"Doctor, I do not have all day to listen to your lengthy explanations. Skip all the dical jargon and simply tell in plain words. Will my mother survive this cardiac arrest?" Senator Gregory demanded, her knitted brow pulled together in irritation.
The older male doctor sighed, pinching his forehead.
"Let's just say she has a sixty percent chance of survival if she is given the right amount of dical attention and care."
"That is good enough for ." The Senator stood up, the chair scraping noisily on the polished marble floor as he pushed it backwards. He extended his right hand towards the Doctor, who was now up on his feet too.
"Thank you very much, doctor, for your prompt response and continuous help."
"It's always my pleasure, senator." The doctor shook the senator's hand firmly while adjusting the reading glasses on the bridge of his nose.
"As I earlier ntioned, aside from the screened dical staff who will be supervising my mother's recovery, no mber of my family or anyone, for that matter, is allowed to co close to my mother, except you hear directly from ." Senator Gregory's grip tightened around the doctor's hand as if driving ho the severity of this instruction.
The doctor slightly winced while nodding his head in affirmation. He let out a sharp breath imdiately the senator let go of his hand.
"If anything, and I repeat, anything happens to my mother because of this hospital negligence or flaunting of my instructions..." Senator Gregory stressed the last four words. ".…there will be a heavy price to pay."
"You have my word, senator. I will ensure no one cos close to your mother except you or anyone you instruct to. To tell you how serious we are, I will have the managent deploy two of our security n...."
"There is no need for that." The Senator cut the doctor off.
"I will have two of my best security n stand watch outside her hospital door. Just make sure you do your job properly and see to it that my mother gets only the best treatnt."
"You have my word, senator."
Senator Gregory straightened his jacket and picked up his two mobile phones from the doctor's desk.
"I'll keep in touch." He turned around and left the office.
Outside the doctor's office, Uncle Moses, who had been of imnse support to Nana's survival, was patiently waiting for the Senator.
"How did it go, Greg?" Uncle Moses rose to his feet imdiately the senator stepped out of the doctor's office.
"The doctor said she has a sixty percent chance of survival." Senator Gregory replied, suppressing the rage in his tone.
"Thank goodness!" Uncle Moses sighed weakly, the wrinkles on his aged face more pronounced than ever. "I'm truly sorry for the way things turned out, Greg. I know you've been doing a lot to keep this family together." He patted the senator on his shoulder.
"Thank you, Uncle Moses. I need you to go ho and rest now. I'll take care of my mother." Senator Gregory offered a thin smile, which was betrayed by the stormy rage in his eyes.
"You know you don't have to do everything all by yourself. We are still a family despite the conflict. Just say it, and I will arrange so boys to help teach your ungrateful brother a lesson he will never forget. I can't believe I pleaded for that animal's release." Uncle Moses was fuming as he spoke, his body still trembling from the unholy revelation Matt had made.
Senator Gregory gritted his teeth, his muscles becoming rigid again as Matt's words tore his heart apart. He clenched and unclenched his fist to stifle the tornado swirling inside of him.
"You don't have to do anything, Uncle. I just need everyone to step aside and let handle this all by myself. Also, you don't have to co here, just like I told the rest. I will inform you all once Mom gets better."
Uncle Moses smiled bitterly, shaking his head. "Very well. Take care of yourself." He patted the senator of the chin and slowly left the hallway while the senator stayed back to address two of his security n; who were to watch over his mum.
-
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"Senator here is the paternity test results." The Senator's head of security handed him a brown envelope as he stepped into the car.
"Thank you, Rufus." The senator received the envelope.
Changing his mind about viewing the result with Alia, based on the call he received from Judith so minutes ago, he tore the top part of the sealed envelope and brought out the result sheet.
He read aloud between clenched jaws, laughing bitterly, tears sliding down his reddened eyes.
"Probability of alleged paternity, zero percent. The alleged father is excluded as the biological father of the tested child." He crumbled the results sheet in his hand, gritting his teeth until his gum began to ache.
"I am such a fool."
mories of how Fiona had been completely devastated for a week after learning that he had cheated on her with an unknown woman, which led to an illegitimate child, burned afresh in his heart.
To think that his own blood brother had not only defiled his wife on the night before her wedding but had gotten another woman pregnant and planted it on him all these years made the senator's blood boil with unforgiving vengeance.
He recalled how Fiona had refused his sexual advances all through their honeymoon, even to the extent of lying about an underlying dical condition. She had been in pain all those while without him even realising.
No wonder Fiona couldn't get along with Matt even until her dying breath.
No wonder she willed her entire asset to Alia rather than to any mber of the Shawl family, including him.
If only she had trusted him enough with the truth, no matter the level of blackmail Matt was using against her.
"Oh, Fiona..." The senator lowered his head and closed his eyes, his heart breaking all over again. "... I failed to protect you. I almost failed to protect our child. How could I have been so foolish all these years?"
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