Chapter 331: There’s Been a Complication
Maya wasn’t the only one who felt it.
Clam
The sudden tension had spread through the entire waiting area, wiping away every trace of the warmth and laughter that had filled the room only moments earlier.
Harper was the first to move toward Maya, with Nicholas following closely behind her.
Across the room, Alice, Dahlia, and Cecilia had already risen to their feet. Worry was written across all three women’s faces, but it was especially difficult for Cecilia to hide.
Maya barely noticed any of them.
Her eyes remained fixed on the operating room doors as moisture began to gather along her lashes.
Something was happening in there.
Something they weren’t being told.
Moments later, the doors swung open again.
Nurse Daniel and Nurse Sophia emerged, this time carrying additional medical supplies and several bags Maya couldn’t immediately identify.
A fresh wave of dread swept through her.
She immediately rushed toward them.
Damien followed close behind.
“Excuse me!” Maya called as the two nurses hurried toward the operating room. She stepped directly into their path. “Please… what happened? How’s Jaime?”
Both nurses stopped.
For a brief second, Daniel and Sophia exchanged a look.
That single glance was enough to make Maya’s stomach drop.
Daniel gave Sophia a quick nod. Without wasting another second, he shifted everything he was carrying into one arm before taking the supplies from her hands.
“Excuse me.”
He hurried past Maya and disappeared through the operating room doors, leaving Sophia behind.
Maya’s chest tightened.
“Nurse Sophia, please… tell me what’s going on,” she pleaded, her voice beginning to shake as tears pooled in her eyes.
Sophia looked at her, sympathy immediately softening her expression, but she hesitated. It wasn’t her place to explain what had happened or deliver news that should come directly from the doctor.
plication
14er lips parted as though she wanted to answer, only to close again.
Damien’s expression hardened. His gaze shifted toward Nicholas, and the moment their eyes met, Nicholas understood exactly what he was asking.
His own expression immediately turned cold.
He recognized Daniel and Sophia as two of the nurses he had personally assigned to Jaime’s medical team, and he had no patience for hesitation–especially from people under his payroll.
“Speak,” Nicholas ordered sharply. “Now.”
Sophia visibly jerked at the command, her entire body tensing.
Her gaze flickered toward Nicholas before quickly returning to Maya.
“Ms. Maya…” she began carefully.
Maya held her breath.
“There’s been a complication.”
Maya felt the blood drain from her face.
“What?!” She stepped closer, panic immediately taking over. “What complication? What happened? Is Jaime okay?”
Chau
The questions tumbled from her lips one after another as her breathing grew increasingly unsteady.
Damien immediately reached for her arm and gently pulled her back against him, wrapping a steadying arm around her as though anchoring her before panic could completely overwhelm her.
“Maya, calm down.”
She turned toward him, tears already spilling freely down her cheeks.
“Damien, you heard her.” Her trembling fingers clutched at his shirt. “Ask her, please… please ask her i need to know how my brother is doing.” Her voice cracked as another tear slipped down her face. “Please, Damien… make her tell us,”
Something in Damien’s expression changed.
He slowly lifted his gaze to Sophia, his eyes turning dangerously cold.
“What happened?”
His voice was low and controlled, but the quiet menace behind those two words was impossible to miss.
Sophia hesitated again, clearly torn between answering the question and returning to the operating room.
“Mr. Blackwood, I’m sorry, but I don’t have the authority to discuss the patient’s condition.”
She turned toward Nicholas. “Mr. Ashcroft, I’m sorry, sir. Please understand.”
Her gaze briefly swept across the worried faces surrounding her before returning to Maya.
Chapter 10
anemplication
“Please, just wait for Dr. Anderson, okay? He’ll explain everything as soon as he can.”
“But-” Maya started.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Maya. have to go.”
Claim
Before anyone could stop her or ask another question, Sophia hurried back through the operating room doors, her retreating figure disappearing from view as they immediately closed behind her.
Maya stood frozen, staring at the closed doors as a terrible weight settled in her chest. The tears continued to slip silently down her cheeks, but she barely seemed to notice them.
Then whatever strength she had been holding onto finally gave way.
She turned and buried her face against Damien’s chest, a broken sob tearing from her throat as her hands clutched desperately at his shirt.
“Damien…”
He immediately wrapped both arms around her, pulling her tightly against him as her entire body began to shake.
“I’ve got you,” he murmured, one hand cradling the back of her head.
Maya cried harder.
A few feet away, Harper quickly wiped beneath her eyes, but it was useless. Tears were already slipping down her cheeks as she watched her best friend fall apart.
Nicholas moved closer to her without a word, his hand settling against her back.
Even Kenji had lost every trace of his usual mischievous expression. His jaw was tight, worry unmistakable in his eyes as he stared at the operating room doors.
Dahlia’s eyes had grown wet as well, though she fought to keep herself together.
But Cecilia wasn’t holding up nearly as well.
The overwhelming fear, the uncertainty, and the sight of her granddaughter sobbing against Damien became too much all at once.
Her knees suddenly buckled.
“Cecilia!”
Dahlia and Alice caught her from either side before she could hit the floor.
Ken and Kenji immediately rushed forward to help.
“I’m alright…” Cecilia breathed, but the weakness in her voice betrayed her.
“No, you’re not.” Dahlia tightened her hold around her. “Come on. Sit down.”
With Ken and Kenji helping to support her, they carefully guided Cecilia back into one of the chairs.
Chapter 1 The
Complication
Claim
Alice crouched in front of her for a trement, studying her pale face before quickly looking over her shoulder.
“Kenji, call Hannah. Tell her to bring our family doctor here immediately.”
Kenji nodded without hesitation.
“Yes, Mom.”
He immediately pulled out his phone and stepped a short distance away from the group as he dialed Hannah’s number.
The call was brief. Whatever he said was quiet and direct, and less than a minute later, he ended it and glanced back toward the others.
His eyes lingered on Cecilia for a moment before shifting toward Maya, who was still crying against Damien’s chest, and then to his sister, whose cheeks were also wet with tears.
Without saying anything, Kenji walked toward a nearby refreshment station and returned moments later carrying several bottles of water.
He handed the first one to Cecilia.
“Here, Grandma Cecilia,” he said softly as he crouched beside her. “Drink some water. The doctor’s coming.”
Cecilia accepted the bottle with trembling hands. “Thank you.”
Kenji gave her a small nod before rising to his feet. He handed bottles to Dahlia and his mother next, then made his way over to Harper and Maya, quietly offering one to each of them.
Time seemed to move painfully slowly after that.
Every minute felt longer than the one before it, stretching beneath the suffocating weight of uncertainty.
6
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