Blood Diamonds

Chapter 32

Carnival City Hospital – Present Day

Henry regained consciousness the very next morning following his attempted murder, after receiving a harrowing surgery to remove the bullet, which had pierced his left shoulder. The incident had sparked outrage within the community, being a hot topic of discussion among both the poor and rich alike. The lower class, once hopeful for their fallen prospects, were angry that such an atrocity could happen in plain sight in the middle of a massive crowd of innocent people—clearly yet another sign of how low their society had sunk, and how hopeless any hint of foreseeable change would be; whilst the upper class were excited that such a thing had once again happened to their own (to Henry Eckhart of all people, their most eligible bachelor).

The uber rich gossiped on, only concerned about their own well-being. None of what happened actually affected their day to day business (nor were they concerned at all about the wounded man) and such an event was simply hot talk for their dinner parties, so long as they were personally, and individually, out of the fray—safe.

Henry sat up in his hospital bed after much difficulty because his left arm was stuck in a tightly wrapped sling. He winced in pain at the sharp hurt emanating from the wound. It felt as though his shoulder were smashed open by a hammer and an unfamiliar fiend were rummaging through the flesh and bone with sharp claws. On top of that, his head hurt terribly.

He expected to see Leila waiting for him at the hospital as soon as he awoke, but when he enquired about her with the nurse who came rushing to his side the moment he had opened his eyes, she looked at him with a confused face. No one fitting that description had come; he received no visitors but his mother. Furthermore, no other casualties were reported from the shooting, and there was no news on any missing persons, especially the wife of the wealthiest man in the city. The adrenaline pumped in veins. If she wasn't there by his side, then where was she? Did she distance herself from him, and the situation, out of fear of being accused of adultery (which was true), or worse, out of fear of being the next victim? He doubted she would stay completely away, and even if she did, her phone wasn't being answered and went straight to voicemail. Something must have happened to her during all the commotion. He thought the Smiths were definitely involved in it all.

He waited for the nurse who sought the doctor for an update, to leave, promising to remain still and rest his traumatised limbs, then with much effort he pulled out the needles and tubes piercing his skin (with a momentary cry of pain) and rolled off the stiff hospital bed. It didn't take long for him to discharge himself after that. He had a new plan. Leila was in danger, and if anyone knew where she was it would definitely be his well-connected, nosy cousin, Victor Price.

* * * *

Price Mansions was situated in the woodland area just after the middle-class suburbs that surrounded the outskirts of the densely populated city. The woodlands were famous for its wild array of fauna, its lush vegetation of tall pine trees which clumped together to create the treacherously dark woods, and its rocky mountains which sometimes suddenly changed to steep cliffs that formed valleys of raging water rapids. People often hiked in those woods, taking great pleasure in the serene gifts bestowed by nature, but if you were not careful and didn't stick to the mountain trails or roads that cut through the dense foliage, you could very likely find yourself dropping unexpectedly to your death down one of the valley walls.

Most notably, the woods were notorious for housing the extremely wealthy who owned large plots of land between the trees. They built luxurious, isolated estates on those plots—a safe distance from the poverty-stricken rot of the city. Price Mansions was one such estate, now belonging to Henry's estranged cousin, Victor. It had been in the family for countless generations, possibly since the first explorers settled on those lands, long before the formation of what is now known as Carnival City.