Bound Hearts: My Vows to My Disabled Spouse

Chapter 154 Cody Tucker Showed Up

The tense air in the ward was thick with apprehension.

Mabel's wide-eyed fear was palpable as she beseeched Elyse, "Don't go, Elyse! Please! I'll die if you do!"

Theo, unmoved by their entreaties, kept his eyes shut. "Please leave," he intoned.

Eyes brimming with fierce determination, Elyse turned her frosty gaze on Theo, delivering a chilling ultimatum,

"Theo, if you harm Mabel, | swear | won't rest until you pay for it." Her words hung heavy in the air as she took

Jayden's hand and strode purposefully from the ward, leaving Theo alone with Mabel.

With Elyse's departure, Mabel's brave facade crumbled, leaving her quivering with fear. "Elyse, please don't go!

Help me!" she wailed, her voice laced with desperation.

Theo, seething with annoyance at Mabel's incessant cries, snapped at one of the bodyguards in the ward, "Shut

her up!"

The bodyguard swiftly silenced Mabel, stuffing a towel in her mouth, muffling her sobs and turning them into

feeble, muffled whimpers.

As Elyse and Jayden walked through the hospital's garden, her footsteps faltered. She couldn't stop herself from

glancing back towards the building, consumed by concern for Mabel.

Jayden, keenly perceptive to the unspoken worry gnawing at Elyse, offered a comforting yet resolute

observation. "Theo is using Mabel as leverage to keep you tethered to him. He's not letting go."

Elyse shook her head, a look of disbelief etched on her face. "He's clinging onto a fantasy," she said, the scorn in

her voice unmistakable. "There's no future forand him. We don't belong together. Can't he just accept it and

move on?"

Jayden, sensing the gravity of the situation, turned to Elyse with a decisive air. "We should head back. He's not

going to let her go."

Elyse, her lips pressed into a thin, grim line, nodded in agreement.

The moment they stepped back through the front door of Jayden's home, the phone rang.

Glenda's anxious voice poured through the receiver, her distress palpable. "Elyse, Theo called me.

He said Mabel was driving him crazy. I'm worried sick here. You're on good terms with him. Go talk

to him. Tell him to let Mabel go," Glenda urged, her voice a mixture of panic and command. Elyse's eyebrows knit

together in frustration. "I just spoke with Theo," she countered, her tone edged with skepticism. "I tried to reason

with him, but he wouldn't budge. Let's give it a few days and see what he demands. We can negotiate

then."WnceY elwcRM.@(0)m

Lanny's presence in the room had gone unnoticed until his sudden outburst. "Useless! Always running off and

causing trouble!" he fumed, his voice cracking with rage. "I warned her about Theo, but she just had to stir

things up. Look where that's landed her now. This is your precious daughter, Mabel!"

Tired of listening to Lanny and Glenda argue, Elyse hung up the phone.

When she saw Jayden's playful smile, she asked, "Why are you smiling?"

His playful grin only broadened, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Oh, I'm pretty sure Theo wants something

from you."

Elyse's face twisted into a scowl of annoyance. "Seriously? Don't even suggest that," she shot back, rolling her

eyes in exasperation.

Despite his teasing, Elyse realized he didn't hate her for it, and she was relieved.

The weekend had cand gone, yet Theo had remained silent, his intentions shrouded in mystery. Resigned to

this new normal, Elyse avoided the subject altogether

Monday found her clutching her violin, backstage at the second round of selection process. The space teemed

with fellow musicians, all peering out toward the stage in eager anticipation. Amidst the flurry of nervous chatter

and the hum of tuning instruments, Elyse anxiously took in the scene unfolding before them.

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The air was charged with anticipation as Elyse watched the piano auditions unfold on stage. With

each lingering note, the moment of her own violin audition drew ever closer.

Amid the sea of expectant faces, the row of attentive instructors sat front and center, their critical gazes fixed on

the performers. But Elyse's attention strayed to the rear of the hall, where, in the last row, she spotted a familiar

face-Jayden, his eyes already finding hers, a smile curling at the corners of his lips.

Just as her heart soared at the sight of him in the audience, a sudden blow to her side brought her crashing back

down to earth.

Turning to confront her assailant, she cface to face with Rebekah, a snarl of derision contorting her features.

Rebekah's mocking sneer twisted her features into a mask of cruelty, her voice dripping with venom. "So happy,

are we?" she jeered, her

gaze raking over Elyse with thinly veiled contempt. "Think you'll win

first place, huh?" wall

Elyse's expression fell, the smile fading from her lips. She knew all too well the futility of trying to project any

semblance of joy in the presence of Rebekah's toxic malice.

"Well, | don't know about first place," Elyse retorted, her voice edged with quiet defiance. "But at least | won't be

getting there by performing twice in the first round."

The barb hit its mark. Rebekah's eyes narrowed to slits. After all, she had needed to perform twice to remain in

the competition after her botched first attempt, and Elyse's pointed reminder had struck a raw nerve.

"Remember, there are no second chances this round. You get weeded out, you're out for good. So if you want to

keep your spot, you better practice up. Now isn't the tto be bothering me. Get back to rehearsal."

Rebekah's anger boiled over, her resentment seething through every

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a click away, exclusively available on our site. Happy reading! inch of her being. Elyse had grown more resilient

in the face of her verbal assaults, and her

emboldened resistance proved to be an infuriating challenge.

Her parting shot was laced with venom. "Think you can pass the next round?" she hissed before stalking off in a

huff.

Elyse, however, refused to engage with the outburst, shrugging it off with a derisive snort. Turning back to face

the auditorium, she steeled herself for the performance to come, determined not to let Rebekah's acidic words

distract her from the task at hand.

As the curious murmurings spread through the group of performers huddled together backstage, Elyse's curiosity

was piqued.

"Who's that man? Look, all the instructors are standing up to greet him!"

"He must be a big deal!"

Unable to resist, Elyse squeezed through the crowd to get a better view. Sure enough, the instructors had risen

from their seats, a chorus of muted greetings punctuating the air as they shook hands with a mysterious,

sharply-dressed man.

The stranger was a dapper figure, his poise exuding an air of suave sophistication. From her distance, Elyse

could make out his distinguished features, the black-frglasses emphasizing his shrewd, intelligent gaze.

And there, seated beside Jayden in the audience, Elyse also spotted Richie, her brow furrowing in confusion.

Why was Richie here?

As the backstage buzz reached a crescendo, Elyse's ears caught a singular, jaw-dropping

revelation. "That man... Is that Cody Tucker?"

"Cody Tucker!" she echoed in disbelief. "You don't mean it! Is that him?!"