MY GORGEOUS WIFE IS AN EX-CONVICT

Part 69 Continue

Dr. Caiden turned back to him. "There are some slight fractures. We'll put her foot in a brace, and she should stay off it for a few weeks to allow the bones around her ankle to heal,

but... Dr. Caiden hesitated.

"But what?" isaac asked in a frigid tone.
Claire trembled.

"There are injuries that would point to more sustained, systemic trauma." He gestured toward the X-rays of her hands. "You sustained multiple broken bones and fractures. Many of these injuries to your fingers did not set properly, and at this stage, it's unlikely given the bone fusion and time lapsed that re-breaking and resetting the bones would affect any positive change."

Claire lowered her gaze.

The doctor cleared his throat. "I've noticed a number of areas on your hands, arms, feet and legs that point to significant trauma."

Claire pressed her lips together. She knew damn well who and what had caused her those injuries.

And the doctor, it seemed like he was digging for information. He probably thought her an abused woman. And she had been. Just not by some vile husband or family member.

Claire's injuries had come in the form of retaliation and on behalf of wealthy families.

"What is the prognosis on the older injuries isaac asked carefully. Again, his voice was underlaced with hostility.

"It's hard to say," Dr. Caiden admitted. "In my professional opinion, given the traumas and how they healed, there will be complications. Perhaps if Miss Gray had sustained suitable care at the time, the conversation would be different now..."

"Complications?" claire frowned. "But I don't think there's anything wrong with my body."

"You are still young now, so the effects will be less pronounced, and, you've properly adapted to the pain. But injuries like this can play into degenerative issues, so as you age, the complications will slowly come out!"

"What kind of complications?" isaac asked bluntly.

"In the future, you may often feel pain in your joints. There will most certainly be arthritis. You may have sustained nerve damage or cramping. If it is serious, you may not be able to lift heavy things with your hands, and you might have trouble walking," Dr. Caiden said.

Claire stayed silent, looking down at her hands and feet. Her old wounds were from her time in prison. Prisoners were afforded the minimal treatment required by law. There were no gifted surgeons to reset her bones. Her fingers were put in soft splints and taped.

Yes, the attacks had been painful, and the time spent recovering from them, even more so.

Even now, her bones and joints ached. So no doubt, what the doctor said about residual pain and worsening, debilitating injuries over time... it all made sense.

"Then... is there any way to cure it?" Lexi's voice trembled as she asked.

On the contrary, claire seemed to be relatively quiet.

"You mainly need to recuperate and eat food that's high in calcium. Osteoporosis later in life would compound these issues significantly. Eat foods that reduce swelling and inflammation. Take vitamins and minerals. Also, you have to take good care of yourself. You can't afford to continue to abuse your body," Dr. Caiden said.
Claire leaned back and was lost to her thoughts after that.

These last few years, it seemed all she had known was abuse. Being out of prison, she'd been accosted by her own sister, by 'friends' of lewis and even his sister and fiancee.

Would she ever know any peace?

"...she can stay a few days and we can monitor her," Dr. Caiden was saying.

"-No. I want to go home."

Claire, I think you should listen to the doctor isaac said.

"I will," she agreed. "I'll take it easy and rest. Please. I just want to go home."

Isaac gave a barely perceptible nod.

"Lexi" isaac said. "Please work with Dr. Caiden to determine any medicines claire will need and what follow up treatments he recommends."

Claire held out her arms to isaac and he carefully, gently helped her to rise from the bed.

Lexi remained in the room to obtain the prescriptions and isaac guided claire into the hallway. When she winced, he sat her in the nearest chair. "This is ridiculous. Go back to that hospital bed and rest."

Her eyes watered. "I don't want to stay here. Please."

He muttered a curse.

"I probably can't just walk out of here." claire rubbed her head. "I'm sure there will be paperwork, and I'll have to go on a payment plan. The county offers insurance, but I don't think it'll cover a fraction of this."

"Let's not worry about that now," isaac said. "Does it hurt?" he asked.

"Actually, it's not that bad." claire drew her sweater over her hospital gown and buttoned it. "My ankle aches, but honestly, I've had worse. You heard the doctor. He said that it'll only take a few weeks to heal."

Isaac pressed his lips together. "The old wounds that the doctor mentioned - did you get them while in prison?"
Claire pretended to be relaxed and smiled. "I was beaten in prison several times, but it wasn't serious."isaac cursed again.

"Truly, it's not a big deal. I think the Doctor was being a bit dramatic. I'll be fine. Some vitamins, some rest, and these old wounds will be a thing of the past."

The calmer she was, the angrier isaac became.

"Sister, do you hate the person who put you in prison?" he suddenly asked.

She laughed a little. "Who would I hate? Should I hate the judge? The beckett family? Or the mayers Family that has been unwilling to help me? Or maybe I should hate isaac landford himself, right? Because really, he's the root of everything."

When she said his name isaac's whole body stiffened.

"Do you hate isaac landford?" he murmured.

She sighed and said, "Everyone in this City knows him. When I had the car accident, irish beckett was isaac's fiancée. So, of course, I was not going to get out of it easily. How many people want to curry favor with him? How many people think that by hurting me it'll gain them favor with him?"

Claire's eyes took on a faraway look. "Who knows... maybe if that accident had involved someone else. Someone other than irish beckett, I could have won the lawsuit. Would I have been spared from being in jail for three years and experienced all those things? Maybe." Her eyes were so earnest when they met his. "I didn't drink and drive isaac I

wouldn't do that. I still can't understand how the evidence could corroborate that sort of thing."
Isaac knew the ins and outs of the case intimately.

She was not angry or sad, but the faint self-degradation she showed made him feel very guilty.

Perhaps half of her pain was because of him.

He squatted in front of her, staring at her bent hands. "It I had known that you would suffer so much, I would have protected you three years ago."

This sentence had nothing to do with the game but was something that had come from the bottom of his heart.

He hated thinking that this woman had suffered because of him. He was cold, yes, but he also considered himself fair. He wasn't cruel. And claire had been tortured for no other reason than that he might bestow some favors on her torments.