Divorce in Exchange for Liver Donation

I hadn't walked far from the consultation room when Dr. John Graves from the transplant department caught up with me.

"Mr. Holland, please wait."

He stopped me in front of the elevator and handed me a test permission form.

"Tanya needs a living-donor liver transplant as soon as possible. So far, you're the only one who's confirmed to have a compatible blood type. We still need to do additional blood tests for further matching. Come do the compatibility tests with me now, and the results could be out as early as tomorrow."

I didn't take it.

"Tell Jessica to sign first."

Dr. Graves was stunned.

"That's between you and your wife. Your daughter doesn't have much time left."

"I'll do the compatibility tests as soon as she signs."

Rapid footsteps came from behind me.

Jessica rushed out of the consultation room, her face so pale it was almost transparent.

"Kevin, are you trying to kill Tanya?"

"The decision is yours."

I pressed the elevator button.

She grabbed my sleeve desperately.

"I'll divorce you. If you do the compatibility tests, I'll sign the divorce agreement right away."

"What about the other two documents?"

Jessica's lips trembled.

"We earned the house, the savings, and the shares together after we got married. What right do you have to take everything from me?"

The elevator doors opened.

I pulled my sleeve free.

"Think it over."

"Kevin!"

She blocked the doors.

"Is there someone else? Did you deliberately wait until Tanya fell critically ill to force me to hand over Eterspring?"

People passing by stopped in their tracks.

I didn't explain.

"Seven days isn't that long. You better make up your mind quickly."

I pushed past her and stepped into the elevator.

Just as the doors were about to close, a piercing alarm suddenly sounded from the hallway.

A nurse burst out of the ICU.

"Bed 7 is hemorrhaging! Prepare for a blood transfusion immediately!"

The color instantly drained from Jessica's face.

She turned and ran to the ICU but was stopped at the door by a nurse.

Through the slowly closing elevator doors, I saw her fall to her knees.

My mother called me half an hour later.

She was crying so hard she could barely string a coherent sentence together.

"Tanya threw up so much blood. The doctor said her coagulation function is getting worse. Kevin, please come back."

I sat in the car, my voice calm.

"Has Jessica signed?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end.

Then, my mother's crying turned into a scream.

"Tanya's your daughter! She's only six! Why do you only care about the agreements?"

I glanced at my watch.

"If Jessica doesn't sign, there's no point in me going back."

"Kevin, are you out of your mind? You have a good family. Why are you wrecking it?"

I resolutely hung up.

At eleven that night, Dr. Graves contacted me again.

"Mr. Holland, your daughter's condition is worse than we expected. Her optimal window for surgery may only be within the next five days. After that, even if we manage to find a suitable donor liver, surgery may no longer be possible."

I leaned back in the seat and looked at the lights still on in the hospital's inpatient building.

"Understood."

"So when are you coming in for the compatibility tests?"

I didn't answer.

I opened my WhatsApp chat with Jessica and sent a single text.

"Sign all three documents, and I'll do it."