Chapter 2 - The Choice of a Lifetime
The doctor’s voice echoed down the sterile hallway, sharp and demanding. He stood in the doorway of the operating theater, his green scrubs stained with the grim reality of the situation.
"Which one of you is the father?" he demanded again, his eyes darting between me, Madison, and the imposing figures of my security detail.
I didn't hesitate. I shoved past Madison, ignoring the shocked gasp that escaped her perfectly painted lips, and closed the distance between myself and the surgeon.
"I am," I said, my voice dropping to a gravelly, authoritative register that I usually reserved for hostile corporate takeovers. "I am her husband. What is happening to her?"
The doctor didn't flinch at my tone. "Your wife is experiencing severe peripartum cardiomyopathy. Her heart is failing under the stress of the pregnancy. We need to perform an emergency cesarean section right now, or we are going to lose them both. But the baby is premature, and the mother's vitals are crashing. I need your consent, and I need you to understand that if it comes down to it, you may have to make a choice."
The words hit me like a freight train. A choice. Between the woman who still haunted my every waking thought, and the child I hadn't even known existed until three minutes ago.
"Save them both," I growled, grabbing the lapels of his scrubs, my legendary composure finally snapping. "Do you understand me? I don't care what it costs. I will buy this entire hospital if I have to. You pull every specialist in this city into that room and you save them both!"
"Boss!" Jonas, my head of security, clamped a massive hand onto my shoulder, gently but firmly pulling me back. "Let him work."
The doctor nodded grimly. "We will do everything we can." He spun on his heel and disappeared back through the swinging doors, leaving me standing in a cold, suffocating silence.
"Alexander..." Madison's voice was thin, trembling with a mixture of disbelief and growing rage. She marched up behind me, her high heels clicking aggressively. "Are you out of your mind? She's your ex-wife! You divorced her! And now you're claiming responsibility for some bastard child she probably pinned on you just to get back into your bank accounts?"
I turned slowly. The look in my eyes must have been terrifying, because Madison physically recoiled, her bravado shattering instantly.
For the past four months, Madison Chen had been a convenient distraction—a beautiful, well-connected socialite who looked good on my arm at charity galas. But in this fluorescent-lit hallway, smelling of bleach and desperation, I saw her for exactly what she was: shallow, venomous, and entirely insignificant.
"Jonas," I said, my voice dangerously calm. I never took my eyes off Madison.
"Yes, sir?" Jonas replied, stepping forward.
"Cancel Madison's access codes to my penthouse, my private servers, and the corporate accounts. Have her belongings packed and removed by morning. And escort her out of this hospital immediately."
Madison's jaw dropped. "You... you can't do this! You're dumping me? Over her?!"
"I'm not just dumping you, Madison," I whispered, leaning in close so only she could hear. "I am erasing you from my life. If you speak Elena's name to the press, if you breathe a word of this to anyone, I will personally see to it that your father's hedge fund is liquidated before lunch tomorrow. Now get out of my sight."
She burst into tears, turning on her heel and running down the corridor. I didn't watch her go. I turned my attention back to the heavy double doors.
May you like
Somewhere in that room, the only woman I had ever loved was fighting a battle I couldn't protect her from. And all I could do was fall into a plastic waiting room chair, put my head in my hands, and pray to a God I hadn't spoken to in years.
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