capable of treating all kinds of illnesses, couldn't do anything to save her.

Upon hearing the professor, Joaquin kept quiet without saying a single word more while the two men continued to sit in the ward. Not long after that, Beatrice came to her senses and tried to remove the drip needles that were attached to the back of her hand, only to be stopped by Joaquin just in time. She then burst into tears, crying out loud with a hoarse voice. "Joe, please just let me die. What's the point of living like that? I should just die instead of becoming someone else's liability!" The lady cried agitatedly, collapsing into Joaquin's arms in a devastated manner.

In response to that, Joaquin froze in place despite his instinctive rejection of Beatrice's intimate behavior. However, when he noticed the look on her face, he hesitated for a second and decided to gently pat her head with his hand. "Please don't say that. I will never give you up."

"I'm only going to become your liability, Joe, so please just forget everything that happened between us five years ago and move on. From now on, you will no longer have to be responsible for me, and you can go ahead to marry Miss Cornell. Once both of you get married, you two will live happily together like I never existed before. Now, go." Beatrice shook her head rapidly, trying to break free from Joaquin's arms while shoving him away.

Witnessing Beatrice's reaction, Joaquin felt even more pitiful for the lady. Deep down, he felt obligated to honor his promise to take good care of her forever after what happened five years ago. In fact, he saw no reason to give up on Beatrice despite her condition because it never crossed his mind to give her up either when she was in good physical health. "Alright, that's enough, girl. I'm going to call off my engagement with Katherine and marry you." Joaquin let out a sigh, trying to get over the complicated emotions within him before replying to Beatrice's words.

However, little did Joaquin know that a smirk flashed across Beatrice's face, although the lady continued to shake her head tearfully. "No, you can't do that, Joe. If you marry me in my condition, we may even have kids with disabilities. Therefore, I'm only going to be a liability if we ever get married, and it's not going to be fair for you. Therefore, I don't want you to marry me just because you want to honor your promise." Belonging to NôvelDrama.Org.

While Joaquin only stared at Beatrice silently with a glacial look, his attitude obviously reflected his stance and inclination.

"Five years ago? What happened five years ago, Beatrice? What was it that you didn't tell me?" Theodore was getting confused upon hearing the conversation between the two of them.

It was at that moment that Beatrice's face changed when she noticed her grandfather's presence. Nevertheless, she was quick enough to hide her panicky expression and tearfully looked at Theodore.

"You're here, Grandpa. I'm so sorry for what I did earlier. I did something terrible and broke your heart, but can you forgive me?"

Staring at Beatrice's sympathetic look, Theodore instantly forgot about all the disappointment he had toward the former. After all, his disappointment could never rival the love he had for his granddaughter. "What's done is done. So, put the past behind you and move on. Your life is going to go on as usual, even after your legs are amputated. After all, there are many disabled people who are living a good life now, and I believe you're no exception." Theodore let out a sigh and spoke his mind.

Amputated! Upon hearing that word, Beatrice felt a sting of pain in her heart as her tears began to roll down her eyes. She then bitterly looked at Theodore and begged him for help. "Please, Grandpa. Is Miss Cornell really going to stand by and watch me die? If she could save someone who was brain dead, my condition should be a piece of cake to her. I-Is she still mad at me?"

"What are you talking about?! What brain death? You need to be careful with what you're saying, girl!" Theodore berated his granddaughter, his face changing dramatically. Although there were no trust issues between him and Joaquin, he was still aware of the importance of keeping Katherine's identity a secret, fearing trouble and disasters would follow should her whereabouts get exposed.

On the other hand, Joaquin was stunned as he couldn't stop thinking about the few words that Beatrice and Theodore were exchanging with each other. Brain death? The only treatment for brain death is the project that Mr. Muller and Mr. Q are working on, but why is Katherine related to that? As Joaquin was figuring out an answer to his question, he heard Theodore's apologetic voice. "I'm sorry, Joaquin. Beatrice must have gotten it mixed up because of the accident that happened to her last night. So, please take her words with a pinch of salt."