Chapter 6 - The Emergency Wing
By 4:00 PM, the quiet, sterile corridors of St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital echoed with the hushed urgency of top-tier medical care.
Lily Vance was lying in a private, sunlit suite on the fourth floor. Oxygen was being administered through a soft nose cannula, an IV line was supplying fluids, and Dr. Harrison—one of the top pediatric pulmonologists in the state—was reading her chart near the foot of the bed.
Thomas sat in a leather armchair beside his daughter, holding her small hand. His dirty work boots had been replaced with clean hospital slippers, and a warm meal sat untouched on a tray beside him.
Ethan stood near the floor-to-ceiling glass window, looking out over the city skyline, a cup of black coffee in his hand.
Dr. Harrison walked over to Ethan, pulling off his glasses. "She's going to be fine, Ethan. Another twelve hours without those specialized antibiotics and her lungs would have suffered permanent damage. You got her here just in time."
Ethan nodded once. "Keep her here as long as necessary. Put everything on my private tab."
"Understood," Harrison said, tapping Ethan’s shoulder before stepping out into the hallway.
Mia came walking back into the room, her feet now tucked into a brand-new pair of soft pink sneakers that Marcus had bought from a department store down the street. She walked right up to Ethan, holding her cardboard box.
Four rag dolls remained inside.
"Mr. Ethan?" she asked, tugging on his sleeve.
Ethan looked down, crouching once more. "Yes, Mia?"
"You bought one doll for a hundred thousand dollars," she said, her eyebrows knitting together in serious calculation. "I still have four left. Does that mean I have four hundred thousand dollars?"
Ethan smiled—a real, genuine warmth that surprised even Marcus, who had worked for Ethan for six years and rarely saw his boss laugh.
"It means whatever you want it to mean, Mia," Ethan said gently. "But I think we should keep those four dolls for something special."
Before Mia could reply, the door to the private suite burst open.
It wasn't a doctor.
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It was Victor Vance—the owner of Apex Real Estate and board member of Meridian National Bank—wearing a tailored navy suit, his face red with fury, flanked by Miller, the sweating bank manager.
"Carter!" Victor barked, stepping into the room without knocking. "What the hell is the meaning of this?! My office just received an aggressive buyout offer from your lawyers for my entire property portfolio!"
