Shouldn't Have Dealt - Book II

Chapter 26 - Unmentioned

"Did I keep you waiting?" he asks while brushing a few strands of hair off his forehead.

"No. Your secretary said you have a patient. I'm sorry for coming here without an appointment," I say. "I must have disturbed you." My eyes shift to the slight opening of the door he came out of.

Eric grabs the knob and slides the door to the right, shutting it completely and blocking my view of who is possibly inside the other room.

"I would like to ask for updates about Dad," I say.

In my mind, I would also like to ask about Hunter. I know Eric knows something about where the man could be... of what he's doing, and how he ended up getting four donors in two days. It's Hunter Stone, and no one should question his resources and abilities, but still, I would like to know. I can't get him out of my mind. For two nights, it's not just Dad in my head but also this conceited man who loves to keep secrets. For the love of God, he could now be in Will's merciless hands. He could be harmed or worse, killed.

Despite the fact that Hunter Stone is as cold as ice, I cannot get rid of my rising anxiety about his strange absence. Whatever he's done to secure four donors must have kept him from seeing me, and I can't help but think of Will.

Eric pushes back his chair. He sits on there and puts his hands on top of his pile of papers.

"George will get the operation once we find the right kidney. As for now, his medications are helping him."

"And did you find the right kidney now, Eric?" I fight the temptation to look at the cross-matching results.

"No. Not yet." His voice suddenly becomes sad. "But there's another potential candidate. We all need to wait for the start of the tests."

"A new donor?"

So there's one more? Not just four but five?

"Angel, we had secured four donors yesterday, but it seems they are not good matches for George. Right now, we can only hope the fifth, and I got a feeling this one is the perfect match."

I feel my entire heart being squeezed in a tight clasp, like its supply of oxygen is soon to be cut off. The thought of having the fifth donor as our last chance stings. What if it doesn't match still? The tests have not begun, and yet, I could feel hope  slipping out of my hands.

"Are we allowed to know the identity of this fifth donor?" I ask.

Eric shakes his head.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot reveal to you any of the donors' identity. They have signed privacy and confidentiality documents, Angel."

It's a good thing Eric had not taken out the four men's kidneys from their bodies and implanted to Dad's because I could hardly imagine how they'd take it when they find out their lost organ does not even fit its new owner. Living the rest of their lives with only a kidney will be an uphill climb, not being able to do the same things they used to before when they were physically complete, and then they'd find out their kidneys had no help to the man they sold it for. I feel the sense of gratitude for these men's bravery, and I feel that I should know who they are. A simple thank you would suffice.

"Okay, Eric."

He looks down.

"All I could do now is hope for the best." I sigh.

"Look, Angel, we are trying our best, so you shouldn't worry."

How can I not?

"But there's no assurance, Eric."

Nothing's certain until we see Dad healthy again and walking out of the hospital with his new kidney.

I know they are working hard on this. Hunter must have put himself in danger by submitting himself to Will to help me, and though this huge help is unlikely to materialize soon, I know I am indebted to the man.

A booming sound escapes from the closed room, the one where Eric's other patient had been inside for quite a time now. It sounds like a metal tray clashed with the floor.

Eric automatically turns his head to the door.

"I think your patient is already bored," I say as I stand from where I am sitting.

"Yup! I think I lost track of him," Eric answers. "I'll see you this afternoon, Angel. The test result of number five might come out at six later."

"Okay. Thank you, Eric."

Before I return to Dad's room, I thought of picking up lunch from the cafeteria on the ground floor for Mom. She has not been eating so well for the past days. Aside from not ditching her job, she had insisted on looking after Dad when she comes home after work. I cannot even think how she manages to get sleep.

When I got my paper bag filled with food and drinks, I hit the elevator. As I wait for the elevator to reach my floor, I tap the balls of my right foot to the sound of the elevator bells. It's on the second floor when the lift on my left side opens. I turn to watch a sea of people getting out from it when my own elevator arrives.

However, before I could get in, my eyes detect a familiar man leaving the elevator to my left. He's tall, and his facial structure reminds me of someone my head could not erase. He is being thrust away as I am being pressed into the elevator by an ocean of strangers.

I feel my chest constricting at the sight of him.

I shake my head in hopes that my eyes are just deceiving me. This hallucination must be from the stress I've been dealing with. My eyes are playing a prank on me. That must be it.

But did my eyes really deceive me?

I let the question swallow me while people push me to the back corner of the elevator. When the doors close and the bell chimes, I am instantly transported back to reality.

It was not Damien.

A voice in my head keeps repeating the words.

It was not Damien.

How can it be him when he's supposed to be in Spain? Besides, what would he be doing in the hospital? It just cannot be him.