"Mr. Dre," she started speaking in a low tone, her voice quivering, "I have agreed to the contract and Ariel's operation was successful... but this... this deal... " She lost her words. That was the first thing she said; "It feels so cold here I didn't expect it to feel like this." Alison's life becomes miserable when her husband dies leaving her with three young children to support and take care of. Having financial difficulties, things turn even for the worse when her youngest daughter Ariel is diagnosed of a severe heart disease. Ariel has to undergo a very expensive surgery and Alison has no means to get the money for it. Desperate and running out of time, she faces a terrible choice: sign a contract marriage with her cold and powerful boss, Mr. Dre, or lose her daughter forever.
Chapter 1 WIDOWHOOD
ALLISON POV
I stood there for a few moments with my legs weak beneath me as I looked at the lifeless body of Andrew. The room was so cold that it seemed to me I could not stand it anymore, but my face was burning with the tears which I shed.
"Andrew, you can't die," I screamed, tears rolling down my cheeks, "Who will take care of me and the children?" My eyes were puffy and blood-shot from crying, but the tears flowed ā non-stop. It was so quiet that even the ticking of the clock could be heard and no matter how I tried to convince her, there are some things which you cannot have even if you beg for them.
'Allison, my dear, you have to be strong for your children,' my mother said quietly, tears brimming up in her eyes. She put her tender hand on my chest and said something that I could not hear because the pain was too strong.
"But, Mom... how do I even start? How do I look after my children without him?" I sobbed, my voice cracking and my vision obscured by the tears. "Who is going to help me? Who... who is going to save us?"
Mom didn't answer, just looked at me with sadness in her eyes. It was the same look of despair that I had been witnessing in my mirror for the last few days.
All of a sudden, I could hear Andrew's voice, weak but audible. It was as if he were right beside me, telling me in a hush, "You are strong, Allison. You are capable and amazing. "
I listened to his words and wrapped myself in the comfort of their meaning, with my eyes shut. Slowly, I stood up, my heart filled with sorrow but with determination that was now pumping through my veins. It was not possible to stop and I had to go on. In memory of Zara, Gabriel, and Ariel.
"I have to work harder," I told myself and with that I quickly removed the tears from my face. After the period of my vacation I returned to work at Browns Company Ltd. and worked as hard as I could.
The long working hours, the tiredness, the stress ā all these I had to take because there was no other way. It was becoming painful to spend on anything including the children's tuition fees as every penny was important. They deserved the best, though I was feeling like I was shedding part of myself with each day that came by.
One day at work, I received a phone call. I picked it up absentmindedly thinking it was another telemarketer who were calling me in the past few weeks.
"Hello, ma'am, this is Brain Academy, we are calling regarding your daughter Ariel."
My heart stopped beating for a moment. The fear was instant, it anchored itself deep in my abdomen as if it were a rock. "Yes... yes, what's going on?" I stammered, my fingers gripping the phone tightly.
"Unfortunately, Ariel fainted in class today. We are in the process of contacting her next of kin."
Collapsed? My blood ran cold.
"Is she okay? What happened?" My words were barely audible, and I could hardly recognize the voice that came out of my mouth.
"Her teacher said she leaned forward and then...nothing. She's unresponsive, but we're doing everything we can to revive her."
My thoughts were spinning around in my head like crazy, My baby girl... Ariel... collapsed?
"I will be there in a minute," I shouted as loudly as I could, my heartbeat almost drowning the words I said.
I hurried to my boss and stuttered, my voice quivering with anxiety, I told them what had happened They did not even hesitate and dismissed me, saying some words which I barely heard before I left.
I drove like a lunatic to go and pick Zara and Gabriel with my mind racing with fear, it felt like the traffic light was taking ages before turning green, each second reminding me that I was still far from Ariel, I took the other children home to the nanny and zoomed to St. Mary's Hospital with hands shaking.
"Doctor, please tell me what is wrong with my daughter? " I asked, my voice shaking as I stood in front of Dr. James outside the ER door.
His eyes were serious and his body stiff, "Mrs. Allison, may I request you to come to my office, please? We need to talk. "
I trailed behind him, my body moving almost mechanically, as if I could hardly control it anymore. My heart raced, and I struggled to draw in air.
As soon as we were settled, Dr. James didn't waste much time. "I am sorry, the tests have revealed that.. your daughter, Ariel, has heart failure. "
Heart failure. The words were said and I heard the death knell of my dreams in my ears. I couldn't breathe. I felt dizzy and holding onto the edge of the desk I felt the room spinning around me.
That is when I realized that my mind was blank, I struggled to say: "What... what does that mean?"
"It means that her heart is not working as it should be anymore; she will require a heart replacement as early as possible."
A heart transplant. My baby required a heart transplant in order to live.
I felt my eyes begin to water and I could have easily shed a tear. "A transplant? But... how...?"
"It is very important that we act fast, Mrs. Allison," the doctor continued in a serious tone. "We've got to put her on the transplant list right now, every second is crucial. "
"But... but how much will this cost?" I asked almost in a whisper as if I did not want to know the answer.
And then, with the air of someone who is about to deliver the worst news of a patient, Dr. James stopped. "The procedure... it will cost $10,000. "
Ten thousand dollars. It was a punch in the stomach for me. I blinked hard to keep the tears from blurring my vision as they continued to stream down my face.
"I... I don't have that kind of money," I cried out loud, tears rolling down my cheeks. "I have not even been paid yet and if I was paid it would not be enough!"
"I know this is a problem," Dr. James murmured, "but we require the payment within a week or...."
His words hung in the air, unspoken but clear. Time was running out. My daughter was running out of time.
I looked up at him, my hands shaking uncontrollably. "Or what, Doctor? Tell me!"
The look in his eyes said everything. If I couldn't come up with the money, Ariel wouldn't survive.
My world crumbled around me. All I could do was stare blankly, feeling the crushing weight of desperation settling in my chest. Where was I supposed to find $10,000 in seven days?
I stood up, numb and broken, my mind filled with a singular thought: I have to save my daughter. No matter what it takes.
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