GAMBLE: Rule of Cards

HE WAS BACK

Denton was taken aback by that long statement of the guard before he left. He looked at the luggage beside him and opened it all. “What the f**k?” he mumbled as he saw a lot of piled bills inside the luggage. Each pile, there is a note saying it is a pile of hundred thousand dollars. “They could have just gave me the check instead of giving me a whole three luggage of paper bills. Nevertheless, I guess these paper bills are authentic. I am really hoping so.”

A little later after he washed and changed clothes, he was immediately escorted to the rooftop of the place. There he realized that he was brought to a lone island inside an area or a place. The island was far away from other islands. On the rooftop, he saw the airplane which the engine was already heated and the propeller was already spinning. There, he was offered a drink by one of the guard. He was about to say no, but the guard was really trying to let him drink the drink. “We are going to assure your safety while we are heading you back to where you live. The game master assures you that he did not put anything in it. Please drink it before we leave.”

Denton looked at the guard who was just doing his job. He, however, grabbed the drink and immediately gulped it. “It’s now gone. Now, happy?” he said as he placed the glass back to where the guard placed it as he was being offered to with that drink. A little later, Denton felt the dizziness and his body has immediately lost the strength to even stand up. “I… regret… drinking that…” he mumbled as he slowly lost consciousness. His eyelids were slowly closing and the last thing he can remember that happened to him was when he was being dragged inside the helicopter.

The sound of the propeller of the helicopter slowly fades from the background as he slowly lost with the fight against sleepiness. As he has no choice, he closed his eyes and after that, he immediately slept, feeling the cold breeze of the air that touches him. No one knows where he will be brought to or what will happen to him after. All he knows was that, he regret having to drink the drink that was offered to him.

Upon hearing a whole different sound, he immediately woke up. Denton woke up like he was running after his breath. He slowly went with the flow of his breath. It felt like he died for few hours and suddenly woke up after, since he almost forgot how to breathe. After he woke up, he immediately looked at himself who was sitting on the bed that was unfamiliar to him. He saw a window near his bed and as he opened the curtain of the window, he was so sure to see the city where he was from. The busy traffic and the lights coming from here to there. “I am back to where I came from…”

He immediately checked his belongings and his luggage as he was anxious that the guards took the luggage containing the prize money he won from the game. As he checked the luggage, he immediately heaved a deep sigh of relief after seeing that all the money was safe and secured. “I almost thought they placed me here and grabbed the money for themselves. Fortunately, the money is safe. I finally have money to pay for Denise’s medical expenses.”

He took his things and his three luggage out and rented a taxi. He immediately told the taxi driver to go to the hospital where his daughter was admitted to. “Where is Denise Mayfly admitted to?” The nurse looked at the guy in front of her, doubtful of Denton’s existence. “I am her father. I really need to see my daughter now. I am her father, believe me. I know that she has a kidney disease and that, she needs to be operated as quick as she can. Please tell me.”

“Patient Denise Mayfly has been operated for over five days already,” the nurse told Denton. That brought anxiety to Denton as the nurse paused on talking and did not tell him what happened to Denise after. “However, she is already in a stable condition already. She is still inside the intensive care unit after she was operated and will be placed onto the normal one after she gives good signs of recovery. You can talk to the doctor who was assigned to operate her for more information, sir. You can see the ICU after you turn right after this post.”

He bid his gratitude to the nurse and continued on walking towards the ICU. There he stopped when he saw a familiar face inside the unit. There were also nurses and doctors inside the unit, checking on Denise who was sleeping silently inside the unit. After the doctor was finished checking up on her, the nurses and the doctor left the unit. “Hello, sir. How may I help you?”

“I am Denise Mayfly’s father, doctor…” The doctor nodded as a response to Denton introducing himself to the doctor. “I am Denton Mayfly. I just want to ask you how my daughter is doing after the surgery?”

“Oh, you are her father? I almost forgot about you. Your brother, Dennis, told me that you will be out to find money for your daughter’s surgery. He told me that on behalf of you, he will sign the waiver to do a surgery on Denise. For this hospital, that was not allowed as he is not the guardian of the child but, I continued as he said that I have your permission to do so. So, I did what I have to do. The surgery, on the other hand is successful and Denise woke up two days after the surgery, and that is a good sign of recovery. However, we have to maintain the intensive care and checkup for her, and after that, we will be putting her on the normal room already,” the doctor replied. “Your brother told me that you two are worried about your daughter’s condition, even since he said you have no money to pay for the bills. I told him that we are not pushing you to pay now, you can pay as installment. We needed to do what we need, and fortunately it was successful. I have to go now, Mr. Mayfly.”

“Doctor,” Denton said that pulled the doctor back to his place. “I am just going to thank you for doing your best in saving my daughter’s life. Also, I would like to pay for Denise’s medical bills now, as I already have the money on me. I should go, doctor. I will be back after I check on my other kid.”

The doctor smiled to him before he left Denton alone in front of the intensive care unit. Few minutes after looking at his daughter, he immediately went out of the hospital and took a taxi back to his house. While he was on his way, he cannot help but to think about Denise and Donna, his brother and his other three friends when he was inside the game. All memories about Paul, Sandra and Jannah were memorable, even the sad one, when they died in front of Denton. They all were eliminated and Denton saw that with his naked eye. Even though they are friends for days, he still cannot deny the fact that all three of them grew on Denton’s mind.

In fact, the days they spent inside the game were just lower than ten days, as Denton is unable to track the time. Although that was just a small amount of time, he was sure to think of those three his family. “I have no choice but to hope that they are in a good place right now.”

He stopped in front of his house’s door. He was anxious but still did what he must do. He slowly turned the doorknob, trying to open the door and he was successful of doing so. When he opened it, what greeted him was Donna sitting on the sofa. Upon seeing her father, Donna immediately went to Denton and hugged him while wailing… “Daddy…”

“Donna, I miss you so much,” Denton replied as he caressed Donna’s back. “Did you miss me? Were you fine when I was away?” he asked his daughter who nodded after his questions. He looked at the whole house. “Are you here alone? Where is your uncle?”

That was the time when Dennis went out with a familiar girl out of the room. For sure, they did not do anything inside the room and they went out from the room to leave the two other people inside who was wounded. “Kuya, you are back already?” He looked at his brother who was looking at the girl beside him before he looked at the girl who was standing beside him. “Hmm, this is Jannah here beside me. Look, kuya, I have a lot to explain to you. Let’s talk it out later after you come in the house.”