Chapter 88

"Why were you acting alone again? Do you have any idea I was—" He paused midsentence. "Grandma was so worried about you." He sounded mad, but there was obvious concern in his voice too. A faint smile touched Stella's lips. "I'm sorry. Just... don't tell Grandma, okay? She can't handle any more stress." "And Charles, seriously—your massage skills? Still a disaster." She genuinely thought she might die there, so she felt she had to say it. Her voice faded to barely a whisper before she slipped back into unconsciousness. Charles's eyes widened in panic. He immediately scooped her up. "Stella, hang in there! I'll get you to a hospital right now!" He charged out of the cave, yelling toward the search team outside, "Hey! Call an ambulance! She needs help, now!" The team jumped into action, someone dialing emergency services while Charles carefully laid Stella onto a stretcher. But that line kept echoing in his mind—massage? Didn't learn it at all? If he had, maybe she wouldn't be like this r