Chapter two

Immediately the taxi stopped me, I rushed inside the hospital with the bag of cash in my hand.

Luckily, the driver was kind enough to lend me his coat after my pitiful lie. The people passing by the hallway gave me a weird look… I look so messy, from my sweaty face to my hair that had been scattered by the wind.

In short, I looked so tattered.

Upon reaching the doctor’s office, “Mr Nolan!” I roughly pushed the door open and walked in.

“Ahh,” came a woman’s voice.

“God!!” He immediately pulled away from the woman he was fucking and instantly shoved his p****k inside his pants. I stopped and looked at the woman who shamefully put on her clothes and rushed out.

I glazed at the closed door and then back at him.

“Look Mira, I have told you that you should stop showing up like this,” he snapped. “There is nothing we can do. You have to stop begging,” his said dismissively. “Thank God you are even here, because we are even planning on discharging him tonight.”

“I have the money,”

I suddenly blurt out. The coldness in my voice cutting him off. He paused for a while before blinking to be sure of what I said. “You have… have—“

I smirked and raised the bag and with a heavy thud, I placed it on top of his desk, flinching him a bit. Then slowly I opened the zip to show him the money.

His wide gaze moved from the money to me then back to the money before looking back at me. “You have seven hundred thousand dollars?”

“No. Five hundred thousand dollars, at least enough to start up his treatment,”

He looked at the money again then back to me, confusion and suspicion flashing in his face. “How did you get this, Mira? I know your work… stripping wouldn’t get you this,”

Swallowing the insult, I forced out a strict smile. “You request the money now go get my son treated,”

“No!” Nolan blurted out sharply before I could say one more word. “I know you, Mira. You can’t afford such and for your good you have to start talking or I will be calling the security,” my face crushed and I bite my inner lips, fighting the fast beating of my heart. “This is an hospital and we don’t do anything illegal,”

“Coming from someone who was fucking a bitch right on top of his desk during his work hour!” I latched out then zipped the bag. My angry eyes fixed daringly on him. “You know the outcome if this gets out? That is unprofessional and your…” I paused with a smirk before snarling. “Your license will be revoked,”

His face fell.

“You couldn’t dare,”

“One more word and I will,” I hissed, enjoying the paleness in his face. “Now, our conversation should be on how to start my son’s treatment,”

Gulping hard, he reluctantly nodded toward the door though I could still detect the anger in his eyes.

“Go pay the cash at the cashier’s office downstairs. Once the payment is confirmed, we’ll begin the treatment immediately.”

“Good!” I hissed and rolled my eyes before walking away.

A few minutes later, I walked out from the cashier’s office toward room 102 where Theo had been staying. My shoulders slumped. The doctors were already getting ready to move him to the pediatric cardiac unit to begin his treatment. I should be happy but I felt scared. Not afraid of the treatment but afraid of something I couldn’t explain.

Holding the handle, I breathed out to compose myself before opening the door and right there he was sleeping peacefully. The machine connected around his bed beeping. I sighed and sat beside him, placing my hand on top of his then the tears I have been holding since broke out.

Life has been a crazy one for me. I stared at him with teary eyes, he was something I never planned for. Looking at him had my past that I had so much struggled to bury flashing back in my head. After my mother’s death, my father remarried and from that day marked the beginning of my nightmare. I was neglected, pushed aside by my father, step mom and step sister. I turned into a maid in my father’s house, invisible and miserable.

Until I got a boyfriend, Kaiden…. I smiled with a nod, remembering every detail of his lies that I believed to be true because I was so much in love with him then. Not until the day I caught him in bed with my step sister, Susan. I sniffed and laughed. A crazy small sound. I complained to my father only to be silenced and to my shock I got to hear that they were getting married by the weekend. Heartbroken, I ran away from home only to return two weeks after discovering I was pregnant for him. For that ASSHOLE!!

But what?

I patted Theo’s hand gently. They denied it, and when I angrily decided to sue them. I was stripped off everything. They froze my account, block me everywhere possible with their connections to the extent my existence was threatened so I had no choice than to run from London to Sicily for safety.

And since then it has been me and Theo, I have done a lot just to take care of him.

It has been five years already.

“Hello,” the voice from behind startled me. I quickly wiped away my tears and turned around to find three nurses inside.

“Sorry ma, but you have to excuse us,”

“Huh?” I stared at them confused.

One of them sighed and gestured to Theo. “We need to disconnect the machines and move him into the pediatric cardiac unit to begin his treatment.”

“Oh,” I muttered weakly and looked at his sleeping face again. Then I leaned in and kissed his forehead. “Please be strong. Mom will be out here waiting for you,” I then stood up and left the room.

I stayed up outside in the waiting area, my heart breaking. Fear still eating me up. I don’t know but the atmosphere felt strange like something might happen. “Guess I won’t be going to the strip club for weeks until everything is calm,” I kept on murmuring as I made my way outside for a breath of fresh air.

Immediately I stepped outside, the air hit my face causing me to unconsciously shut my eyes and let out a deep sigh. “I’m going to survive,” opening my eyes, I went to sit on the bench beside the wall and that’s how I slept off without knowing.

Minutes passed, hours… I don’t know but the echo of heavy footsteps snapped me out of my deep slumber. I slowly opened my eyes but shut it back at the sudden sunlight. How long did I sleep?

“Is she the one?”

The voice forced my eyes open, I looked up to see three hefty men all dressed in a black suit then with a pistol in their waists. The second one looked at the picture in his hand then his head snapped back at me. The sudden cold in his eyes frightened me.

“She is the one,”

The moment he voiced out, two of the men instantly grabbed my hands. “What the–“ the word died in my throat at his next word. “She’s the thief. Drag her to the car, Boss would like to see her.”

My body went cold in an instant.

Fear…. I don’t know but for the first time since five years ago I felt vulnerable. Different jail scenarios playing in my head… I’m doomed.

I thought it was clean.

I still struggled to free myself but my strength was nothing compared to theirs. They disgracefully dragged me out from the hospital premises to the parking spot outside the gate.. opposite the hospital. And the closer we get to seven expansive cars lined up, the heavier my heart gets.

Not long, the men stopped then dragged me toward the back of the sixth car. And at the back was a tall man dressed in black expensive suit with dark shade leaning at the boot, taking his cigarette.

“Boss. She’s here,”

One of them said

And before I knew it, the other person kicked me, knocking me to my knees. I hissed and glared at him but the turning of the man stilled my breath.

My heart was racing faster.

“Is she the one?” He said, his rough voice calm and strangely curled my toes. But immediately he removed his dark shade, my world collapsed into two pieces

My body went numb as pure fear gripped me tight.

Standing in front of me was nobody but the known infamous devil of Sicily…. Alessandro Caruso.