8. Bad News

Maya ran down the hospital hallway frantically searching for the elevator as her eyes were blinded with tears. She hoped she wasn't too late? She paused as she was about to get in, lost in tears, remembering her mother's smiles.

“ Excuse me, ma'am! Are you going to stand here gazing at the elevator or are you going inside?” A voice called out to Maya as she turned swiftly to take in an angry Liam glaring down at her with his hands inside his pockets. Maya noticed that he had changed out of his beige suit, he was now dressed in a navy blue suit with a white pristine white shirt. His neck was bare of a tie.

Maya forced her eyes away from him and stepped into the elevator. She refused to let him annoy her. Her mother needs her more. She hopes she's alright...

Liam gazed at Maya who stood far away from him, he clenched his fists at his side. This stupid woman! Liam cursed under his breath. How could she disobey him on their supposed wedding night? 

He was thankful to have followed her here today. He wants to meet that guy! Her first love, he wanted to know why she couldn't let go of him.

The elevator's door dinged and opened signaling their arrival at their floor. Maya almost ran out of the elevator if it wasn't for Liam who pulled her back.

“ What do you want? Haven't you done enough” Maya screamed up at him as she tried to keep her tears a bay but it takes just a touch from Liam and she's glaring at him in anger? Can't he read that she hates him!

Liam flinched back as if burnt by her words. He still didn't know why she always chose to get annoyed with him. As far as he knows, he didn't do anything to cause her anger. He never forced her to get married to him. She accepted out of her free will, so why is she always angry with him.

“ I___ I____I____” Liam clammed his mouth shut, seeing that there wasn't any excuse for his prompt action and he couldn't tell her that he was jealous of her first love.

Maya hissed as she turned on heel running to her mother's ward while praying that her mother is alright!

Liam watched her run away from him. He stood glaring at her retreating back feeling sad. He hoped she wasn't going to fall as she was running in her heels. Stop caring, Liam. She's here to see her first love, Liam chastised himself before turning to follow Maya down the hall.

Maya sprang up on the doctor who was coming out of her mother's ward, closely followed by two nurses who were staring at her with a sad face.

“ Doctor, I'm here. I've gotten the money. When can my mother be operated on?” Maya told the doctor, forcing a smile to her tears-stricken face as she thrust the cheque to the doctor who shook his head at her.

“ I'm sorry, Miss Banks. It's too late” The doctor shakes his head at her and turns to walk away from her but Maya clasps onto his hands refusing to let go as she gazes into the doctor's eyes.

“ What do you mean, doctor? Why are you sorry? Is she awake?” Maya screamed up at the doctor when she saw that he wasn't replying to any of her questions.

“ I'm sorry but we lost her” The doctor called to her as he turned to walk down the hallway after freeing his hands from Maya's powerful grip.

Maya screamed as soon as she saw two nurses wheeling her mother's dead body covered with a white sheet from the room. She ran up to them and threw herself on her mother screaming and begging her to wake up until some nurses came to hold her away from the bed as they wheeled the woman to the morgue.

Liam stood by and watched the drama unfold before him. He couldn't make out the person on the bed but seeing the white sheet and Maya's scream he could tell that her first love was dead. Even though he was excited to see that her first love was dead, Liam couldn't help being curious about the cause of his death which was why he stopped the doctor on his way to the office to question him

“ Yes, how may I help you, young man?” The doctor's eyes widened as soon as he recognized Liam who was glaring at him after being called‘ Young man’.

“ I'm sorry, Mr. Powell. I didn't know it was you” Doctor Gordon apologized profusely, he had just realized that he has insulted their biggest sponsor and largest shareholder.

“ It's okay. Tell me, what's wrong with that lady? What caused that man's death?” Liam questioned him with his hands folded across his chest seeming less interested but inwardly, he was dying to know. He turned to watch Maya strolling down to the morgue. His face hardened when he saw her bump into a man before apologizing.

“ Man?” Doctor Gordon wondered in his mind. There wasn't any man. He wasn't suspicious of Liam's interior motives as he often requested their patient's information and foot most of their bills on his regular visit to the hospital.

“ There isn't any man. Her mother just died of leukemia after a failed attempt to raise money for her surgery” The doctor explained, he moved back as soon as he saw the dead stare Liam was shooting him.

Liam's face ashen as he froze, every other thing went blank in his mind. He could only hold on to one word:‘ Her mother’. Has he unknowingly killed an innocent woman because of his selfish ambition? He could still remember his lawyer's words to him:

“One of the tenants fainted last night, she has been rushed to the hospital ” 

Was that why she fainted because she had leukemia? Liam wondered in his mind as he stepped away from the doctor who was watching him with curious eyes.

No, that can't be it. Leukemia patients aren't prone to weak hearts or are they? Liam shakes his head to rid himself of those thoughts before waving the doctor off. 

He strolled down towards the direction of the morgue, hoping that Maya would forgive him. In his jealousy, he had kept her from saving her mother even after being the cause of her being admitted to the hospital. 

His feet weaver in front of the morgue as he contemplated going in. He forced himself to hold the handle and step into the room, his heart shattered into a million pieces as soon as he saw her curled up beside her mother.

“ Mom, please come back to me. I promise to obey you. See, I even got married. Remember you've always been pestering me to get married. I finally did and to a handsome man just as you've wanted” Liam heard her say to her mother as she waves her wedding band in her mother's white face.

Liam clutched his chest as he looked for a bar to hold his strength as he was getting weak, his force back the tears from his eyes as he tried to force back the memories of his parents lying in this same room from his mind.

“ What are you doing here?”

 Liam came out of his thoughts as soon as he heard her ashen voice. He straightened on his feet and turned to look at her loss for words. He didn't know what to say? Should he tell her that he knows what she's going through, as he had been there before? Or should he comfort her and apologize for being the cause?

Maya stepped away from him and walked out of the door. There was no need to speak to him, he was still as heartless as he was when he had chased them out of their house. Now, her mother was dead, he still wasn't feeling remorseful to apolo____

“ I'm sorry”

Maya paused as soon as she heard Liam's sad voice. She turned to stare at him annoyed that he could say sorry and expect her to accept it“ Wow! Really? Sorry”

“ I___ I____I___”

“ Save it, Mr. Powell. I'm not interested in your sorry unless you know that it will bring her back. I'm sure you know all of this is your fault. You killed my mother and expect me to be happy with you. No, never I can't ” Maya screamed up at him before turning to walk away as she still has to arrange for her mother's funeral but Liam's grip on her hands stopped her. She turned to glare at him.

“ Please, I'm sorry. I will do anything. Please forgive me” Liam called impatiently to her as he begged her to forgive. He still couldn't forgive himself for taking her only parents from her.

“ Anything? Really?” Maya forced herself to smile as she stepped closer to him and dragged him back into the morgue. She pulled him to her mother's bed and waved him to her“ Then wake her up. If you wake her up, I'll forgive you”

Liam wailed as he turned to look at Maya, taking his face away from her mother's whitish face which was now imprinted in his memories. He still couldn't forgive the man that caused his parents' death. He hates himself right now!

“ I'm sorry but I can't do that. Nobody can. I wish I could wake her____”

“ Save it!” Maya shouted at him, shutting him up before turning to walk out of the room. She paused on her way out and called to him “ I hate you, Liam Powell ” Before stepping out of the room.

Liam screamed as he allowed the tears to spill down his face. He couldn't stop it any longer. He squatted down on the floor as the memories of that cold night came flooding to him, he sobbed uncontrollably, wishing that he wasn't the cause of her pain...

                                        ***

Maya stood clad in black looking at her mother's body being lowered into the sand, the priest was calling something to a few friends and neighbors that had come to lay her mother to rest but she couldn't make out his words as she wasn't listening to him.

She moved automatically to drop her flowers on the coffin, a blend of angelonia and water lilies. It was her mother's favorite. She remembered her telling her that her father used to give that to her on her birthday before they separated.

Maya walked away from the coffin, she let her eyes run through everyone that had come today, she was expecting her father to come to show his last respect to her mother but he wasn't there, instead, she was greeted by Liam's sad face. He stood at the far end of the cemetery holding a banquet of flowers in his hands.

Everyone bent to drop flowers at her mother's bed before turning to walk away, Liam also came closer, he paused as soon as he noticed her eyes on him. Maya averted her eyes silently, granting him permission. There was no need to argue with him at her mother's funeral. She could do that when she has all the chance in the world.

“ I'm sorry, Maya. I didn't know what happened ”

Maya came out of her thoughts to see Zara standing beside her with tears in her eyes. She glared at her and moved away from her as she was her second most hated person in the world.

“ Maya____”

“ Don't, Zara. Whatever we had is over. You are not worth my friend. Friends don't betray each other. You care more about your blog than me, that's fine. Thank you” With that Maya walked away from her forcing the tears away from her eyes. She refused to cry for a lost friend. She could make a new one. 

She moved closer to where Mrs. Blake stood with her son. Mrs. Blake smiled sadly at her before taking Maya home with her.