Chapter 1 — At the Central Hospital

Edan O'Connor was speeding down the highway in his Ferrari, rushing to work, having been late arguing with his girlfriend, Vivian, again.

As always, she wanted Edan to sleep next to her until late, but he had to go to work. Although Edan was a man of resources, he had responsibilities, and the money did not come by itself.

He was upset with Vivian, that woman made him lose his mind, she was spoiled and stubborn, but how she made him go crazy in bed, that's why he wasn't able to leave her, he was crazy about her and although he was upset, in fact, he was thinking about what detail to have with her to please her.

Edan looked at the time on the dashboard, it was too late, he accelerated the car. He had to set an example in the company and be punctual, since he was currently serving as the CEO of the investment company INCAPITAL, which was founded by his father. But due to heart disease, Erick, Edan's father, had retired to give the position to his son.

That was a very large company, with several branches and his younger brothers taking over other branches, but the main headquarters had fallen under the responsibility of the eldest son.

A call rang out, Edan stopped at a traffic light and looked at the dashboard, it was his mother, he sighed in frustration, his mother Angelica, it could be quite... Absorbent. But he had to answer, otherwise he would have to put up with a tongue syrup afterwards.

He pressed the button on the dashboard to answer the call and when the traffic light changed, it started.

“Edan? "It was heard on the loudspeaker.

Good day, mother.

"Edan, it's urgent. His voice sounded.

“What's wrong? He asked, looking for a place to stop, Edan had a bad feeling.

"It's your father. The woman let out with a sigh.

Alma Contreras was in the middle of a class, she had just started the day and was already tired, lately she was trying twice as everything. Between college, working as a waitress, and helping her mother with household chores, she felt so exhausted.

But she didn't give up, she knew that one day her effort would be worth it and she daydreamed of the day when she would be able to take her mother and her siblings to a new home, away from their father.

It was unbelievable how this man she had admired so much, and who was once kind, could have changed so drastically after she had applied for his job. Yes, he spent a lot of time looking for a new source of income, but he had already seemed to lose the fighting spirit that he himself had instilled in his daughter from a very young age.

Now he was engaged in nothing but drinking and gambling. And what little he got from the bets he used to buy more drink. Not only was he that, but lately he had become aggressive, it seemed that the world he was in now had consumed him and ended up turning him into a completely different person from who Alma remembered.

But at least, there was his mother, Luz Rivas, who had now become the pillar of the family and worked hard cleaning homes to support her family.

Alma was in the middle of a class and hadn't noticed the countless missed calls on her cell phone, which was stored in her purse in silent mode.

At the end of the hour of classes and checking the device, a strong hunch attacked her, there were too many calls from her home and from her mother's personal phone, something must have happened.

Desperate, Alma looked for a secluded place and called her mother first, the phone was answered by a strange voice.

“Nice day? — Heard on the other end of the line, Alma looked at the screen, checking that she had called the correct number. Yes, it was his mother's number, he put the phone back in his ear.

“Please with Luz Rivas.

"You're his daughter, Alma, aren't you?"

“Yes.

"Excuse me, we've been trying to get in touch with you, my name is Abigail, I'm the nurse on duty at the central hospital, your mother is admitted here.

“What?

“We tried to contact a relative, we called the number that is registered as the house, but since Mrs. Luz's husband is indisposed and her other children are minors, she told us that we could contact you.

“Yes, yes. Alma felt her body begin to shake and tears welling up in her eyes. "I'll go right away.

 *

Edan arrived at the central hospital quickly, everyone looked at him surprised, it was not every day that you saw a man arriving in a Ferrari, wearing a designer suit.

He ran to the front desk, asking for Mr. Erick O'Connor, the nurse who blushed at the mere presence of the man, sent him to the third floor, his father was in intensive care. Edan quickened his pace and as he entered the indicated corridor, he saw his mother in a flood of tears, who greeted him with a hug.

“Mum! What happened?

“Your father... Your father had a seizure. The woman explained through tears.

“How is he? Edan asked, pulling her away from his body, to look her in the eye. She began to shake her head as the tears came out.

"He's very bad, the doctors say he probably won't make it through this episode.

“What?! And what are you doing here?! Why isn't he in the clinic?

“We were on our way to the company, he insisted that he wanted to go for a walk and when he had the attack... This was the nearest medical center.

A doctor was approaching at that moment, carrying a folder in his hands, which he was reviewing with great interest and stopped in front of Angelica.

"Mrs. O'Connor?" The doctor called out to her, and she nodded. "We managed to stabilize your husband, however, that doesn't mean that everything is going to be okay, for the moment, we have to wait and trust that Mr. O'Connor will resist.

“What?! That's all they're going to say?! What to expect?! Do something! Edan interrupted, despairing at the calmness with which the doctor spoke.

“Lord...? The doctor looked at him with some suspicion.

"Edan O'Connor, I'm the patient's son. He introduced himself, somewhat angrily, without even extending his hand.

"I understand his concern, however, we have already done everything in our power, the rest is up to him. The doctor finished. Edan ran his hand over his face in frustration.

"We have to move it!" I don't think they're doing enough here; I need them to prepare for their transfer to the clinic immediately, I'll pay whatever it takes! Edan said, showing his displeasure.

"Mr. O'Connor, it's not about the money you have, your father is in a very delicate state for a transfer, if we do, we'd be condemning him. The doctor refuted, disgusted.

"Can we see it?" Angelica stammered, intervening. She knew what her son was like and it would surely all end in an argument with the medical staff.

For the time being, he will be isolated and resting. As soon as possible, we'll get them through. The doctor answered, using a slightly gentler tone towards the woman.

The doctor withdrew. Edan hugged his mother again, who began to have spasms caused by the crying crisis. Helplessness was beginning to fill him, he wished he could do something more for his father.

After a long hour in the hallway, Edan decided he needed to stretch his legs, walk around, or do something, whatever. He remembered that there were several vending machines at the front desk, so he let his mother know he was going to get a couple of coffees.

He went downstairs and began to pour the two glasses, when by chance he turned towards the reception and saw a beautiful young woman running in, she was wearing humble clothes and a backpack slung over her shoulder, so he deduced that it was surely a student, the young woman looked desperate. She arrived asking the nurse, who gave her some directions and again, she ran to the elevators.

"Poor girl," Edan thought, knowing that perhaps that young girl would face the same bitter pill that he was facing, possibly a person important to her, would also be on a stretcher, struggling.