All Chapters of BOUND TO THE CRIPPLED CEO : Chapter 121 - Chapter 128

DANICAThe first thing I heard was the steady beep of a machine. Soft. Rhythmic. Too calm for the storm in my head.My eyelids fluttered open to a blur of white walls and the faint scent of antiseptic. For a moment, I couldn’t tell where I was or why my body felt like it had been slammed by something heavy.Then I heard his voice.“Danica?”It was low, rough, and laced with something I hadn’t heard in his tone in a long while—fear.I blinked slowly until my eyes found him. Ivan sat beside me, his suit jacket off, his tie loosened. He looked… wrecked. His hair was slightly messy, his sleeves rolled up, and there was exhaustion written all over his face.“You’re awake,” he breathed, as if he wasn’t sure it was real.My throat felt dry. “What… happened?” I managed to whisper.He leaned forward, his hand brushing my arm gently. “Don’t move yet. You hit your head pretty hard.”I frowned, the fog in my mind slowly lifting. “Hit my head?”He nodded, jaw tightening. “The housekeeper called me

IVANThe hospital lights still burned behind my eyes long after I’d stepped out. Their sterile brightness clung to me or maybe it was the image of Danica initially lying pale against the white sheets, her voice trembling as she whispered Amy’s name.Amy.The name alone made something coil hard in my chest.John had already pulled up at the curb. The car’s black frame gleamed under the afternoon sun as he got out quickly to open the door.“Sir,” he greeted, but I barely nodded. My mind was somewhere else.The engine started with a quiet hum as we pulled out of the hospital compound.I dialed Pete before the car hit the main road. He picked up almost immediately.“Talk to me,” Pete’s voice came sharp through the line.“They caught her,” I said. My tone was clipped, steady, but my grip on the phone wasn’t. “Amy. She’s being held at the station.”A pause. Then, “You’re sure?”“I’m on my way there now.”Pete let out a low curse. “About time. What about my daughter… Danica?”“She’s stable,”

IVANThe city outside my window bled into a dim blur of lights, streaking past glass and distance. Dusk had settled the way grief did— slow, inevitable, and heavy enough to press on the lungs. I sat behind my desk, a stack of untouched files in front of me, their shadows stretching longer than my patience.The office was silent except for the low hum of the air conditioner and the ticking clock on the wall. Every sound felt too loud. Every breath, too deliberate.I hadn’t told anyone to hold my calls, but no one dared to disturb me. The news had spread fast enough. Nolan’s betrayal, Amy’s confession, my father’s quiet devastation that didn’t need words to echo.The moment Amy had said Nolan’s name, something inside me had gone still. Not broken, that would’ve been easier just hollowed out, scraped clean of disbelief. Because a part of me had always known.Pete had tried to reason that it could’ve been greed, jealousy, even resentment, but none of those explanations made sense anymore.

DANICA(One Month Later)The garden looked like a dream drawn from a softer world. The air smelled of lilies and faint rain, the kind that leaves the earth glistening like it’s been forgiven. White petals floated lazily over the trimmed grass, catching light like they too wanted to be witnesses.I stood there in a simple white gown, the kind that hugged gently and whispered grace rather than screamed it. I had told the designer I didn’t want a grand dress, just something honest, something that felt like peace after a long storm. My fingers trembled slightly as I adjusted the bouquet of ivory roses, each one a reminder that beauty could still bloom from broken roots.Ivan stood a few feet away, his usual severity softened by the moment. The sunlight cut along his jaw, catching the edges of his calm expression. His suit was black, tailored to every disciplined inch of him but the way his gaze lingered on me wasn’t controlled at all. It was reverent. Maybe even disbelieving.The sound