Chapter 3 - The Uninvited Arrival
A tall, striking woman stepped across the threshold, bringing a sudden chill of damp night air into the overheated room. Dressed in a dark hunter-green trench coat with her dark hair pulled back neatly, Clara radiated an intense, unapologetic authority. She carried a worn leather handbag in one hand and a sleek black umbrella in the other, her sharp hazel eyes instantly locking onto the white cast on Leo’s arm. Arthur stood up abruptly, stepping protectively in front of the bed while demanding to know who allowed her into a restricted ward. Clara ignored him completely, her gaze fixed entirely on the tear-streaked face of the terrified child. She noted the way Leo was trying to claw at the plaster himself, completely ignoring the hospital staff standing outside the glass door. With deliberate slowness, Clara unzipped her leather bag, her fingers brushing against cold metal hidden deep inside the leather lining. Her voice cut through the tense silence like a razor blade as she stated that a child of that age should never be that terrified of a simple medical fracture.
