His Lethal Love by Monika Singh (short story to read txt) 📗

Chapter - 8

Present

Camille

“Get the fucking doctor,” Scott yelled impatiently as he carried the fainted Maura in his arms and raced toward the van. As soon as he approached the front door, I offered him a hand, but he refused and got inside before he put Maura on the couch. 

The redness of her face caused me to frown. She looked like she was burning up. The urge to check her temperature made my hands tingle, but I knew I would look ridiculous. The worried Scott shook his head and ran his fingers through his messy hair in frustration. 

“What happened to her?” I asked quietly, but he completely ignored me and pulled out his phone, scrolling through it. 

“Is she pregnant?” Kat screamed across the van, and Scott snapped his eyes on him in disbelief. “I guess she’s pregnant.”

“Good news.” I plastered a smile on my face as Scott narrowed his eyes at me. 

Kat approached me, and I felt a sense of relief. Being alone with Scott and Maura made me feel uncomfortable and unwanted. 

“How did she faint?” I asked Kat in a whisper. 

“She has just started shooting when she collapsed on the ground,” Kat replied, frowning. “She has been puking ever since she got up this morning, so I’m certain she is pregnant.”

“I thought she vomited because of the coffee taste.”

“It could be anything. Anyway, Scott and Maura have been trying to conceive for a year. If she’s pregnant, it would be great news.” 

“Is she okay?” Archie and the doctor entered. 

“She’s burning up.” Scott grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently. 

The doctor checked Maura’s body temperature and then said, “Please let me examine her, sir.” He checked her eyes, pulses and listened to her heartbeat with a stethoscope. “Is she taking medicine?”

“Yes, she’s taking vitamins every couple of hours,” Kat replied quickly. 

“Can you show me the vitamins she’s taking?”

“Yes…” I nodded and fetched her all the vitamins bottles. “Here they are…” I handed them over to the doctor. 

He adjusted his thick glasses and examined every bottle carefully. “Has she overdosed?” the doc asked me and caught me by surprise. 

“Sorry…” my fingers were fidgeting. 

“Has she overdosed?” he repeated and turned to Scott. “Who’s taking care of her medicines?”

“Me…” I mumbled, and Scott narrowed his eyes at me, clenching his jaw tightly. 

“How many pills did you give her, Cami?” Archie asked politely. 

“Four…” I said and listened to their shallow breathing.

“High vitamin tablets may lead her to death.” the doctor exclaimed, and I gasped. “She requires urgent treatment.” 

Scott clenched his hands into fists, glaring at me with hostility. “Do it fast, doc,” he said with clenched teeth and charged at me. 

I flinched and backed away from him. “I don’t know…” my voice died when he grabbed me harshly by my jaw and slammed me into the cabinet, staring into my eyes. “I don’t…” when I tried to speak, he gripped me harder and caused me intense pain. 

“Shut the fucking up!” he roared, making me jolt. “I know you very well, Miss Davidson. I am well aware of your nasty tricks. This time, I won’t let you win with your cheap ideas. You’re such a vile woman…” he let me go with a sharp jerk. “Shit!”

“I swear I didn’t do it purposely…” I choked. 

“You’re a fucking liar!” he growled. 

“I’m not lying.”

“You’re fucking lying.” 

“I don’t…” I swallowed. 

“How can you prove it?”

“I don’t know, but I’m not lying,” I said firmly. 

“Prove it, Miss Davidson.” Scott gritted out, making me fidget. 

“I don’t have any proof.”

“Ha!” 

“I never lied,” I mumbled and bit my nails tensely. 

“Are you sure you’re not lying?” Scott demanded, and I quickly bounced my head. “Kat, can you hand me Maura’s favorite peanut butter?” Kat was puzzled, but didn’t ask anything. and brought out a jar of peanut butter and handed it over to Scott. “Can you finish it, Miss Davidson?”

And my eyes popped out in shock. He knew very well I was allergic to peanuts, but still; he was asking me…

“Can you…?” Scott asked again, and I swallowed hard, eyeing the jar. 

“I’m allergic to peanuts.” 

“I know.” He spat, pushing forward the container.

“She won’t do it!” Archie interrupted and snatched the jar away. “First, we must take Maura to the hospital.” 

Scott said nothing and snatched the jar back from Archie. 

“I’ll finish it if it proves that I’m not lying.” I grasped the jar from Scott’s hands and uncapped it and scooped out peanut butter with a spoon before putting it into my mouth. As I struggled to swallow it, I scooped up another one and, little by little, put it in my mouth.

Despite knowing its side effects, I kept eating it. I knew it would swell my skin, eyes, and throat. Even though it would harm me badly, I kept eating it. My nose ran and my body started to shake uncontrollably. Wiping my nose with the back of my hand, I resumed eating. Everyone was watching the drama, but no one dared to help me. 

I looked at Scott, only to find a strange kind of satisfaction on his face. My suffering made him feel victorious. My suffering, my pain, and my helplessness. When my breath wheezed, Archie shouted, “Stop it, Camille.” 

Scott’s expression changed to one of concern as I choked and coughed harder.

“Stop her!” I heard the doctor say. “She’s only threatening her life.” 

I was about to take the last spoon in my mouth, but then a hand prevented me from eating. I raised my eyes at Scott, watching him with my blurry vision. “I won’t let you die that easily,” he whispered. 

“Thank you,” I said sadly, and suddenly the world sank into darkness. 

“Camille...” Scott whispered with a hint of worry.  

I opened my eyes and found that everything around me was pitch black. Swollen eyes made it difficult to see anything clearly. I was even experiencing difficulty swallowing. Every part of my body felt tingly and itchy. My body felt like it was crawling with ants, and I was itchy everywhere. 

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