Flat.
The five month old son of billionaire Elliot Vance had been declared clinically dead inside the private pediatric wing of Brookhaven Children’s Hospital located in Riverton City, a place known for handling cases that most hospitals could not even stabilize.
Advanced medical machines had already failed, and every leading doctor in the facility had exhausted every known emergency procedure without success.
At that exact moment, a thin and exhausted ten year old boy pushed through the restricted hallway doors with dirt on his clothes and a heavy sack of recyclables hanging from his shoulder.
His name was Miles Arden.
He smelled like damp alleyways and old metal cans, and his worn sneakers made soft scraping sounds against the polished hospital floor as security immediately moved to block his path.
A nurse raised her voice and demanded that he leave the restricted area immediately, yet Miles did not step back because something unusual had already caught his attention.
That morning he had been collecting discarded bottles near the river district of Riverton City while living with his grandfather Samuel Arden in a broken wooden shack beside abandoned rail tracks.
His grandfather always told him one simple rule that shaped everything he believed about the world.
“Rich or poor, Miles, your eyes decide your future because truth always hides inside the smallest details.”
Earlier that day Miles had found a thick leather wallet lying near a construction site containing large stacks of cash and an embossed business card that read Elliot Vance Chief Executive Officer.
He recognized the name instantly because everyone in Riverton City knew the Vance family as one of the wealthiest in the country.
He could have kept the money without anyone ever discovering the truth.
Instead, he walked several miles directly to the Vance corporate tower to return it personally despite his exhaustion.
While approaching the building he overheard emergency conversations about a critical situation involving the billionaire’s infant son.
Without hesitation he followed the voices until he reached Brookhaven Children’s Hospital.
Inside the pediatric wing panic filled every corner of the room as Elliot Vance stood frozen near the incubator while his wife Delaney Vance sobbed uncontrollably beside him.