"Angel you really need to calm down my love" "How do you expect me to calm down, Max? How!!" Angel screamed, her voice breaking as the tears continued pouring down.
"Tiwa, why are you so quiet?" Mark asked sharply. "Are you hiding something?"
Tiwa swallowed hard, guilt washing over her face. "I'm sorry, brother. I knew about her disease… but she made me promise. She didn't want you finding out."
Mark's eyes widened in disbelief. "How could you? Since when did you start keeping secrets from me? Great and you didn't even make an effort to help her?"
"No, no!" Tiwa cried, covering her face with her hands as she sobbed. "I did… I gave her the medication myself. She was doing fine. I don't know what went wrong…"
"There's no need to blame her, Mark," Maxwell said gently, stepping in. "This was bound to happen eventually. Her condition has been unstable for a while."
The doctor cleared his throat, finally breaking his long silence. "Sir… I'm sorry, but… there's nothing I can do anymore. The only way forward is emergency surgery." Mark turned to him, his expression stormy. "What is it? Spit it out already!" he shouted, his patience shattered.
The doctor looked down. "Even with surgery, she might not survive. The leukemia cells have spread extensively throughout her body. It'll take a miracle to save her now."
Mark's face went pale. But he didn't freeze he moved.
He pulled out his phone and immediately dialed. "Paul. Get the jet ready. I want a fully equipped ambulance in front of my house ASAP. Contact Dr. William. I'm flying to New York this minute." He didn't wait for Paul's reply and hung up instantly. A few minutes later, the butler rushed into the room.
"Sir, the medics have arrived." "Let them in," Mark said firmly.
The team of nurses and paramedics entered with a stretcher. Mark gently scooped Aurora into his arms, careful not to jolt her, and placed her on the stretcher. "Angel, please ride with them," Mark said. "Of course, Mark," she nodded, her voice barely a whisper as she held Aurora's hand protectively.
"I need to get something done immediately."
"What is it?" Maxwell asked, concerned.
"I need to find her real parents. And trust me when I say this, Max… I will find them."
"I'll come with you"….Maxwell began.
Mark hesitated for a moment, then pouted slightly. "No. You need to go with Angel. Just in case anything happens in New York. She'll need you." Maxwell sighed, reluctantly agreeing. "Okay. Fine."
******NEW YORK CITY – Riverson General Hospital******
Angel, Tiwa, and Maxwell arrived just as the jet landed. A fleet of doctors and nurses was already waiting at the hospital entrance, prepared for the worst.
Aurora was carefully lifted onto a gurney and rushed straight into the operating room. Medical staff swarmed around her like a whirlwind. Angel was pacing. Maxwell stood with his arms crossed, jaw clenched.
"Who the heck is Mark?" Maxwell muttered under his breath, awestruck by the level of urgency and the private medical jet.
"This is not the time for that, Max," Angel snapped, rolling her eyes without looking back. Her eyes remained locked on the double doors where Aurora had vanished.
****BACK AT MARK'S PRIVATE OFFICE****
Mark was pacing back and forth like a man possessed. He tugged at his hair, trying to think, trying to breathe. "How the hell do I find her parents? How?" he muttered to himself.
Frustrated, he dropped into his black leather swivel chair, his head falling into his hands. Then… something caught his attention.
His eyes flicked to the transparent file folder on the desk. The calling card.
A flashback hit him like lightning.
****FLASHBACK****
Jake laid across from him, weak but defiant.
"If there's still any goodness left in you," he said, voice hoarse, "please… do this for me."
Mark looked at him, irritated and skeptical.
Jake pulled a calling card from his jacket and handed it to him. "One day, you'll understand."
****PRESENT DAY*****
Mark shot up from his chair. "No way… You're a genius, Jake."
He snatched the card from the file and quickly dialed the number on it. The line connected. A soft, cautious voice answered. "Hello? Who's this?"
"This is Mark Wilson. Are you related to Jake? Or maybe worked for him, possibly?"
There was a long pause. "I'm sorry, sir. I… I can't give you any information. Please… I don't want trouble…"
"Wait, wait—!" Click.
The line went dead. "Damn it!" Mark threw his phone on the desk, eyes blazing. Something wasn't right. "Something is fishy," he muttered under his breath, staring at the card in his hand. "Someone's hiding something…"