Lena's POV
I lay there, eyes closed, feeling how heavy my eyelids were. My head was pounding with a splitting migraine. I heard the voices of Francine and Marcelo nearby - speaking in hushed tones.
"We don’t want her rambling nonsense if she wakes up. Why don’t we just finish her off now we have the chance?" Francine said.
"If she even wakes up, we've already destroyed the evidence on her phone. It'll be her word against ours," Marcelo muttered in a quiet voice.
What the hell was going on? I tried remembering, but it was all a muddle.
I slowly fluttered my eyes open with the little strength I had. The beeping of machines and the clinical smell told me I was in a hospital.
Marcelo and Francine's faces hovered above me now, staring at me from every angle.
"Lena, darling, you're finally awake!" Marcelo exclaimed, grasping my hand in his. "You’ve been in a coma for two days. How are you feeling?"
"Can you hear us? What happened?" Francine asked, her brow furrowed.
I swallowed hard, my throat bone dry. "I...I don't know. What happened?"
Marcelo gave my hand a gentle squeeze."We were hoping you could tell us. You were found unconscious at the engagement party. Do you remember anything?"
"I'm sorry, I don't remember. What happened?"
Francine and Marcelo exchanged a glance, their faces unreadable. "You, uh, remember anything about a video?" Francine asked with a raised brow.
A video? My mind raced, but I came up empty. "No, I don't. What video?"
They both shared another loaded look. "It's nothing, don't worry about it," Marcelo said quickly, a little too quickly.
Before I could press them further, the door opened and a female doctor strode in. "Ah, Miss Lena, good to see you awake," She gave me a calm smile as she moved to my bed side. "I'm Dr. Emma. How are you feeling?"
"I can't seem to remember what happened." I admitted, wincing.
Dr. Emma nodded pitifully. "That's not uncommon with head injuries like yours. The temporary memory loss is likely due to the trauma. But don't worry, it should come back to you in time. Just don’t try to force it."
Marcelo cleared his throat. "Well, Francine and I should probably get going. Lena needs her rest." He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "I'll be back later, my love."
Francine gave me a tight-lipped smile. "Feel better, Lena."
Once they were gone, Dr Emma turned to me with a serious look. "There's something else I need to discuss with you. I'm afraid you suffered a miscarriage due to your fall. It was very early on. I'm so sorry for your loss."
I felt like I couldn’t breathe. "A miscarriage? But I didn't even know I was pregnant."
Hot tears welled up in my eyes very fast. A baby. I was going to have a baby. And now... "Does my fiancé know?" I asked, my throat feeling tight.
"Yes, I informed him earlier," the doctor said quietly. “Also, you might experience some complications with carrying a child in the near future.”
I understood because this wasn’t the first time I was losing a baby. Marcelo had forced me before now to terminate my own pregnancies.
I had just turned twenty one when he first did it, pressuring me to get an abortion because we "weren't ready" for a baby yet. And as the dutiful partner, I went along with it, even though it broke my heart.
It happened again a year later, and then again, and then once more not long ago. Each time, Marcelo would promise it was the last, that we'd have children when the timing was right. That we'd get married first.
Now I was twenty five years old and had lost another baby because of him.
The tears flowed freely down my cheeks and I felt so foolish, so naive. And the knowledge that Marcelo has been the only man I've ever loved? That I had loved him for ten whole years, made everything much more devastating.
My mother soon rushed in, her face streaked with tears and I was grateful she came in at the right time. As she wrapped me in a warm hug, I confessed to her that I was pregnant and lost the baby.
She was shocked and saddened by the news. She held me close, trying to comfort me as I cried.
As my sobs subsided, Mom’s face turned grave.
"Honey, the doctor said you’re suffering from memory loss but I think Francine had something to do with your accident,"
I gave a small smile that had no warmth. "I know she did, Mama. Because I remember every single thing."
My mother's eyes went wide with shock.
