Chapter 5 - The Medical Emergency
The chaos in the bank lobby dissolved into a blur of security guards, hushed administrative whispers, and pale, trembling relatives.
Mr. Vance quickly escorted us into his private office, eager to distance the institution from my mother’s blatant financial crimes. Within twenty minutes, provisional freeze orders were stamped onto every asset my family had claimed, and the preliminary audit records were printed out, confirming every suspicion I had harbored. Margaret and Paige were escorted out of the building by security, screaming threats and profanities that echoed through the glass doors until their voices faded down the street.
I didn't care about the money anymore. I didn't care about the house, the truck, or the restitution.
My entire world shrunk down to the leather chair across from me, where Gwen sat with her head bowed, trembling violently.
"Gwen?" I knelt beside her, taking her cold, skeletal hands in mine. "Look at me. We're free. The money is locked down. We can get you to the best oncologists in the state today. Whatever it takes."
Gwen raised her head, her pale gray eyes swimming with tears. But instead of relief, her expression twisted into sudden, terrifying agony. She gasped, her fingers clutching convulsively at her left side—right over her ribs where the surgical bandage was hidden beneath her coat.
"Ethan..." she choked out, a thin line of red blood spilling past her lips.
May you like
"Gwen!" I shouted, standing up and sweeping her into my arms.
Mr. Vance slammed open his office door, yelling for an ambulance, but the world around us had already begun to spin off its axis. Gwen’s head fell back against my shoulder, her body growing unnaturally heavy as the cruel reality of what my family had denied her finally caught up with her fragile, exhausted frame.
