Chapter 5 No Loose Ends

After thinking it over, Wendy still felt it wasn’t a good idea to bring Henry with her. “Forget it. I’ll go by myself. Chase has a bit of a strange temper—he might offend you. Go get some sleep. You still have to take Joy to the hospital for her IV tomorrow. Don’t let it drag out.” She didn’t give Henry any chance to object. Grabbing her car keys, she headed out the door. Henry stood in the living room for a long while. Then, turning his head, he glanced around the entire room before quietly pushing open the door to Wendy and Chase’s old bedroom. Wendy must really not like Chase. From the moment he arrived, he’d noticed there wasn’t a single men’s item in the whole place, and yet Wendy hadn’t picked up on it at all. That made things easier—fewer complications. Chase had spent several days running back and forth over his passport issue and still hadn’t managed to get it fixed. He’d already missed the first round of the exchange program, and the frustration burned quietly inside him. He knew this was all Wendy’s doing. She was forcing him to show himself. But for the sake of getting the divorce finalized, he kept his mouth shut. Language classes had started. Chase spent every day either in class or at his hospital internship. When the teacher heard he hadn’t been able to go abroad as planned, they told him to wait for the second session to begin. In the meantime, a hospital that had requested him months ago specifically reached out again, and with the teacher’s help making the connection, Chase started his first job in five years. He moved to a different hotel. He knew full well—if Wendy wanted to find him, no matter where he moved, she could. Work and study filled his week. It was busy but fulfilling. That energy, that pride, returned to Chase at last. He finally felt alive again. He’d thought he wouldn’t see Henry until the divorce was finalized—but to his surprise, Henry brought Joy to the hospital where he was interning. “You must be Mr. Goodman.” Chase had just walked off the operating table in his white coat and was heading to the office when he heard the voice and turned his head. Henry smiled. “Hello, I’m Henry.” His voice was exactly like it sounded on the phone, and he did have the kind of face Wendy would go for. No wonder she’d held onto that fantasy for all these years. Chase instinctively looked around for Wendy, but instead met Stella’s disdainful glare. “What are you doing here? Don’t tell me you followed us?” she scoffed. She knew Chase wouldn’t just walk away from the family like he claimed. All that drama for days, and in the end, still running after her sister. Chase looked away and gave Henry a quick nod before turning to leave. But Henry didn’t seem willing to let him go that easily. He took a few steps forward and blocked his path. “Mr. Goodman, can we talk?” Henry’s fake smile made Chase deeply uncomfortable. He was just the long-lost first love who’d returned. Chase was already an unloved, soon-to-be ex-husband. What was there for them to talk about? Chase frowned and rejected him directly. “I’m working.” Before Henry could respond, Stella cut in sharply, “Henry’s giving you face—you’d better know how to take it!” Their voices were rising. People were starting to glance over. If security got involved, it’d be Chase’s reputation that took the hit. Chase sighed. “What do you want to say?” Henry didn’t answer. He simply gestured toward the emergency exit. The emergency light above the exit door hung askew. Cigarette butts littered the concrete floor beneath it. “You moved out, Mr. Goodman?” Henry nudged one of the cigarette butts with the tip of his shoe, dragging a long black smear through the ash. He’d said “moved out,” as if he already considered himself the master of Wendy’s house. Chase let out a snort, his eyes locked on Henry. “Mr. Henry, you already know. So why are you here to humiliate me?” Henry didn’t respond. He sucked in his cheeks slightly, then finally spoke. “Mr. Goodman, you’re not using this whole act to make Wendy keep thinking about you, are you?” The thought hadn’t occurred to Chase—but if it made Wendy think of him even a little... No wonder she’d been obsessed with this guy for years. Chase scoffed at himself. “I’m about to divorce Wendy. Honestly, I should already be overseas by now. If it weren’t for—” If he’d already made the decision to leave, then why—deep down—was there still a sliver of hope? Hope that Wendy had stopped him from going? But she’d been so busy lately. Henry and his daughter had been right by her side… What was he even hoping for? Chase gave a bitter laugh. “I don’t believe for a second that you’d ever give up a big tree like Wendy,” Henry said, as if he’d just heard the funniest joke in the world. “So to you, Wendy’s just a nice tree to sit under and enjoy the shade, huh?” “Looks like her taste isn’t that great, after all.” Chase pushed open the stairwell door and was about to walk out. Henry let out a few cold laughs—and suddenly pulled a fruit knife from his pocket, slashing it across his own arm. “Chase, you want a divorce, right? Let me help you with that…” Chase turned back, trying to grab Henry’s hand, but it was already too late. The sharp blade sliced through Henry’s tailored suit, leaving a long gash on his upper left arm. Blood began to drip. Henry’s face turned visibly pale. Chase had never hated being a doctor as much as he did in that moment. He rushed out the door. “We’ve got a patient! Emergency surgery—now!” Stella was still waiting outside the stairwell. She grabbed him the moment she heard that. “What did you do?” Chase kept walking, but she yanked hard on his arm again. “I said, what did you do?” Chase yanked free, annoyed. “If you’re that worried about your precious crush, then get your ass into the stairwell and check on him.” That suspicion had lingered in Chase’s mind for a while now—Stella had always seemed a little too eager to help Henry. The pampered princess of the Quinn family, following a grown man to the hospital? In any other family, maybe it would’ve been seen as a younger sister looking after her brother-in-law—but this was Stella. Born with everything. Just look at the way she treated Chase. She made it crystal clear who she liked—and who she didn’t. Sure enough, Stella’s eyes widened like he’d hit a nerve. It took her a moment to recover, and then she turned and bolted into the stairwell. Wendy arrived quickly—probably dropped everything at work the moment she got Stella’s call. Henry’s injury wasn’t actually that serious. No matter how hard you try to hurt yourself, your instincts will still hold you back. He’d only nicked a vein. But it was enough to give Wendy a reason to come storming in. So when she burst through the office door, face full of rage, Chase wasn’t even surprised. “You stabbed Henry?” Chase let out a bitter laugh. “That’s what you think of me?” Wendy snapped back, “Isn’t it true? You’ve been making a scene this whole time because of him!” So all he’d done these past few days—in her eyes—was throw a jealous tantrum over Henry. “He cut himself.” “You expect me to believe that? You think Henry would self-harm just to frame you? You really think you’re worth that?” Those last three words knocked the wind out of Chase. He looked her dead in the eye, stubborn and serious. “He set me up, Wendy. Why is it so hard for you to believe me?” Just once—just this one time— If Wendy had believed him, then these five years he’d spent with her wouldn’t have been for nothing. But it seemed every bit of hope he’d placed on her would always end the same way. “You’d better pray he’s fine.” Wendy flung that last sentence at him before storming out of the office. The sharp click of her heels echoed across the hospital floor. Chase slumped back into his chair, drained. In the end, she didn’t even bother closing the door behind her. In the treatment room, Wendy pulled up a chair and sat beside Henry. The cut was long, but luckily, not deep. Henry’s face was pale. “Wendy, did I do something to upset Mr. Goodman?” Wendy shook her head. She couldn’t shake the look on Chase’s face from her mind. From what she knew of him, he wasn’t the kind of person who’d do something like that. Had she really misjudged him? Henry didn’t get the response he was hoping for. He continued, “Wendy, if I’m just causing trouble by staying here, I can take Joy to a hotel.” Right—Joy was still running a fever. Chase had made such a scene these past two days, the poor kid couldn’t even rest properly. Everything that happened today… It was too much. Too childish. Had she been too lenient with him all this time? With that thought, Wendy gently reassured him. “No. You’ll stay here. You didn’t do anything wrong. He hurt you—I’ll make sure he apologizes to you in person.” Henry nodded, the corner of his lips curling into a subtle, almost imperceptible smile. Just then, Stella barged in, breathless. “Sis, thank God you’re here!” “Chase actually stabbed Henry! And you’re just going to let that go?!” “Whatever. Once his passport’s ready, he’ll be out of our lives anyway!” Wendy froze at those words. Her head snapped up. “He’s leaving?” Stella jumped in surprise. Blinking, she asked, “He’s going abroad. You didn’t know?”