Chapter 5 - The Locked Kitchen Door
Leo hesitated, biting his lower lip until a tiny bead of blood appeared. He looked back at the swinging doors of Trauma Room Four, where Nurse Sarah was carefully wheeling Maya away on the gurney. Maya’s small hand reached out weakly toward him before the heavy door clicked shut, leaving Leo standing alone in the hallway with a stranger who held the keys to their entire existence.
"She's... she's on the kitchen floor," Leo whispered, his voice finally breaking completely, the brave facade shattering into dust. Hot tears rolled down his pale cheeks. "She fell down on Tuesday night. She tried to stand up, but her legs wouldn't work. She told us to hide under the bed if anyone knocked."
Arthur’s expression darkened instantly. He didn't waste a second asking unnecessary questions. He pulled out his phone, tapped a quick shortcut on the screen, and dialed a priority emergency dispatch number.
"This is Arthur Vance. I need an immediate welfare check and paramedic dispatch at Unit 4B, 314 West Maple Street. Door is locked from the inside. Use a master override key; I own the building now." He listened for a second, nodded sharply, and hung up. He looked down at Leo. "My driver is waiting outside. We are going back to your apartment right now."
"I have to stay with Maya," Leo protested fiercely, taking a step toward the trauma ward. "I promised her I wouldn't leave her alone!"
"Maya is receiving intravenous fluids and broad-spectrum antibiotics right now. She is in the safest place in this city," Arthur said firmly, placing his hand gently on the back of Leo’s blue hoodie and guiding him toward the exit. "If we don't get to your mother within the next twenty minutes, she won't survive the afternoon. Do you understand me?"
The brutal honesty of the statement hit Leo like a physical blow. He swallowed hard, wiping his wet face with his sleeve, and nodded slowly. "Okay. Let's go."
As they stepped out into the chilly hospital parking rain, Arthur’s black luxury sedan idled quietly at the curb. The tinted windows rolled down silently as they approached, and a rugged driver in a dark suit held the rear door open. Leo climbed into the plush leather interior, the contrast between the expensive car and his own ragged, dirt-stained clothes feeling surreal.
The ride took less than ten minutes, but to Leo, every second dragged like an eternity. When the car pulled up to the dilapidated brick apartment building where they lived, Leo saw a second vehicle already parked near the entrance—an unmarked police cruiser with its lights off.
Arthur led Leo up the decaying wooden staircase to the second floor, bypassing the police tape that an officer was just beginning to string across the hallway. The door to Unit 4B was slightly ajar, splintered neatly around the deadbolt where the emergency team had forced entry less than a minute earlier.
May you like
Arthur pushed the door open wide, and Leo stepped across the threshold, his breath catching in his throat at the horrifying sight waiting for them on the kitchen floor.
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