A Journey from Bitterness to Truth (Matilda and Yvan) novel Chapter 351

Matilda had a dream that seemed to stretch on forever.

She dreamt of every single person she had ever met in her life—starting with her parents and brother, the inmates during her five-year stint behind bars, Logan, Mason, Adrian, her colleagues at the studio, and finally, the dream lingered on a face.

A face with delicate features yet an icy demeanor, and eyes as dark as midnight.

Matilda tried to wake up, but she couldn't control her own mind. It was as though her brain had stopped listening to her. She sent command after command to wake up, but her brain remained engulfed in slumber.

Eyes, unable to open.

Hands, unable to move.

She felt like she was in a vegetative state, her senses had come alive again, and occasionally, she could hear voices from outside.

But she couldn't open her eyes, couldn't see anything, reliving the nightmare over and over, falling from the abyss time and time again.

...

"What are we going to do about her?"

A week later, Yvan stood in Keaton's office, his face etched with worry. The man still looked sharp, but his eyes burned with intensity, "She's been in a coma for a week now."

"Her body is gradually recovering," Keaton said as he offered Yvan a cigarette, though he was a doctor and rarely smoked himself—only lighting up when the stress became too much, which said a lot about his current state of mind.

"But her brain is still trapped in a comatose state." Keaton took a drag and exhaled, then turned to Yvan, "Yvan, to be honest, what you did was not cool."

It was far more serious than just not being cool.

Keaton, being Yvan's friend, tried to give him the benefit of the doubt.

He was afraid to even think about it.

"Admit it, Yvan, you were wrong. Terribly wrong." Keaton looked at him, seeing his once high and mighty friend reduced to this state, he didn't know how to offer comfort, or if he even should. This was all Yvan's own doing.

Yes, he was wrong, but how could he make amends?

Keaton seemed to understand Yvan's thoughts, offering a bittersweet smile, "Yvan, sometimes it's too late. The only thing you can do is to bring Matilda back, and then leave, stay far away from her."

In plainer terms, it meant, you should leave, the farther from Matilda, the better.

Making a mistake comes with its price, but what if the mistake was a false accusation? Then the one who made her pay the price should repay it a thousandfold!

Yvan thought about it—Matilda spending five years in jail, carrying the label of a murderer for five years, losing a finger, dozens of scars on her wrists, raising a son alone, losing loved ones... Any of these burdens could crush someone, and she had borne them all.