"What the heck is going on?" Ludwik demanded, his voice deep, his gaze filled with confusion and a hint of menace.
Taryn shivered under his intense presence, knowing well how protective he was of the family matriarch. Stepping in front of Danny, Taryn struggled to articulate, "Sir, it's like this. After the lady of the house fell into a coma three years ago, before Miss Emsworth left Banyan City, she handed me a pill, instructing me to secretly administer it to the lady... I've been doing it for three years..."
Ludwik was in disbelief.
Just then, Natalie coughed up blood from beneath her oxygen mask.
"Grandma!" the family doctor exclaimed.
Ludwik's expression hardened, "What's happening now?"
"It might be because she just woke up! We can't rule out any risks with her condition. Mr. Lippert, our home medical setup isn't equipped like a hospital. We're good for convalescence, not for treatment. We need to get her to a major hospital now!"
Ludwik snapped to attention, "What are we waiting for? Let's move her, now!"
"Careful, careful!" the doctor urged as nurses were called, and the household prepared for the emergency transfer. Ludwik instantly called the director of Skyfaith Hospital, ensuring everything was in order for their arrival.
After everyone had left, Danny, with worry knitting his brow, followed closely behind. Something about his father's reaction to the news that mom had been giving grandma the mysterious pills seemed off. He needed to share this potentially good news with his mom immediately.
---
Whitney received the call at Skye Gem Ltd. and was momentarily stunned. Unable to contain her joy, she had just been talking to Tiana about how Natalie might wake up soon. Was this divine intervention? For Whitney, the kind-hearted 'mom' waking up was the best news possible.
Grabbing her coat, she rushed out in her heels, asking her son, "Danny, is grandma at Everwood Villa Estate right now?"
"Grandma coughed up blood, dad was frantic, and they've just taken her to the hospital. Mom, you should head there directly, grandma's condition seems serious!"
That was also Whitney's thought; she had been the one to administer the medicine to Natalie, a concoction of over a hundred complex components. She was the closest one could get to understanding Natalie's condition and immediately headed to the hospital.
---
Outside Skyfaith Hospital's emergency surgery room, Ludwik stood tall, his expression grave. His mother had just awakened and then vomited blood, necessitating a barrage of tests. His heart was in knots.
"Mr. Lippert, I wouldn't worry too much. It's common for someone who's been in a deep coma for three years to have some internal bleeding..." the family doctor speculated, just as Nolan Parker and Ashton arrived.
Natalie was the most important person in Ludwik's life, his brothers knew that well.
"How's Aunt Natalie?" they asked.
"It's still uncertain," Ludwik replied, his lips pressed tightly together.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Love Beyond the Mask