Elise didn't ask Ethan to leave after their lunch together. He didn't offer to go either.

He remained sprawled on her sofa, idly watching television while she worked in her study.

It was a peaceful domestic scene, though Ethan had been yawning repeatedly as he lounged.

He would never admit, even to himself, that sleep had been elusive lately, with some nights bringing no rest at all.

Still, this level of exhaustion seemed excessive...

Deciding television was too dull, he pulled out his phone to scroll through videos and news feeds, all buzzing about the Stuart charity gala happening tonight.

Even as he consumed the content, his eyelids grew heavy. Soon, he was asleep, phone still clutched in his hand.

Elise emerged from her study and watched Ethan lying motionless on the couch, his breathing deep and even.

She had laced his pasta with sleeping pills—she kept some handy for her own occasional insomnia.

The pills had worked faster than anticipated. She'd expected it to take thirty minutes to an hour to knock him out completely.

He probably hadn't been sleeping well. The medication always worked quicker on exhausted individuals.

"Ethan?" Elise called softly.

He frowned slightly but didn't respond.

His head felt like lead, his eyes refusing to open no matter how hard he tried.

Confirming he was truly unconscious, Elise moved to the front door. She took a steadying breath before yanking it open abruptly, her face a mask of panic as she cried out desperately, "Quick! Get in here! Ethan just collapsed!"

The two bodyguards stationed outside exchanged glances but otherwise remained impassive.

Elise injected more urgency into her voice. "Now! We need to get him to a hospital! Who'll take responsibility if something happens to him?!"

Before they could properly consider the situation, Elise reached out and pulled them inside. They followed her to find Ethan lying completely still on the sofa.

"Mr. Parker?" one bodyguard called out.

Ethan's brow furrowed—he seemed to hear the voice, but his eyelids were impossibly heavy despite his efforts to rouse himself.

Meanwhile, Elise kept pressing them. "Why are you just standing there? Get him to the hospital! If it's a stroke, he could die without immediate treatment!"

Seeing that Ethan truly wouldn't wake, one bodyguard quickly lifted him.

As they moved to leave, Elise started to follow, but the second bodyguard blocked her path. "You can't leave, Miss Scott."

"I'm coming with you—where would I even go? I'd be worried with only one of you taking Ethan to the hospital. Anything could happen. Let's all go together. I won't try to escape!" Elise snapped, not bothering with further explanations. She promptly followed the first bodyguard out of her apartment.

The second bodyguard hesitated momentarily before trailing after them.

They hurried to the parking garage, with one bodyguard driving while the other remained in the backseat with Elise and the unconscious Ethan.

Ethan's forehead remained creased; clearly, he was fighting to wake up.

Since the sleeping pills would only last a couple hours at most, Elise clenched her phone nervously in her palm.

The car moved swiftly through the streets as they raced toward the hospital, until it suddenly screeched to an abrupt halt.

Elise instinctively shielded Ethan—she'd already drugged him, she didn't want him getting injured too.

"What happened?" the bodyguard in the backseat demanded.

"Someone ran the red light. We almost collided."

"Don't worry about it. Just keep driving."

However, just as the bodyguard tried to restart the ignition...