CHAPTER 2 Who Is She?

“What?” Dr. Parker’s words shocked Steve.

Rita aunty covered her mouth in shock.

“Yes, Mr. Edwards. I don't know how, but she had many bruises. There were faded fingerprints on her cheeks, several nails scratch on her body, some fainted bruises as somebody whipped her.”

Steve squint his eyes after listening to the doctor.

“Doctor, did you mean somebody tortured her?” Steve asked.

“Yes, Mr. Edwards.”

“Unbelievable, who could someone torture a mentally unstable girl?” Steve said.

“It’s quite shocking, but the truth.” The doctor expresses his grievance.

 “I guess everything happened a few days back. Her all bruises and wounds are faint and old. But I am sure she has suffered extreme torture. Perhaps, all this left any terrible impact on her memory.”

They both turned their head together and gaze at the innocent unconscious figure and then came out of the room.

"Mr. Edwards, I think you should file a complaint in the police.” Doctor Parker suggests.

Doctor Parker is Edwards' family’s old family doctor. He acquainted with Edwards’ family for many years when Steve’s parents, William Edwards and Stella Edwards were alive.

“She has suffered extreme torture. Perhaps, her family members are searching for her, and you don't know her identity.” Dr. Parker said.

Steve nods "Till when she will get her conscious back?"

"Within an hour she will regain her composure. When she will wake up, give her something to eat, and yes a good proper, healthy and regular diet." Doctor Parker pat his shoulder and head out of Edwards’ mansion".

Steve was standing in front of the guest bedroom door when Rita walked out. "Young master what are you thinking? Are you going to call the police?"

"No, not yet. Let her regain her composure. I will try to talk to her, let me come to know who is she? From where she is? What she was doing on a road like this? Maybe she will answer."

"Alright.”

“Rita aunty, take care of her, inform me when she will regain her composure. I will be in my chamber.”

“Alright, second master Steve I will be with her, rest assure.”

Steve nod and head towards his room, took off his clothes and stepped to the bathroom to have a long hot shower.

While bathing, Steve drowns in the thoughts of his past life. 

‘Just three months before my life was completely different. I was leading a peaceful, happy life in London with my family.’

‘My father, William Edwards, was the only child of his parents, so he wanted to keep us all siblings together. Since then, we are in a joint family.’

‘I have an elder is brother Matthew Edwards, and sister-in-law, Muskaan Edwards.

‘Matthew and Muskaan have a love marriage. We used to call her Smiley, in Indian language Muskaan means smile.’

Muskaan is from India, but her family lives in London for many years.’

‘I have 4 yrs. old nephew as well who is the apple of everybody's eye, Oliver Edwards, and my youngest brother Ethan Edwards. He is closest to me and my sweetheart Melisa Cooper.’

‘My both the brothers were handling Edwards industries, our family business, built by my father William Edwards.’ 

‘After graduation, I was adamant to work on my own, that's why I refused to join Edwards industries and start my company Sphinx Industries.

Everything was going so well Sphinx industries reached the heights of success. In a few years, Sphinx Industries becomes the highest profit-making company in London city.

‘When I was living the most harmonious time of my life, suddenly one night a hurricane appeared in my life and ruined everything.’

‘That dreadful night and its dawn, I can't even think about it. One mistake of mine snatched my all happiness and pushed my peaceful life into a deep abyss of guilt and regrets.’

Under the hot shower, once again thinking about the past, Steve started writhing like his entire body is on magma.

Steve squeezes his eyes and lets two drops of tears fell from his eyes and mixed with water. 

Then, he turned off the faucet and moved out of the washroom wrapping towel on his waist.

He changed in white night pants and a light blue t-shirt. When he was combing in front of a mirror, don't know why his heart was pondering and wanted to see her the innocent beauty once.

Steve consoled his emotions. For the past three months, the cheerful and smiling Steve turned to the cold and emotionless man.

‘It’s better to control the heart and think from more from the brain’, Steve thought. He took his laptop and started dealing with office work.

Workaholic Steve wasn’t able to concentrate on his work and was fed up in 15 minutes. He shut my laptop with a thud in frustration.

“What the hell Dr. Parker said she will regain her conscious back in an hour but she is still unconscious." Steve stretched his hand and glances at his wristwatch.

There are still 10 minutes for the one hour to be completed. 

Steve was never like this before. He used to deal with everything with patience when his parents were alive. 

Six years ago, when Steve was studying at Oxford University, one day in a car accident his parents passed away in Los Angeles City and Steve wasn’t able to make it on time to see his parents.

The incident of his parents’ demise made him upset, and so he did not want to live in Los Angeles anymore.

Even first young master Matthew Edwards, who was the elder of the Edward family after his parent’s death, decides to go with Steve and move his family to London city, leaving their heritage home behind.

After many years of peaceful life in London, three months ago, after an incident, Steve moved again into their old mansion in Los Angeles where they were born and brought up.

Now, in Los Angeles, he is feeling better in order to comparison of London. 

He was feeling nostalgic, remembering the memories of the good times he had with his parents and Melisa.

At least these memories are helping him to reduce his pain. Still, there were many times he wasn't able to stop thinking about the reason for his pain.

To drown himself in work and forget about his recent past, he started a new branch of Sphinx Industries in Los Angeles.

He was becoming aloof, more and more drowning himself in work.

He never talked to anyone, neither he liked to attend business parties nor he had a social circle. His routine consists of only the office and the back to home.

He only talks to his manager or assistant in an officer or few subordinates and only Rita when he is home that too only for some necessary work.

Today is an exceptional day, don’t know why he was interested in that girl, who was foul and was looking mentally abnormal at first glance.

Even he doesn’t know why he was attracted towards her pretty and innocent face and her big doe eyes.

He was drowning in those eyes when she hugged him and hid her face in his chest. Her innocent and scared eyes made him uneasy.

Thinking about her face and eyes Steve was impatient and changed his posture when he heard the knocking sound on the door. “What?”

“Young master she regained her composure,” A servant informed him.

Steve immediately mounted up dumping his work aside, he dashed towards the guest bedroom.

His eyes wide in surprise as he stepped at the door of the guest bedroom. She was sitting on the bed and drinking milk with the help of aunt Rita's and she was clapping being happy. Her happiness was too prominent.

She was starving for few days, naturally, food is the happiest thing of her life.

He was watching her cheerful face from the door. She was giggling and clapping, after getting the most precious thing of her life.

We rich people who have a table full of luxurious dishes on their meals can't understand the value of food that a starving person can do.

After finishing milk, she gazes at the empty glass with a pout, then her eyes shine seeing more edible kinds of stuff on the plate. She took a boiled egg wasting no time and stuffed it in her mouth making both cheeks budge in ’O’ shape.

Steve smiled wide seeing her innocent antics, she was still giggling and clapping. Because of giggling while eating food choked up in her throat and she started coughing.

“Damn she, who eats while egg in one goes?" Steve mumbles.

Rita was rubbing her back and Steve rushed forward, filled a cup of water, and forward it to her.

She took the water glass from his hand, still coughing, and started gulping down.

While drinking the first time, her gaze fell on him. Her beautiful, shining eyes dimmed at first and then filled with fear. Her face turned pale.

It's the same as some deep-down fear. Her eyes were panicked like somebody will take her life.

The cup of water fell from her hand and broke into several pieces.

She started screaming "Boo, boo, boo"

After screaming for a few seconds, she started crying with fear in her eyes.