Chapter 6

My eyes opened slowly, but my vision wasn’t clear at first. I blinked repeatedly, the bright light above flashing directly into my face.

“Where am I?” I muttered weakly.

Still blinking, my vision slowly became clearer, and the strong smell of antiseptic immediately told me where I was.

Hospital.

That had to be it.

Shit. My eyes widened.

Had my cover been blown?

What if Dexter and his parents took a closer look at my face when I fainted?

I touched my face immediately.

My glasses were gone. Those glasses perfected my disguise.

“Oh no.”

I jerked up from the bed into a sitting position but felt a sharp sting in my hand.

I turned quickly and saw a drip connected to it.

“No… no…”

My chest tightened painfully. Athena, you just ruined everything.

Why did I faint?

Did I have a panic attack after seeing my parents’ picture or maybe because I was inside the den of my enemies after all these years?

You messed up big time anthena, I hit the side of my bed with my other hand.

After years of planning… I spoiled it because I couldn’t separate Mia Roberts from Athena Mallway.

I didn’t even last up to twenty-four hours in the position.

I need to go back to the office now and find out what’s going on.

From the look of things, Dexter didn’t seem to be nearby.

As I reached to pull out the drip, the door suddenly opened.

I looked up sharply to see a nurse in blue scrubs walking in with a tray in her hands.

“Oh dear, you’re awake.”

Her eyes immediately moved from my face to my hand gripping the drip.

“No, no, you can’t do that. You’re going to hurt yourself.”She rushed toward me quickly.

“I need to get back to work right now.”

“Easy there.” She carefully held my wrist. “Your work isn’t running away. Your health is what matters right now.”

“Please, can you just pull this thing off? I feel better now, and it’s an emergency. I really need to go.”

She let out a tired breath.

“You still need to rest before getting discharged.”

“No. I need to leave now.” I raised my hand toward her impatiently. “Will you help me with this or should I do it myself?”

“Hold on.”

She glanced up at the IV fluid bag. It was already empty.

Then she carefully removed the needle from my hand.

“You’re one stubborn woman,” she muttered.

If only she knew.

The moment the needle was gone, I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood up immediately.

A wave of dizziness hit me hard.

At the same time, a sharp pain struck my chest.

I grabbed the edge of the bed before I could fall again.

The nurse looked completely unimpressed.

“And you still think leaving is a good idea?”

“Yes.”

I pressed my hand against my chest for a second before straightening up and ignoring the pain completely.

“You still have to see the doctor before you leave. He asked to see you immediately once you regain consciousness .”

“The doctor?”

My heart skipped. Why would the doctor want to see me?

Did I say something while I was unconscious?

“Can I see him later?” I asked while already searching around for my bag.

“No, ma’am. It’s important.”

I turned to her.“How long have I been here?”

“Three hours.”

Three hours? My stomach tightened.

“And who brought me here?”

“An ambulance.”

“No one came with the ambulance?”

“No. Just you.”

I wouldn’t say I was surprised that Dexter and his family didn’t think it was necessary to send someone with me to the hospital.

It only proved how heartless they still were.

I was probably nothing more than a nuisance to them.

Just some random assistant who ruined their perfect family dinner by collapsing in the middle of it.

Honestly, maybe it was better this way.

I didn’t need their sympathy.

The only thing that mattered now was making sure my identity as Mia Roberts hadn’t been exposed.

“Here are your belongings.”The nurse handed my bag to me.

I held it tightly against my chest.

The nurse led the way, and after a few minutes of walking down the quiet hallway, we stopped in front of the doctor’s office.

She knocked softly before opening the door.

“The patient is awake, doctor.”

The doctor looked like he was in his forties. He wore a white lab coat and glasses, and he slowly looked up from the computer in front of him.

“Please, have a seat.” he pointed to the seat in front of me.

I sat down carefully, trying to ignore the uncomfortable tightness in my chest.

The nurse quietly stepped out and closed the door behind her.

The doctor removed his glasses slowly.

“It’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling?”

“Fine.”I forced a small smile.

“Doctor, can you just prescribe whatever medication you want to give me? I really need to leave.”

“Actually, that’s not why I called you in here.”

He leaned forward slightly.

I frowned.“Okay…”

“Do you have any family nearby?” he asked

That was strange. Why would he ask me that?

Immediately, my guard went up. Did the El Camino family put him up to this?

For all I knew, he could be working for them.

“Why are you asking about my family?”I said gently hiding the suspicion from my face.

“Because, Miss Mia… you may need family beside you for what I’m about to tell you.”

He used Mia. Not Athena.

That meant my cover was still safe. At least for now.

A small sense of relief settled inside me, but I still couldn’t let my guard down completely.

I stared at him carefully.

There was no way I was mentioning June and July.

If he found out about my sisters, how could I be sure he wouldn’t report back to the El Caminos?

“No, doctor. I don’t have family nearby. It’s just me.”

The lie came out smoothly. I glanced down at my wristwatch.

I only had one hour left before closing time at work.

“Doctor, please just tell me what I need to know. I don’t have much time. I know I probably fainted from exhaustion and stress.” I shifted in the chair, I was slowly losing my patience.

The doctor’s expression changed slightly.

“No, Miss Mia. You’re wrong.”

My brows pulled together.“Okay… so what is it?”

I urged impatiently while checking my watch again.

He paused for a moment before leaning forward, his expression serious.

“Miss Mia… I’m afraid you have a rare form of dilated cardiomyopathy. A serious heart disease that weakens the heart over time.”

I squinted at him in confusion.

“A heart disease?”

“Yes, Miss Mia.”

“Okay…” I nodded slowly. “What drugs are you prescribing then? And please be fast about it, doctor.”

I glanced at my watch again.

The doctor stared at me for a few seconds.

Then he slowly folded his hands together.

“I’m afraid you don’t fully understand what I mean, Miss Mia. Your heart is weak. I can prescribe medication, but at this stage it will only help manage the symptoms and reduce the pain.”

He paused. Then looked directly into my eyes.

“You’re dying, ma’am.”

Everything inside me went still.

“What?”I frowned brushing a hand through my hair in confusion.

I leaned forward toward the doctor. ‘What do you mean I’m dying?”