He Gave Me Hearing, Then Taught Me What Silence Really Means novel Chapter 235

Harrison could currently only make out blurry, white shapes. The doctors had strictly advised against exposing him to harsh light, so a soft gauze blindfold still covered his eyes.

Yara held onto him tightly, a crease forming between her brows. "Are you okay?"

She had just been preparing to cook dinner. Even though Harrison technically lived here, he hadn't been back in years, so the ingredients had been brought over by the neighbor next door.

The neighbor, an elderly woman, had assumed Yara was Harrison's girlfriend and had immediately started gossiping.

"He's such a pitiful boy, but so well-behaved. It's just bad luck. His mother had her heart broken by some man and dragged herself to this town riddled with diseases. She was too weak to work a real job, so she started taking in clients. Every day after school, Harrison couldn't even go inside his own home. He had to wait outside or come sit in my living room for a bit. Oh, it absolutely broke my heart. He had such good grades—I don't understand why he had to drop out. Then his mother passed away early, leaving him completely alone. Thank goodness he has a nice girl like you to take care of him now."

Yara had glanced around to make sure Harrison wasn't within earshot before asking, "Do you know why he dropped out?"

The old woman shook her head. "Most likely because of his mother. As her illness got worse, she couldn't work anymore, so they had to rely entirely on Harrison. He was so little—he couldn't even reach the stove and had to stand on a stool to cook. He'd go out collecting cardboard and empty water bottles. He managed to scrape together a few bucks a day. The school tried to help out a bit later on, but it was barely a drop in the bucket. He could only afford basic painkillers and anti-inflammatories for her. But a disease like that isn't cured with over-the-counter pills. On top of that, he was such a handsome boy, which naturally made others jealous. When the truth about his mother's 'job' got out, the whole school isolated him."

Out of the corner of her eye, Yara saw Harrison stepping out of the adjoining room. She quickly grabbed the vegetables and headed back inside.

She had never imagined Harrison's childhood could be so tragic. To think he had literally fought stray dogs for scraps of food.

She used to think her own family was suffocating enough, but at the very least, she had never known true hunger.

Her brow furrowed as she quietly started preparing dinner.

Yara had no idea that setting foot in this village was just the first phase of a deeply calculated psychological trap.

*

Juniper grabbed her medication from the pharmacy counter and turned to leave. As she rounded a large concrete pillar, she bumped straight into Macy.

Macy was suffering from terrible cramps and had come in to pick up some herbal pain meds.

The collision caused Macy to stumble back a few steps.

The bag in Juniper's hands hit the floor, spilling a tube of ointment that came with a very specific, recognizable applicator.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify