Chapter 3 A Motherless Baby

The driver ran into the rain and helped the woman up. He was just about to put her into the car when he saw that she was hugging an urn tightly.

What a bad luck!

After making her sit in the backseat, he tried to yank the urn away from her grip but to no avail. He turned to the man in the backseat and said with his eyes trembling, "Mr. Collins, what do I-"

"Leave it. Just drive," the man ordered, glancing at the urn against the woman's bosom.

The driver turned around the car and slipped into the driver's seat. He immediately started the car again.

It was raining cats and dogs at this time. The sky was getting darker and the streetlights were barely hanging on.

The inside of the car was poorly lit. Matthew Collins looked down at the unconscious woman sitting next to him. She was deathly pale. Her hair clung to the sides of her palm-sized face in damp strands. There was a long cut on her fair arm, which was bleeding.

Judging by her pitiful look, Matthew figured that she hadn't fainted on the road on purpose.

The road was wet and slippery. As a result, the tires slipped a little when the driver made a sharp turn. Melanie's head lunged forward and fell on the man's thigh.

Matthew frowned and lowered his head. What the...

Her nose was touching his crotch now.

Matthew's face suddenly turned cold as he looked up.

"Maynard, don't you know how to drive properly anymore?"

Maynard Bailey glanced at his boss through the rearview mirror, feeling extremely embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Collins. The road is quite slippery tonight. I'll be more careful," he apologized, smiling awkwardly.

With his two hands, Matthew gently raised the woman's head and made her sit upright.

There was no sign that she would wake up as her eyes remained tightly shut.

Matthew stared at the woman's bloodless tender lips, his eyes narrowing.

Hours passed before Melanie finally regained consciousness in the hospital. The first thing she saw was a woman staring down at her.

"Melanie! You are awake! I was scared to death!" Isabel Miller said with concern. She was Melanie's college classmate and best friend.

Melanie murmured through dry lips, "Isabel? Why... Why are you here?"

All of a sudden, her eyes widened and she touched her chest. She struggled to sit up and asked anxiously, "Did you see my father's urn? I was holding it right in my arms. Where is it?"

"Calm down," Isabel said, putting a pillow behind her. "Don't stress yourself. The doctor says you are very weak."

Isabel walked to the table and returned with an urn. As soon as Melanie got possession of it, she hugged it tightly as if it was a treasure.

Once Isabel heard of what Ximena and her daughter did to Melanie, she began to curse nonstop. Her face was red by the time she was done. She held Melanie in her arms and said sympathetically, "Thank goodness I came to see my newborn cousin. If not, I wouldn't have met you. My uncle is currently in the VIP ward next door. If you need anything, just let me know. I'll help you the best I can. My uncle can also step in to help. You should go back to sleep first. I'll come to check on you after seeing my baby cousin."

Isabel rubbed Melanie's back and then helped her lie down again. She allowed her to hold onto the urn as she tucked her in bed. "Sweet dreams, Melanie. Don't forget I'm next door, okay?"

Melanie's head was in a muddle. Sleep eluded her. She just shut her eyes and kept imagining how her father jumped off the tall building.

Warm tears streamed down the corners of her eyes in no time.

In the room next door.

A cold air hit Isabel in the face as soon as she walked in.

Kristian Collins, who was holding a walking stick, stared at the newborn baby in the incubator with his face more wrinkled than ever. "Matthew, what have you done? For the life of me, I didn't expect you could go this far!"

Kristian hit Matthew's leg with his cane and said in a low but angry voice, "You silly boy! Where is the mother of this child?"

As if he hadn't gotten hit at all, Matthew replied calmly, "She died in childbirth."

Kristian was rendered speechless.

"Are you trying to piss me off?" His blood was boiling.

Isabel held Kristian's arm and pulled him closer to the incubator. Peering through the glass, she whispered, "Look, Grandpa. The baby is so cute like an angel. Haven't you been pestering Uncle Matthew to get married and have kids? Now that he has a child, why are you still being mean to him?"

"This is not how things are done! A man is supposed to be married before welcoming a child. But he went ahead to have one out of wedlock! Worse still, I'm just hearing the news. I don't think he still regards me as his father. What did I do to deserve such a bad son?"

Just as Kristian was about to resume his whining, a nurse pushed the door open and said politely, "Please lower your voice. The baby needs to sleep peacefully."

Kristian opened his mouth and looked at the lovely baby in the incubator. He sighed helplessly, turned around, and slowly left the room aided by his cane.

Isabel smiled at Matthew cheekily. "Uncle, you are a bad guy. You have no girlfriend, but you now have a daughter. Congratulations."

"It's adult's business. Don't poke your nose into it."

Matthew took a deep look at the sleeping baby and ordered, "Keep an eye on her. I have to step out for a while."

With that irrefutable order, Matthew stepped out of the ward.

His driver, Maynard had gone to settle the bills and other formalities. He returned with a receipt in hand and said, "Mr. Collins, that young lady's medical bills have been paid."

"Where is she?" Matthew asked.

"She is in the ward next door. Right here--"

Maynard pointed at the door and peeked into the ward. When he saw that the bed was empty, he scratched the back of his head and uttered, "Eh? She was here just now. Where did she go?"

A nurse walked in with a laundry basket in hand. Matthew stopped her and queried, "Excuse me. Where is the patient?"

"Oh, you know her? She just left," replied the nurse.