Chapter 737 Less Than A Month
Seeing how Candace continued to side with Dawn without addressing what she had done, Evelyn figured that Candace wanted her to handle that, so she turned to Dawn.
"Dawn, you were wrong to do that to Jamal when you weren't sure he wanted to hurt you," Evelyn said sternly, not minding that Dawn was still crying, and buried her face in Candace's bosom as she cried.
"For hitting her, you are going to be disciplined," Candace said to Jamal.
"They should both be disciplined. Jamal would never have done anything to her had she not hurt him first. If we are teaching the boys not to hit girls, we should also teach the girls not to provoke boys," Evelyn said, and Candace nodded in agreement.
"You both should apologize to each other," Candace said, and they both turned away from her and looked in opposite directions.
"What can we do to them?" Candace asked Evelyn, and they both thought about it for a while before each brought up their ideas.
"They fought because they do not get along, so I think they should spend the entire day together until they are willing to apologize to each other and become friends," Candace suggested.
"That is a good idea. But I don't think that would be enough. Seeing as they both like Lucy so much, they are not allowed to go anywhere near Lucy for the rest of the day. They will have their meals together and spend the day together," Evelyn said, and immediately they both frowned.
"But it was all her fault," Jamal complained.
"Two wrongs don't make a right. You could have handled the situation better. You are older than her, so you should know better," Candace said, and just like that, they had been sentenced to an entire day in each other's company.
As his mother had said, he was older than Dawn, and he was wiser, too, Jamal thought as he took a deep breath. Apologizing to Dawn was a small price to pay to be with Lucy.
"I'm sorry. I really wasn't going to hurt you," He murmured, and even though the adults had heard him, they all pretended not to as they continued with their conversation while waiting to hear Dawn's response.
Dawn looked at Jamal for a moment, and she gave him a nod, "I'm sorry too," she murmured.
"Let's be friends," Jamal said as he stretched out his hand to her, and Dawn eyed his hand.
"For Lucy's sake," Jamal said, and Dawn reluctantly shook hands with him.
Having gotten the apology out of the way, Jamal looked at his mother, "We are now friends. Can I see Lucy now?" Jamal asked, and Dawn looked at Candace with hopeful eyes since she was also interested in the response.
"Your punishment stands for the rest of the day," Candace said, and both their faces fell.
"Since you're both friends now, you should go play at the porch. Run along. And make sure I don't hear you fighting, else you won't get to see Lucy tomorrow either," Candace warned, and both Jade and Harry watched in amusement as the kids walked away in disappointment.
"Do you think they're going to really be friends? Can you leave those two alone together?" Jade asked after the kids disappeared from view.
"It is obvious they made up for Lucy's sake. This is the ultimate test to see if they really made up. If they did, then we will just have to let them see Lucy," Candace said as she faced Harry again.
"So, about what we were discussing. Shouldn't Crystal have called you by now to inform you about Sara's Will?" Candace asked, but before Harry could respond, his phone beeped with a text notification, and he picked it up from the table.
"Excuse me," he said, and Jade got off his thigh and went to sit on another seat as he clicked on the text to see what it was and who had sent it.
Harry's brows pulled together when he saw that the text was from a strange number.
The number was incomplete, which meant that he wouldn't be able to call back the number or trace the call even if he wanted to.
He wanted to discard it, but the first line of the text caught his attention, so he opened it.
[I know you're in Heden. Meet me in your hotel suite by 3 p.m. tomorrow. It's about Andy. Come alone, and keep this information to yourself. Cassidy.]
How did Cassidy know he was in Heden, and why did he ask him to meet him in his hotel suite? Did he have a key to the suite? Harry mused.
Why did he want him to come alone? Did something happen to Andy, or was Andy going to be there too?
"Is something wrong?" Jade asked when she saw the frown on Harry's face, and he flashed her a smile.
"I hope not. I was just thinking about something. So, what were we talking about?" Harry asked, wanting to change the subject so he wouldn't have to lie.
"I asked if you have heard from Crystal. She should have called to inform you about Sara's Will by now," Candace said, and Harry nodded.
"True. Let's wait and see if she will call," Harry said casually.
"What if she doesn't call and plans to double-cross us?" Jade asked, and Harry smiled.
"She can plan all she wants. She won't be able to outsmart us. We will always be a step ahead. And don't forget the best part of it," Harry said with a grin.
"What?"
"Which is?" Candace and Jade asked in unison.
"C'mon, you're both smart lawyers. Tell me what her crime would be," Harry said, and Candace shook her head.
"I'm not a lawyer yet. Jade, go on," Candace urged her, and Harry shook his head at Candace.
Jade narrowed her eyes for a bit as she thought about it, "She is an impostor," Jade said with a smile.
"Exactly! She could be arrested for impersonation!" Harry said with a finger flick.
"Can we really do that? Won't we be affected? I mean, we are the ones who asked her to do it after all, and we even gave her my hair strand and stuff," Candace said, and Harry smiled.
"It's her word against ours. Who do you think would be believed between an honest businessman like myself and a known con artist? And why would anyone believe you would want her to take your place in your mother's life when you can inherit all that Sara owns?" Harry asked, and Jade smiled proudly at him.
"What if she has evidence? Something like a recording of your conversations?" Candace pointed out.
"She doesn't. Her phone is being monitored, remember? Don't worry. I've got all the edges covered. If she tries to play smart, she will be taken out of the game," Harry promised, and Candace relaxed.
Away from there, Amy's hands were clasped together as she paced around outside the emergency ward of the hospital, and Malone sat by the chair there, tapping his feet while they waited for the doctor to tell them how Miley was doing.
It was Miley's family hospital. The same place where Lucas had been working before his resignation.
"Amy! Oh, my God! Amy, what happened to my baby?" Miley's mother cried as she arrived with her husband, and immediately Malone rose as Amy rushed to meet Miley's parents.
Miley's mother grabbed both of Amy's hands as she looked at her with worried eyes, "What happened to her? Was it an accident? What exactly happened? Why is our baby in there?" She asked with eyes that begged for an answer.
Tears gathered in Amy's eyes as she couldn't bring herself to speak.
"Speak, Amy! What happened to Miley?" Miley's father asked authoritatively.
"Well, she…"
"And who are you?" Miley's father asked, cutting Malone off.
"I'm Malone. Malone Matthews. Miley's fiancé. We were coming to see you," Malone said before Amy could shut him up, and Miley's parents looked at him with a frown before turning to Amy.
"What is he talking about?" Miley's father asked Amy, but before she could say anything, the door opened, and the doctor joined them.
"What is going on? What is wrong with my daughter?" Miley's father asked, and the doctor paused.
"Miley didn't tell you?" He asked, and her parents exchanged a look.
"Tell us what?" Her mother asked with a frown, thinking that Miley was probably pregnant; hence, she was coming home with a man.
"Oh, dear!" The doctor said, making the couple even more worried.
"Can you tell me exactly what is going on?" Miley's father asked impatiently.
"Let's speak privately in my office," the doctor said and then turned to Amy, who was still standing there and was yet to utter a word.
"You should probably join us," he said and led the way to his office while Miley's parents and Amy followed, leaving Malone alone.
Inside the doctor's office, Miley's parents sat opposite the doctor while Amy stood behind them as there was no seat for her, and she really didn't need one.
She wasn't sure she could sit still at the moment. She was too nervous to do that.
The doctor cleared his throat, "A couple of weeks ago, Miley came in for a check-up. According to her, she already had some tests carried out abroad, but she didn't want to believe the diagnosis, so she came in for the tests to be carried out on her…."
"What tests? And why am I just hearing of this?" Miley's father asked.
"Is Miley ill?" Her mother asked anxiously, and the doctor looked at her with pitiful eyes.
"Yes. Unfortunately, after the tests, we found out she had glioblastoma…."
"What is that?" Her father asked with a frown, not liking the sound of that.
"It's cancer. In her brain," he said, and her mother rose in disbelief.
"You can't be serious. That can't be true. If it were true, Miley would have told us," she said, not wanting to believe such a thing.
Her father remained calm, "She was here a couple of weeks ago? You diagnosed her and didn't tell me?"
"It wasn't my place to do so. She is my patient, and I had to keep it confidential. She told me she was going to tell you herself," the doctor said unapologetically.
"Alright. How bad is it? What can we do? What are the treatment options? Can it be treated here? Is there any clinic you recommend where it can be cured?" Miley's father asked, still trying to be calm.
"Unfortunately, there is no known cure for it yet. And I'm afraid her condition has gotten much worse since the last time she was here. There is no better way to say this, but from the look of things, she has less than a month left…."
"What? What do you mean less than a month? How is that possible? She must have been receiving treatment this whole time, right?" He asked, and the doctor shook his head.
"She hasn't been here since I confirmed her diagnosis, and from the look of things, I don't think her condition would have deteriorated this much had she been receiving treatment as I advised her to. That's the reason I wanted you to join us. It appears you know about her condition. What has she done about it?" The doctor asked as he looked at Amy, who was crying silently.
Miley's mother turned to Amy, who had been quiet the whole time, "Did you know about this? Did you know that Miley was ill?" Miley's mother asked, wanting to believe that Amy knew nothing about it.
Seeing how Amy was crying, Miley's mother moved closer to her, "Were you aware of this?" She asked again, and the moment Amy bobbed her head, Miley's mother slapped her hard across her face.
Immediately, the doctor and Miley's father rose, while Amy went on her knees as she cried.
"I'm sorry…"
"Sorry? You are sorry? What sort of a person are you? How could you keep such a thing to yourself after all Miley had done for you? After all we have done for you and your mother, how could you let her do this to herself? HOW?" Miley's mother barked angrily as her husband tried to hold her back.
"Calm down…"
"Calm down? You heard the doctor! He just said our daughter is dying! Our only child! How do you expect me to calm down? How can I calm down when my baby has been going through something like this, and I had no idea?" She yelled at her husband, and her voice broke as she broke into a sob.
Amy remained where she knelt, weeping profusely as Miley's father comforted his wife while the doctor stood there looking at them all helplessly.
After Miley's mom had calmed down, she looked at Amy, "Pray that a miracle happens and my baby survives this, else I am never going to forgive you for this. Leave this place immediately and take that man with you. We do not know him, and we will never allow our daughter to get married to a man who couldn't convince her to receive treatment or talk to her parents about her health," Miley's mother said, and her husband nodded in agreement.
"Leave. And we don't want to see you anywhere near our home either. You are no longer a part of us. You and your mother," Miley's father said, and Amy wept as she walked out of the office, leaving Miley's parents to discuss possible solutions with the doctor.
She couldn't blame anybody but herself. Despite the fact that she had known that Miley had made a wrong choice, she had supported Miley and even encouraged her.
She deserved all of this, and if Miley died way sooner than she was supposed to, it was her fault, too, for being a stupid friend who was too weak to push her friend to do the right thing for herself and her family.
Author's Note.
Thank you so much for the love and support this last month. Thanks for your patience, too. I'm back now, and updates will resume as usual. You can purchase privilege chapters if you wish to. And for those asking, Nicole and I are doing great. Much love.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m