THE BILLIONAIRE’S BARGAIN

Nora sat in the small hospital room where her mother was admitted for the past three months. The harsh afternoon sun had entered the room through the open window, throwing a glow on her mother's tired face. The monitors beeped continually as they displayed each vital sign, and Nora sat calmly in the chair next to the bed, observing her mother, who had been put on oxygen the week before as her condition deteriorated. She held her mother's thin hands, and suddenly, images from the past three months flashed through her mind as she remembered how they had gotten to this point in their lives. "Miss Brooks," the doctor called her name. I don’t know how you're going to take this, but it is something you need to know." He exhaled. “Know what, Dr Barner?” Nora asked as she waited in the doctor's office after her mother was stabilised. She was still scared and trembling from what she had seen at home and in the hospital. Nora came home from the grocery store that afternoon and nearly fainted after seeing so much blood on the floor. Her mother was almost lifeless on the floor beside the kitchen counter with a nasty cut on her head. All she remembered was that the hospital staff in the ER had rushed to the entrance, ready to receive them from the ambulance. Before Nora could understand what was going on, her mother was transferred from the ambulance to the ER and strapped to more machines, some she had never seen before. "What is going on?" She panicked “Why does she need all these machines?” She remembered asking everyone while her mother was being cared for. “Miss Brooks, I know you're worried, but you need to give us space to attend to your mother, ok?” One of the nurses told her while taking her to the waiting room away from the ER. She noticed Dr. Barner's compassionate expression as he answered her question. "Your mother had told me to keep this from you, and I had to honour her wishes. But I also made it clear to her that if she did not begin treatment within a month, I would contact you. " He added. "Dr. Barner" Please get right to the point. What's wrong with my mum? "What did she ask you to keep from me?" Nora pleaded, her voice shaking. "Your mother has leukaemia. She found out late and outrightly refused treatment despite counselling and persuasion.” Nora had zoned out at the word 'Leukaemia.' She felt as if someone was choking her. Her heart began to beat rapidly in her chest. How did she miss this? How did she not notice that her mother was this sick?. She had been having some symptoms for a few weeks, but she always had a way of reassuring Nora that there was nothing to worry about. The fainting spells, poor appetite, and constant fatigue she had been experiencing, everything pointed to this very moment at the hospital, but Nora did not see it coming. She assumed it was exhaustion from working so hard day and night. Nothing could have prepared her for the weight of this news. “Wait! Do you mean she already knew she had cancer? How long now?” Nora asked him, unable to stop the tears from running down her cheeks. She could not believe that her mother would keep that from her. They told each other everything. She looked at Dr. Barner, waiting for his response. “She’s known for the past 5 months.” He told her, looking concerned. He wanted to get her involved from the beginning. But Mrs Brooks had made him promise that he would leave her out of it, at least for the time being. “Right now, we need to start getting her ready for a bone marrow transplant, but I will be honest with you. This may be very difficult to contain, seeing as it is the last stage. But I can assure you we will do our best. She will need medications and a lot of tests as treatment progresses” He sighed, looking at Nora. “It's going to cost a lot of money, Miss Brooks” Money! This was why Nora was sitting by the bedside that afternoon, holding her mother’s hands with her head bowed. She felt drained. It had been from one expense to the other for the past 3 months. Her account had taken a dip, and Nora was slowly losing her mind. How would she take care of the hospital bills with no money? She had not made any major profit from her artwork in over two months. The money was barely enough to get by. Nora was beginning to have a headache from overthinking. “Why is this even happening?” She said to herself, sobbing. She had no one, and she was all her mother had. She was out of cash, and there was no savings anymore. Everything had gone into her mother’s treatment. Her thoughts were interrupted by the ringing sound from her bag on the bed. She took out her cell phone and looked at the screen. It was Sabastine from the city’s art gallery. “Hey, Nora” came a deep voice at the other end of the phone line. “Hi Sabastine” Nora answered the blond-haired man while cleaning her tear-stained face with the palm of her free hand. “How are you doing?” She continued. “I’m good, baby girl,” Sabastine replied. “How busy are you this afternoon? I have a little something for you at the gallery” Nora immediately sat up straight after hearing what Sabastine had said. “Oh! Not at all. I just came to spend some time with my mother .” “I see. Will it be convenient for you to come over?” Nora heard the concern in his voice. “Of course. It's not a problem at all. I’ll quickly inform the nurses and be on my way in a minute.” “Alright then, see you soon,” Sabastine said before hanging up. Nora quickly got up and picked up her bag from the bed. She stood over her mother and looked at her with sad eyes. The beeping sounds from the monitors continued steadily “We’ll get through this Mom. I won’t let you down, I promise.” Nora kissed her mother’s forehead as she headed out of the room. “Nurse Lana, could you please keep an eye on my mother for me? I need to head out now. I won’t take long, please.” Nora said to the nurse on call. “It’s alright, Miss Brooks. No problem at all,” the nurse said, smiling warmly at Nora. “Thank you, Nurse Lana” Nora called out while hurrying out of the hospital. Nora got into her old Nissan truck and drove off to meet up with Sabastine at the gallery. The truck was old, but it still served her. People always gave her funny looks, and some even laughed at her whenever they saw her in it. It was 2024, so she understood the silent judgment. However, Nora wasn't one to bother about people's opinions when it came to her personal life. A car to her was something to move around with, not something to get into a competition over. Her mother said the truck was the only thing her father willingly left behind before walking out on them. He kicked them out of their home and sold the house before moving away with his new family. He fathered two children from another woman while still married to Nora's mother. Her mother had to rent another apartment for both of them from the money she saved from working two jobs as a housekeeper. It was not easy, but they made it work. When her mother started getting sick and could no longer care for them, Nora assumed the responsibility and moved them to a smaller apartment. Nora tried not to think about her father often. She did not remember his physical looks so much because he was hardly ever around, and she was 5 years old when her parents divorced. But she remembered how he treated her mother, and it was a memory she wanted to keep buried forever, especially now that her mother needed her. Her father did not want anything to do with them, and she perfectly understood that. She wouldn't go seeking out who didn't want to be found. So many thoughts were going through her mind as she drove to the gallery to meet Sabastine, and her mother’s hospital bill was the most frequent among those thoughts. Dr Barner had reminded her earlier that morning of how time-bound her mother’s treatment was. She could still remember his words to her “Have you been able to get any money yet, Miss Brooks? Your mother does not have much time” She could not even give him a response. Nora stood there, looking at Dr Barner as her knees weakened in fear and panic. Her mother sacrificed everything to give her a good life after her father abandoned them. She was her only living family member as far as Nora was concerned, and she couldn’t just give up on her without a fight. Nora was determined to fight for her mother and be there for her no matter the sacrifice required. As she pulled into the gallery’s parking lot, her phone buzzed again. It was an unknown number. She hesitated before answering. “Hello?” Silence. “Hello? Who is this?” she asked again, gripping the steering wheel. Still, there was no response—just the sound of faint breathing on the other end. Then, the call abruptly ended.