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Chapter 4

Auteur: No Mood Nano
I stood frozen in place, cold all over.

Ryan’s words cut deep, but I didn’t have time to fall apart.

There was only one thing I could do.

I immediately called the visiting surgeon.

“Doctor, please give us one more chance. I’ll sell the house. Once it sells, I’ll have the money. I swear I’ll pay the surgical fee.”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds.

“Sir, do you know how many times I’ve changed my flight because of you?

“Four.

“I have other patients who need me too. You keep putting this off over and over again. Do you really want your grandson treated or not?”

I knew exactly what she was implying.

I begged her desperately.

“Doctor, I swear I mean it this time. I’ll sell the house right away. The second I get the money, I’ll pay.

“Just give me one more day. Please. That’s all I’m asking.”

She sighed.

“All right. One last day.”

I didn’t even have time to grieve.

I told Ryan to give me one final day, then rushed to the police station.

But after going through everything, the police couldn’t find anything wrong.

By the time I left the station, it was already dark.

I thought of all the relatives I’d borrowed money from before and started calling them one by one.

“Look, we’ve all heard what’s been going on. Just focus on taking care of that child instead of stirring up all this trouble.

“Ryan already told me everything. There was no money on your card, but you kept insisting the hospital stole it. Then you even went to the police. Are you starting to lose it in your old age?

“I’m telling you this for your own good. Treat your family better. Otherwise, when you get old, you might not have anyone left to take care of you.”

Every single one of them turned me down.

I crouched there and cried for a long time.

When I finally stood up, I swayed and nearly collapsed.

It was well past midnight by the time I made it back to my small subsidized apartment.

I lived there alone.

Ryan and Ben lived in the little house I’d bought for them.

I’d spent my entire life saving up for the down payment and had put the house in Ryan’s name.

By morning, I finally thought of another solution.

I washed my face and went back to the hospital.

Ryan was sitting beside Ben’s bed, staring blankly ahead.

His eyes were completely lifeless, as if everything inside him had been hollowed out.

But I barely noticed.

I was too excited about the solution I’d come up with.

“Ryan, I figured it out.”

He looked up at me, but there was no light in his eyes.

I kept talking.

“We can take out a loan against your house. Once I find out what happened to my money, I’ll pay it back.”

Ryan stared at me.

“There’s no need.”

I hadn’t expected him to say that.

“What are you talking about? If we keep trying, we can still save Ben!

“Come on. We don’t have time to waste. I already talked to the surgeon. She agreed to wait one more day.”

Ryan remained sitting beside the bed without moving.

Seeing him like that made my frustration boil over.

I pulled out the deed and tossed it onto his lap.

“Stop sitting there like that. Come on!”

Ryan mechanically opened it and glanced down.

One look was all it took.

He tore the document in half and threw it back at me.

“Dad, how many years have you been lying to me?”

I froze.

“What are you talking about?”

“The house!”

He held up the torn document.

“The name on this deed isn’t mine. It isn’t yours either!

“Dad, you told me you spent your entire life saving to buy that house for me! But this deed is fake!

“How much else have you been hiding from me?”

His voice grew louder and louder, drawing nurses and other patients over to watch.

“You told me to take out a loan against the house. Were you deliberately trying to humiliate me?

“Did you never actually want Ben to get treatment?”

“No, Ryan. I swear, I didn’t know.”

“Enough!”

Ryan covered his face, his whole body shaking as he sobbed.

“None of it matters anymore!

“It’s too late!”

Before I could react, he yanked the blanket off Ben.

“He’s dead!

“He couldn’t wait for your money!

“Dad, just go. I never want to see you again.

“Nothing that comes out of your mouth is ever true. If it weren’t for you, Ben wouldn’t have died!”

My knees gave out, and I collapsed to the floor.

How?

I’d been given another chance.

So why had Ben still died?

What had gone wrong?

Ryan completely broke down.

He suddenly rushed to the window and threw it open.

“Ben’s gone. I don’t want to live anymore!”

At that moment, something suddenly clicked.

I remembered.

“Stop!

“I know where the money went!”
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  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 8

    Lina’s face went completely white.The little girl stayed planted in front of her, glaring at Ryan and me as if she could protect her mother from us.The billing clerk rushed over, scooped the girl into his arms, and took off.Lina tried to run too, but Ryan grabbed the back of her shirt and slapped her again.“You still think you can run?”I stared at the three of them.Then I looked at the little girl, who was about the same age as Ben.Suddenly, everything fell into place.Lina must have met the billing clerk years ago, when she was working on the hospital’s computer systems.Something had probably already been going on between them back then. They had just kept it hidden.After Ben was born, Lina seemed to grow more and more unhappy with her life.All those business trips she claimed she had to take probably had nothing to do with work.She had been sneaking around with another man.And not long after Ben was born, she got pregnant again.This time, she was thrilled.

  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 7

    The man holding Lina was the hospital billing clerk.The second I saw her in his arms, everything finally clicked.Why had all three of my payments disappeared?Why was there never any record of them in the hospital system?Why had the security cameras somehow failed to capture the exact moments that mattered?Lina’s company maintained computer systems for hospitals all over the city.And this man worked at the hospital cashier’s desk.She could manipulate the system, and he could cover for her from inside the hospital.Together, they could erase every trace.Lina turned her head and spotted us.Fear flashed across her face.As I stared at her, memories from years ago came rushing back.When Lina first got pregnant, she had been thrilled.She talked to the baby every day, went to bed early, and made sure she ate properly.Then, at her six-month checkup, she found out she was having a boy.After that, everything changed.She started traveling for work constantly and no l

  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 6

    Ryan stared at the enlarged photo, looking as if the life had been drained out of him.“So the money at the hospital was her doing too?”I nodded.“Do you remember what Lina did for a living?”Ryan hesitated.“She studied computer engineering. She was an IT manager at a tech company.”“What kind of work did she handle?”Ryan’s expression slowly changed.“Her company maintained the computer systems for a lot of hospitals across the city.”Neither of us spoke for a moment.Then Ryan understood what I was getting at, and his face went pale.Lina knew those hospital systems inside and out.She knew how the payment records worked, how patient accounts were managed, and where the security system had weaknesses.If she still had access, she could erase payment records, alter account information, and even make sure the security footage conveniently missed the moments that mattered.I continued, “And there has to be something wrong with the account tied to Lina’s death benefits to

  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 5

    Ryan’s hand froze in midair.He stared at me blankly.“Dad, what did you just say?”I rushed over, grabbed his wrist, and pulled him away from the window.“I said I know where the money went.”He looked at me with nothing but disappointment.“You’re going to start lying again?“Dad, don’t you think you’ve gone too far? What do you even want from me after putting me through all this?“Just leave, okay? I’d rather not have a father at all!”His words cut deep, but I forced myself to ignore the pain.I needed him to hear me out.“It was Lina!”I tightened my grip on his wrist.“Listen to me. Lina planned all of this!”Ryan’s eyes widened in shock.He yanked his arm away from me.“Have you lost your mind?“She’s dead! She died in the line of duty five years ago!“If I’d known you were going to treat me like this, I never would’ve put all my faith in you!”I hadn’t expected him to shove me away so hard.My legs gave out, and I stumbled backward into a storage cabinet.T

  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 4

    I stood frozen in place, cold all over.Ryan’s words cut deep, but I didn’t have time to fall apart.There was only one thing I could do.I immediately called the visiting surgeon.“Doctor, please give us one more chance. I’ll sell the house. Once it sells, I’ll have the money. I swear I’ll pay the surgical fee.”There was silence on the other end for a few seconds.“Sir, do you know how many times I’ve changed my flight because of you?“Four.“I have other patients who need me too. You keep putting this off over and over again. Do you really want your grandson treated or not?”I knew exactly what she was implying.I begged her desperately.“Doctor, I swear I mean it this time. I’ll sell the house right away. The second I get the money, I’ll pay.“Just give me one more day. Please. That’s all I’m asking.”She sighed.“All right. One last day.”I didn’t even have time to grieve.I told Ryan to give me one final day, then rushed to the police station.But after going thr

  • The Money for My Grandson’s Surgery Disappeared   Chapter 3

    I dragged Ryan into the bank.He looked thoroughly fed up with me, but he still followed me to the teller window.I slid my ID and bank card across the counter.“I want to withdraw twenty thousand dollars. All of it in cash.”This was the account where I kept my retirement savings.It was the last money I had.The teller checked the account, then looked up at me.“Sir, your balance is $20,074. You want to withdraw twenty thousand?”I nodded, my fingers digging into the edge of the counter.The teller counted out the cash, bundled it, and placed the thick stacks on the counter.“Sir, please count it.”I didn’t.I pushed the money straight toward Ryan.“You count it.”He froze for a second, then carefully counted through the bills.“Twenty thousand. It’s all here.”I stuffed the cash into a canvas bag, clutched it tightly against my chest, and pulled him back toward the hospital.The same billing clerk was still at the hospital cashier’s desk.I set the bag on the count

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