Shantelle’s POV
“Hey, baby,” Hot tears carved rivers down my cheeks, blurring my vision. “I got you that PS5 you’ve always wanted. I don’t care if you take the exams or not. Just open your eyes. Please, baby! Mommy loves you so much. Please!”
He looked so small, so fragile beneath the crisps white sheet. His chest, usually falling and rising, just lay stiff and still. The freckled hand that used to hold mine lay slack at his side.
A sob escaped my lips and the ragged sound echoed hollowly in the silence. Please, baby, I’m sorry. But he wouldn’t listen to me. My baby wouldn’t listen anymore.
Today. Today was the day Enzo was supposed to take his SAT. My baby is a genius and since he’s ahead of his peers in junior school, his teachers convinced me to let him take a seniors SAT and possibly get him into a prestigious university at just fourteen years old.
I reached out, my hand trembling as it hovered over his cheek. Why does he look so pale? Why? Why does he look so small? Enzo had always looked small for his age, but right now in this bed, he looked shriveled and tiny.
My eyes welled with tears and the damn thing fell uncontrollably. Enzo, I know you’re just sleeping. It’s time to wake up.
Hesitantly, I brushed a stray strand of hair from his forehead and the extremely cool feel of his skin sent a fresh wave of grief crashing over me. This wasn’t supposed to be the end. No! NO! He was supposed to have birthday candles to blow out, graduations to walk, and grandchildren for me to spoil.
Enzo Please!
Why are you lying in the mortuary of a hospital? Please, baby, wake up. I threw my arms around his lifeless body as the sobs began hitting me in the center of my chest, making me tremble, unable to breathe. Unable to think. No. No!
Suddenly, I was yanked back, a scene exploding behind my burning lids.
One Hour Ago…
Sunlight streamed through the car window, warming my face. Enzo, my precious Enzo bounced happily in the backseat when a ringing phone broke the silence in the car.
I cut a look at Jaxon who was carefully navigating the traffic on the highway and found him taking one hand away from the steering wheel to glance at his phone.
Pressing my lips together, I held myself back from chiding him, allowing him to take the call. A breezy feminine voice soon echoed in the car through the speakers attached to the dashboard.
“Hi, Jax! Guess what?!” The voice said happily and I felt a bite of jealousy in my gut. She was calling him the nickname only I was allowed to call him.
Still, I kept silent as he chuckled. “You know I suck at guesses Julia darling.”
Darling???
I glanced at my son over my shoulder and found him thoughtfully looking at his father.
But Jaxon’s next word snapped my head back to the front. “What?! You are in the city? Right now? You didn’t even tell me beforehand.”
“I know boo. It’s all a surprise even to me too.” Her voice sounded anything but rueful. “Anyway, I’m literally stranded at the airport. You HAVE to come pick me up.”
Expecting my husband to explain to his childhood best friend that he was preoccupied with his family, I was shocked at the bone marrow when he AGREED.
The call ended and before I could ask him what the hell he was doing, he roughly pulled the car to the curb and turned in his seat. “I’m sorry baby but I can’t leave Julia all by herself. It’s been such a long time since she’d returned home. You guys can just call a taxi. I’ll meet you there after, I promise.”
Utterly shocked and filled with fury that his best friend’s arrival was more important to him than our son’s exams, I stormed out of the car with Enzo and watched as my husband drove off, leaving us stranded on the highway!
Chapter 2Shantelle’s POV
“Mommy, is Daddy coming?” I heard my son ask and when I looked down at his face, his eyes were wet with tears. My fists tightened next to me and I promised him that his father wouldn’t miss it for the world. Cheering Enzo up took a few seconds and soon, I was flagging down speeding taxis who refused to lift my son and me.
After spending almost an hour on the highway with no help in sight and my son’s exams starting in almost thirty minutes, I carried Enzo high up in my arms and began running on the highway, heading towards the road that led to the Exam center. Sweat plastered my hair to my forehead, and my lungs burned, but I couldn’t just stop. We had to make it on time.
Enzo had practiced really hard for this and it would wound me if he didn’t get to take his exams because of his father.
But unfortunately, the gates to the Exam center slammed shut just as we reached it and no matter how much I begged, the security refused to open the gates.
Dejected, I slumped against the wall, feeling sadness and rage creep up into my heart. This was all his fault. That damned husband of mine!
“Mommy, I don’t feel so good,” Enzo whispered next to me and I jerked up in worry, cupping his small face. I almost flinched because he was running very hot. “Are they going to let me in? Where is Daddy? Why did he leave us?”
“I promise–” I started to say, but his next words made my blood turn to ice.
“Mommy…hurts…” he gasped, clutching his chest.
Panic clawed at me. I helped him to the side of the school gate, my heart hammering against my ribs. With trembling hands, I called 911 in a voice ragged with fear.
“We are at the Oxlade Exam board!” I told the dispatcher, my eyes fixed on Enzo as his breathing turned shallow. “Please hurry!”
Then, the phone slipped from my grasp, clattering to the pavement as I hugged him close, loosening the buttons of his shirt so he would be able to breathe better. Enzo had an underlying medical condition that caused him to have tons of faint spells because of his weak heart. So I’ve always tried my hardest to keep him away from high-stress situations until when he finally gets a matching donor for his heart.
“Stay with me, baby.” I tapped his cheek gently, trying to keep him awake.
“Hurts…” he trailed off as a fat tear rolled down his eyes.
Relief washed over me as strong arms suddenly scooped Enzo up, rushing towards the waiting ambulance. Everything would be okay. My husband owned Sunset Valley, the biggest and best hospital in the city. To make things better, it’s the closest to this exam board. Enzo would get the best doctors and the best care.
They placed him on a gurney, and attached an oxygen mark to his small face as they began talking in codes I couldn’t decipher. All I knew was that I had to sit next to my baby in this ambulance and after a few arguments, they let me.
From there, the rest of the drive to the hospital was a blur and I clutched my baby’s hand as they applied first aid treatment to him, but he wasn’t responding and at this moment, he had lost consciousness. I was trying not to panic, ignoring the tears burning my eyes as they pulled into the huge driveway and began wheeling my baby into the hospital.
Immediately, he was wheeled into the I.C.U. where I wasn’t allowed entry, and less than a few minutes later, the doctors rushed out and broke a news to me that sent my knees hitting the ground. My baby underwent such a huge stress that sent him straight into cardiac arrest. My little baby was having a heart attack!
Life didn’t make sense. I couldn’t breathe. I clutched the doctor's lapels, hyperventilating and struggling to remain conscious as the doctors informed me that he had to be taken into the O.R. immediately or he may die.
That spurred me into action and I borrowed someone’s phone, immediately typing in my husband’s number, hoping he would make the best arrangements.
But when the call went through, the voice that answered turned my stomach into rocks. “Hi, it’s Julia speaking. Jaxon is currently indisposed.”
Chapter 3Shantelle’s POV
The sound of Julia’s voice, light and carefree felt like a hot slap on my face. Fury swept through me, threatening to overshadow my real concern. But I shoved it down. Anger wouldn’t save Enzo.
“Give me Jaxon!” I screamed at the phone. “Tell Jaxon to pick up his damned phone. This is an emergency.”
But only a cold laugh echoed through the receiver. “Honey,” Julia’s voice dripped with condescension. “Jaxon is in a very important meeting with me, helping me settle into my hotel. Can’t you see Jaxon is busy? Don’t you ever give the man some space? Clingy ass wives.”
Space? My son was on the verge of death and Jaxon was having some funny meeting with his so-called childhood sweetheart. “This isn't a social call Julia. Tell him our son, Enzo is–”
A deep voice cut in suddenly. Jaxon! But his next words made me shiver. “Julia, hang up the call please.”
The sound of a click made my heart fall to the bottom of my stomach. Julia had hung up…on my husband’s instructions. My hands trembled as I stared at the phone, a single tear tracing a hot path down my cheek. I dialed his number again, pleading to God… But the dial tone just continued until a robotic voice informed me that the number was unavailable. He blocked me. My own husband.
God, I couldn’t breathe. This was too much!
“Mrs. Robinson?” It was one of the attending doctors that snapped me out of my panic. When I glanced at him, his face was very grim. “Your son’s condition is critical. The stress triggered a cardiac arrest as we’d informed you earlier. We need to operate immediately, but–” he hesitated and his eyes filled with sympathy.
“But what?” my voice cracked.
“The surgeon most familiar with Enzo’s medical history, Dr. Marcel isn’t available.”
I remember that name! Dr. Marcel was the specialist who had been monitoring Enzo’s heart condition since he was a toddler!
“Then find him!” I yelled, pulling at my hair and then clutching the doctor’s lapels. “Find Dr. Marcel and let him save my baby! Please!”
“I am sorry, Ma’am,” The doctor slowly uncurled my fingers from his white coat. “He had received a message from Mr. Robinson earlier and left the hospital.”
The room started to spin. How could Jaxon have done this? I wanted to scream and the sound was clawing up my throat, but I pulled hard on my hair and forced myself to calm down even as the tears ran down my face. Enzo needed me. I had to be strong.
“Find Dr. Marcel!” I demanded again, my voice hoarse but laced with steel. “Tell him his patient, Enzo Robinson is in surgery. He needs to be here. Now!”
The doctor nodded and his expression slightly softened. “We’ll try our best, Mrs. Robsinson.”
With that, the doctor left and began barking instructions to the nurses. Dazed and trembling with the effort to remain in control, I began wandering down the hallway, dialing Jaxon’s number over and over again, but it kept saying unavailable, making my eyes water even harder.
Suddenly as I tripped over a syringe on the floor, a thought popped into my head, and with shaking hands, I gripped my phone and began scrolling through my contacts.
Finally! I found the number and I clicked the dial.
It was picked almost immediately by Jaxon’s secretary and relief washed over me. “Mrs. Robinson. It’s a surprise to hear from you! Is everything okay? The CEO is currently not in the office though.”
“I know,” my voice sounded choked. “Please tell me where he is. Please! Enzo needs him now!”
A sob tore out of my lips and the dam broke in that instant. I pressed my palm over my lips to hold back the ugly sound but they kept slipping out, tears running down my face, I was so scared. So terrified.
“You didn’t get this from me ma’am but the CEO loves going to the ECO CHIC hotel and I’m pretty sure he would be there with his mistress right now.”
“Thank you! Thank you so much!” I cried and immediately started running out of the hospital.
A few nurses and doctors who recognized me tried to stop me but I shoved them out of the way and burst into the first taxi I found. “ECO CHIC hotel please!” I didn’t care if I seemed like I was crazy.
The taxi driver, seeming to understand how dire my condition was, drove like his wheels were on fire and blindly, I rushed barefoot into the glamorous hotel.
Creating a scene, I was able to get a room key from the receptionist and when I burst into the hotel suite, the sight that filled my eyes shattered my heart into pieces.