HIS TO RUIN, HIS TO SAVE

Elara's POV PIP. PIP. PIP. That beeping noise inside the room 842 just would not stop. Elara Hayes had sat in the same chair, same spot for a long time. A period that now felt like an eternity. And for what reason? Because of one man. She had not slept for three days and she didn’t leave Swedish Medical Centre. She took little naps in that same uncomfortable chair. But she had no clue that the pain of trying to sleep in a plastic chair was better than the bad news she was soon going to receive. Outside the window, the sky over Seattle were turning dark gray. It was almost Christmas. But it didn’t feel like the holiday was anywhere close inside that room. The place was filled with the smell of cleaning stuff. Elara rubbed her tired eyes. She kept doing it until she saw little spots of light. After that, she looked right back at the bed where he was at…where her father was. Her father was Richard Hayes. Everybody knew who he was because he had always demanded respect from every single person in the city. Now, he’d looked like a doll on the bed with its strings cut off. There were tubes connected to him everywhere and his chest made a rattling sound with every deep breath he took. Click. The door opened. Elara’s body had jumped before she realized who had come into the room. It was Doctor Carver. The family doctor for the Hayes family, walked in. He had known Elara since she was a little girl. As he walked inside, he let the door shut behind him. His eyes focused on everything inside the room except on Elara and that was the first bad sign for her. Doctor Carver walked to the end of the bed. He picked up a digital chart sitting next to the bed. “Ms. Hayes,” he said as if he was forced to speak. “Is he better now?” She replied to him. Her voice sounded rough which was expected. “Did anything change with my father?” Dr. Carver finally summoned the courage to look at her. He pushed his glasses up on his nose. “Hmm? I won't lie, his numbers are improving. But…what happened to him was severe, Elara. I want us to talk about it.” She’d forced herself to stand up and her legs felt like they were stuck in cement. “What led to this? I don't get it, Doctor. Isn't it obvious? He is 55 years old. He still insists that he works 8 hours every day from Monday to Friday. Of course…that's the cause of the mess.” “I can promise you Elara that it wasn't just his work.” Carver brought out a thick brownish envelope that he had under his arm. “Elara, he was holding onto this document when the paramedics arrived. He couldn’t let go of it until after we gave him medicine to sleep.” Carver stretched the brown envelope out to her. She stared at it. The paper was kind of squeezed up. She took it from Dr. Carver, and then a cold feeling had went up through her arm. “What is this?” “That is the reason…his heart gave up,” Dr. Carver had said flatly. “He had a panic attack.” As she quickly opened the envelope, her fingers were shaking badly. She’d pulled the papers out of it. Then glanced through the details. It had financial reports and statements for Hayes Manufacturing. But on the first page, her face quickly caught words that made her eyes go blurry. Time Until We're Out of Money: 60 Days. Money We Owe: $8,240,000. Everything of Value: Sold. She felt like all the air in the room had vanished as soon as she read those details. “60 days,” Elara had whispered to herself as she looked at the Doc. “That will be on Christmas Eve...” “The company and the stress of hiding it from you guys….that is what broke him.” Deep inside, she had felt something sour coming up in her throat. She turned to the next page. It showed the list of workers. 200 names were on there. When she saw Joe, she knew who he was; he was from the factory floor. And Martha was the receptionist she used to see every single time she went to the company. She looked back at that huge number again. 8 Million dollars. Then her eyes landed on the bed where her father was sleeping. He was not just a sick man anymore. In her eyes, he was a liar. A liar who had ruined everything and then pulled them all down with him. The thought of Daniel then appeared uninvited. For a second, she almost imagined his hands were on her shoulder. Daniel would have known in this type of situation what needed to be done. She heard his calm voice telling her things were going to be fine. But her ex boyfriend Daniel was gone. Long gone. A year ago, he had chosen his career in Singapore over her. I just have to choose my career El. She immediately had to push that thought away at that instant. Even though Daniel was her real love she don't need to worry about a guy who was probably screwing another girl already. “Damn! So he knew…,” Elara said with an empty voice. It surprised even her. “So he knew about all of these even before his heart attack, huh?” “Actually…since November.” Dr. Carver who was a busy man had started to look at his watch. “I need to check on another patient. I am sorry. If he wakes up, you need to keep him calm. And if the blood pressure goes up again, don't forget to call the nurse.” “Keep him calm?” A weird kind of laugh grew in Elara's chest as she repeated those words. "That would be the best." Dr. Carver replied with a nod. Then he walked out and his shoes squeaked on the floor. Elara was alone again. Just the beeping noise plus the papers in her hand, proving their whole life was a lie. She walked over to the window. Leaned her forehead on the cold glass. Down below, cars looked like a river of red lights with people going home. Buying presents. Next she'd thought about her little sister Sophie. Her little sister was probably in her dorm worrying over getting a B on a test. Sophie had thought their dad was a hero. Sophie whose college bills were soon going to be paid with money they didn’t have. And with one move Elara turned back to the bed. Anger suddenly washed over her. It felt sharp like a knife. "How could you do this?" she’d whispered to the man lying on that bed. "You always said the company was our family. You lied to us." Rustle. Her dad's eyelids moved. His hand on the white sheet twitched. In a second, Elara was by his side. The anger she'd been feeling disappeared. She'd taken his hand. It was cold and sweaty. "Dad?" Richard's eyes opened slightly. They looked foggy from the medicine. He blinked trying to see her face. "El... Elara?" "I'm here." She squeezed his hand gently and was careful not to hurt him. "I'm right here." Then his eyes moved around the room before stopping on her other hand. The one holding onto the papers Doctor Carver had given her. Elara could see it as his eyes was filled with fear. Complete fear. The machine in the room started beeping faster. PIP. PIPP. PIPP. PIPP. "You... saw," he breathed, his voice just above a whisper. "Shh." Elara interrupted him as panic grew in her chest. "Don't talk. The doctor… Carver said you need to be calm." "Ruined," he managed to let out. A single tear dropped from the corner of his eye into his gray hair. "Everything... is gone. I tried... to fix it." "We'll fix it," she replied but it was a lie that needed saying. The words felt like rocks in her mouth. "Just… rest." "Can't." He’d gasped for air. His fingers gripped hers with surprising strength she couldn’t believe a drowning man had. "They... they're coming. The money we owe... he owns it." Elara frowned and it felt as if her stomach dropped. “Who owns it? Da…d? Who are you talking about?" “The... vultures." Richard's head fell back onto the pillow and he was out of energy. His breathing was rough and loud once again. Standing there, a terrible feeling started spreading through Elara like ice water. He owns it. Not a bank. A person. She knew a personal loan was worse because banks had rules but people had their own plans. Elara started pacing the room. Three steps one way. Then turn. Then three steps back. Eight million dollars. Sixty days. Some mystery man. Her reflection in the dark window was of someone who'd given up. Wrinkled shirt and messy hair and dark circles under her eyes that looked like bruises. NO. She’d stood up straight with her back popping. She smoothed out her pants. She wasn't that girl anymore. Not the girl who cried at the airport when Daniel left her; she was the girl who would take charge of a company that was sinking. "If I was going to fail I’d at least fight" she'd decided. Then Elara walked toward the door as it creaked open again. But this time it wasn't Dr. Carver. A young nurse stood there with a nervous look on her face. She’d held a clipboard against her chest like a shield and her eyes moved from Elara to her sleeping father. "Ms. Hayes?" "Ye…" Elara blinked. She was confused for a second. Every muscle in her tightened. "Yes? What's wrong?" Taking a deep breath the nurse paused. She took a look behind her into the empty hallway as though she was getting ready to run. “I'm sorry to bother you," the nurse whispered. "But security... they sent him up. He said he had to." "Who?" Elara asked. She'd moved between the door and her father's bed as though ready to protect him. The nurse swallowed hard. "Ms. Hayes, there's a gentleman here to see your father. He says he's here about a debt.”