Whispers Turn

“Get her out of here!” Caroline’s grip tightened on Gilbert’s arm, hier voloe laced with desperation. I can’t stand the sight of her. Tell her to leave. Now!” 

Gilbert didn’t need to think twice. “Fine” 

He turned to Sherilyn, his eyes blazing with anger. “Didn’t you hear? Leover” 

Sherilyn let out a barely audible scoff, setting down the electric shaver she had been holding and wiping her hands before turning to leave. 

“Wait a minute!” Seeing Caroline’s distressed look made Gilbert feel he needed to defend her honor. 

He grabbed the bunch of sunflowers from the table. “These are from you?” 

“Yes,” Sherilyn nodded. 

“Take them with you” Gilbert waved dismissively 

What? Sherilyn was stunned. Was she even unworthy of offering flowers to Francis, someone she saw as a beloved older brother? 

“What are you waiting for? Seeing her stand frozen, Gilbert took matters into his hands. He stormed over, grabbed the sunflowers, and thrust them into Sherilyn’s arms 

His words were cold and harsh. “You think he’d appreciate your flowers? if it weren’t for you, his child would have been three years old 

now!” 

His gaze cut through her like ice. “I don’t understand how you have the nerve to show up here!” 

Suddenly, Caroline tumed away, her shoulders trembling as if she was crying, “Gilbert, please stop! I’m begging you!” 

Momentarily stunned, Gilbert directed his anger back at Sherilyn. “Aren’t you going to leave?” 

Clutching the sunflowers, Sherilyn had nothing to say. 

“Fine, I’m leaving. With that, she turned and walked away without looking back. 

“Caroline” As the door closed behind her, Gilbert approached Caroline. “Don’t be upset. I’ve made her leave. I’ll tell the doctors and nurses not to let her come here anymore.” 

“Okay…” Caroline nodded through her tears. 

Standing at the bus stop closest to the hospital, Sherilyn was in disbelief. No way. The buses stopped running at 8 in the evening. How was she supposed to get home? 

Nat again! Did she have to walk back? She had just endured a two–hour walk the previous night and faced the same ordeal, hun Retuming only a few days ago, had she cursed her luck with the local bus service? 

While cursing herself for not checking the timetable, she had no choice but to start walking. 

The private hospital, even more secluded than the Southern District Sanatorium where Sylvia was, prided itself on its serene environment. 

But at the time, Sherilyn was the one to suffer She walked alone. The streets were empty, hardly a car in sight, eerily quiet. Suddenly, a motorcycle zoomed past her, then circled back to stop before her. 

A young man with bleached hair sat on it, giving her a not–so–friendly smile. “Hey, girl, why are you walking all by yourself? Hop on, fi take you” 

Sherilyn frowned at the strong smell of alcohol and cigarettes emanating from the man. “No, thanks.” 

She tried to walk past him, but he blocked her way. “Come on, don’t be like that!” 

His gaze lingered on Sherilyn’s legs. “I said I’d take you. Come on, get on.” 

Jumping off the bike, he grabbed Sherilyn’s hand, trying to pull her toward it. 

“Let go!” Sherilyn’s body tensed, struggling fiercely. “I said let go!” 

“Stop playing hard to get! Come on, I give you a ride!” 

“Don’t touch me!” Summoning all her strength, Sherilyn swung her backpack at the man. “Get away! Leave me alone!” 

“Trying to hit me?” Furious, the mari swung his arm, knocking Sherilyn to the ground. But that wasn’t the end of it. In the next moment, he was on top of her. 

Raising his hand, he touched her face. “So pretty, and your skin’s so smooth!” 

17:51 48) 

Sherilyn was rigid, nausea churning in her stomach, ready to vomit! 

She always had pepper spray and a stone for self–defense, coincidentally. She reached into her bag in a panic, only grabbing the stone. Without thinking, she swung it at the man’s head! 

With a thud, the man’s head was instantly covered in blood. 

“Ah!” The man cried out in pain, holding his forehead as blood smeared across his face and hands. He looked at Sherilyn in shock. 

“I’m calling the police! You’re a murderer!”