Chapter Two.

Chapter 2

Williams watched her go, too stunned to even rush after her.

It was her!

All angelic five foot nine beauty of her. He would never forget that long golden hair…those emerald green eyes that were always filled with a spark. That serene face that always held a smile.

Natasha…His first crush, the first and only woman who ever fully captured his heart.

But of course, it couldn’t be her. This woman was far younger and slimmer around the edges.

And Williams had watched Natasha die. She’d breathed her last while he cuddled her to his aching chest and cried.

But the resemblance was uncanny. Too real and potent to simply ignore. That was why he’d let the street car driver pick her up in the first place.

 Williams had found out long ago that an hour in here, just driving around the city did a lot of mind calming. He was able to think clearly, to get even the barest of minutes where he felt at peace.

So he’d taken over the city’s shuttle company, and commandeered one of the street cars for his own use. He made sure to make use of it at least once a week.

After his morning jog around the estate, he had gone to work but soon found himself loosing concentration. His mind just couldn’t settle down to do anything useful. He had endured it for a whole hour before deciding to leave for his weekly ritual. 

 Then thirty minutes into the ride, he had seen an angel standing along the curb. Her hair billowing in the wind behind her and her slender arms wrapped around her front as if she was cold or frightened. 

And he’d signaled the driver to let her in just so he could have a better look.

She turned out to be a ghost in a white dress.

He had watched her go. It was best for everyone if he didn’t get involved with her. He was bad news. He was a dead man walking. All the money in the world, which he sort of had, wouldn’t change that.

But he couldn’t get her out of his mind. He had to know.

“Stop the car.” He heard himself saying.

“Yes, boss.” Said Sammy, the driver. He pulled to a stop along the curb, in front of a boutique complex.

“Do you know who she is?” asked Williams.

“I’m afraid I know very little, sir.” 

Williams would’ve paid millions in pounds for whatever little he could learn about the strangely familiar girl. “Go on.”

“Her name is Celine. She started appearing on my route three months ago, and she only leaves home for work every morning at 11 and returns late into the night.”

There it was. She was definitely not related in any way to Natasha. 

He took in a deep breath of relief, the knot in his stomach loosening just a little.

“She works at the Carmollete ?” said Williams after taking a moment to digest that.

“Yes.” Sammy nodded. “She lives alone, never goes out and never brings anyone home. She doesn’t own a phone, or credit card. Always gives the mandatory monthly pound in cash.”

Williams shifted uneasily in the seat. Sammy had been wrong. Whatever little he knew about her said a lot. 

The strange girl that caught his attention now appeared soft and lonely.

Even more intriguing than before…

He felt a tugging in his chest. The need to protect her. To know her.

His phone vibrated in the breast pocket of his suit. This was the fifth time it was ringing since he got on the street car.

But he wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone. Not yet.

“when did you say she gets off work?” asked Williams.

“At 9. She’s always waiting at the stop at 9:10.”

Williams motioned for him to turn the car back on. 

A plan was forming in his head. A way to meet her again. He knew it was wrong, impractical. But he was Dying. And time wasn’t on his side.

His phone vibrated again, but this time he reluctantly pulled it out to answer.

“Sir Williams?” said the voice of Greta, his mother’s steward.

Williams sat straighter immediately. “What’s wrong?”

She was sobbing loudly as she replied. “It’s ma’am Elizabeth. She…She…I found her slumped in the kitchen.”

His heart began to race. “Have you called an ambulance? Is she ok?”

“Yes, I called an ambulance. We are on the way to the hospital.” Greta let out a shivering cry. “She looked so pale and still…I thought she was dead! She wasn’t breathing. If I hadn’t found her on time…”

“Try to calm down, Greta. She’s going to be fine. I’ll meet you at the hospital.”

“Ok, sir.”

“Where are the paramedics taking her?”

“St. Avery. I told them that’s where she does her medical check ups.”

Williams nodded, more to himself than her. “Don’t leave her side. I’ll join you in a few minutes.”

Williams cut the call and dialed St. Avery Hale clinic, the city’s foremost health center. Because his mother already had steady records there, it was easy for him to alert their emergency services to meet the ambulance once it arrived. His status in the country helped as well.

It took him five minutes to get back to where he had parked his car and half that to reach the hospital. By then his mother had already been brought in and admitted into a private room.

He found Greta in the waiting lounge of the private floor. Slim and petite with a face that always bore a smile, Greta had worked for Elizabeth since they were both young ladies. As Williams hadn’t failed to notice, They were more like sisters than anything else now. 

She was pacing around in anxiety, her face still tearful when he walked in.

“Sir Williams!”

“My mother…is she alright?”

Greta nodded. “The doctors were able to resuscitate her when we arrived, but they still had to wear her a breathing mask.” Her face was red from all the strain of her fear. “They have been in there since then.”

The double doors of the ward pushed open and the doctor in his normal white lab coat stepped out. Greta rushed to him and began to fire off questions. The man simply smiled at her calmly and patted her shoulders.

“She’s doing perfectly now. Maybe after a few hours of rest you’ll get to see her.”

The relief that Williams felt at this words spread over Greta’s face as well. 

“Thank you so much, doctor.”

He smiled at her. “I’m just doing my job. And for Elizabeth even more than that. Why don’t you get yourself something to eat at the cafeteria while I have a talk with Williams in my office?”

“I’ll go and prepare something for her to eat when she wakes up.” Spirit lifted, she hurried out of lounge.

The Doctor gave Williams an amused look. “Why do I have the feeling that she is going to return with a truck load of food enough to feed the entire hospital?”

“Her heart is in the right place.” Said Williams. “Hammond, will she be ok?”

Hammond was Williams’s closest friend. They had met in college as roommates freshman year before becoming free with each other. At thirty, he was a little young to be in the position he was at the hospital but had earned his awards, respect and prestige through diligence and discipline. 

Their families were close. Or rather, Elizabeth was his mother’s friend. This made the concern on Hammond’s face all the more sincere.

“Let’s have a drink in my office.” Almost same height as Williams, it was easy for Hammond to wrap an arm around his shoulders and steer him away.

Once there, he poured two glasses of something yellow and smiled sheepishly when Williams gave him a bemused look.

“Pineapple juice.”

“Really? Pineapple juice?”

Hammond was still smiling. “You know I don’t drink alcohol at work.” He took a sip from his glass, returned it to the table. “Try it. It’s nice.”

Williams knew he was trying to buy himself more time before revealing what was going on, but he didn’t say it. He picked up the glass and drained it in one gulp. Sweet and chilly, almost calming to his nerves.

“Will she be ok?” He asked again.

There was a long pause before he got a reply.

“I’m sorry to say this, Williams, but it’s bad.” 

Williams didn’t look away no matter how much he wanted to.

Hammond let out a sigh and went on. “Elizabeth has a rare heart condition. Details of it are in the report I’ll give to you but the crux of it all is that…it’s bad.”

“Bad? As in fatal?”

Hammond nodded. “I’m really sorry, Williams, but her condition is well beyond that. But with the right medication and treatment, I'm sure we can—"

"How long does my mother have?" asked Williams firmly.

"Not more than a year, give or take." replied Hammond after a sigh of resignation.