CHAPTER 5
836 Words
Lexi's POV
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the emptiness beside me. The space the Julian man had occupied was vacant, the sheets slightly rumpled, but there was no sign of him.
A dull ache seered in my chest as memories from the night before came rushing back...from his touch, to his whispers against my skin and the way he had held me like I was something precious even under the influence of alcohol.
Alcohol?
I wasn't sure what happened yesterday was just alcohol, I felt we were both drugged last night, I swallowed hard at the thought, forcing myself to sit up. My body was sore, a reminder of the intimacy we had shared. Did he asked for the stuff to be mixed with our drinks because of what he was desperately in need of?
There was no time to dwell on that, grabbing my phone from the center table, I dialed my mother’s number, my fingers trembling slightly. It rang twice before Sarah's cold voice came through.
"I assume you have an explanation to make" she spat, sounding very annoyed.
I took a deep breath, gripping the sheets tightly against my bare upper body as of it's the only thing I can rely on. "Explanation on what? You promised me the money once it was done. I laid with him already, please mom, send it now. Dad doesn’t have much time..."
"You bloody w***e!" She interrupted.
I froze, my heart dropping. "What? I did what you asked. I… Isn’t that enough? You said..."
"You went ahead to sleep with a different person, if you had an alternative, you'd have let me know rather than making me waste time on you." She cut me off mid-sentence again. Her words hit me like a slap.
"Mom, please, I do not understand what you're saying." I whispered, my voice breaking.
"Mr Smith called to let me know you went with someone else, a man in a mask. Is that what you do now?"
Tears welled in my eyes, spilling down my cheeks. I've been lied to. "You’re cruel, this was your plan all along mum, to use me," I choked out. "Dad could die, and you don’t even care."
"Don’t be dramatic." The call ended.
I stared at my phone in shock, my fingers numb.
Wiping at my face, I stood abruptly. I can brood later.
As I reached for my clothes that had been arranged neatly my gaze landed on couch close to the city view. I found a black card, laid on the clothes, just plain card with no name, no name.
There was also a small folded note. I picked it up and flipped it open.
"This is for you. I'm sorry." The letters penned in fine strokes, I wondered how handsome he'd look without those masks on.
A strange feeling spread through my chest, I should be angry, I quickly pushed it away. I didn’t have time to process whatever this meant. Right now, my father needed me.
I dressed up, clutched the black card and rushed out of the hotel to hail a taxi going to the hospital.
*** ***
I hurried through the hospital corridors and had barely caught my breath when I reached my father’s ward only to see nurses and doctors clustered around his bed.
My stomach dropped. What was wrong?
His body looked cold and almost lifeless as the medical staff worked frantically, their voices overlapping with urgent instructions. A nurse spotted me frozen at the doorway and rushed toward me.
"Miss Lexi, please wait outside..."
"No!" I cried, pushing forward. "Dad! What’s happening to him?"
"Calm down ma'am, we're currently attending to him."
The words barely registered before the loud, heart wrenching sound of the flatline filled the room.
Dr Parker grabbed the defibrillator, pressing the paddles to his chest. "Clear!"
His body jerked.
Nothing.
There was no sign of life at all.
'Again. Charge to 300!'
The machine beeped, another shock administered.
I clutched my chest, silent prayers pouring from my lips.
"Please dad!… please don’t die on me." Tears streamed endlessly down my face as I watch his fine skin turned paper white.
But the monitor remained flat.
One of the nurses turned to Doctor Parker with a tense expression. "Doctor…" He exhaled heavily and shook his head. "No response."
"No, no, try again please. Don't give up on him, " I screamed at the top of my voice, rushing to my father’s side. "Try again! Please!"
Doctor Parker simply just glanced at the clock, then lowered his gaze. "Time of death...9:37am"
"NO!"
My knees buckled as I collapsed against the bed, gripping my father’s lifeless hand. His warmth was already fading, slipping from my grasp like water through my fingers.
My shoulders shook as a heart-wrenching sob tore through me.
I knew the game had just begun and it was time to fight with every drop of blood in me.
I had been too late.
I couldn't save my father.
- Writer
