Chapter 2 - The Midnight Dose
The storm outside intensified, rattling the heavy glass windows of the hospital's intensive care unit.
Caleb was in his sixteenth hour of work, his muscles aching as he pushed a cart of fresh linens down the hallway.
He couldn't stop thinking about the legal papers Arthur had signed that morning.
If everything went according to plan, Mia would finally get the surgery she so desperately needed.
As Caleb approached Arthur's room, he noticed the door was slightly ajar.
The main overhead lights were off, but a shadow moved swiftly across the glow of the cardiac monitor.
Caleb quietly pushed the door open and stepped inside.
A man dressed in dark scrubs was standing over Arthur's bed.
He was holding a massive syringe filled with a clear liquid, preparing to inject it directly into Arthur's intravenous line.
"Hey!" Caleb shouted, dropping the fresh towels onto the floor.
The man spun around, revealing a face Caleb instantly recognized from the society magazines Arthur had shown him on his phone.
It was Julian, Vanessa's secret lover.
Julian sneered and lunged forward, trying to force the needle into the plastic tube.
Caleb threw himself across the room and tackled the older man to the linoleum floor.
The syringe skittered under the hospital bed as the two men wrestled in the darkness.
Julian was surprisingly strong, landing a heavy punch to Caleb's jaw.
Caleb tasted blood, but his desperation gave him the strength to pin Julian's arms down.
"You're not touching him," Caleb hissed through gritted teeth.
Julian stopped struggling and let out a chilling, breathless laugh.
"You think you're a hero, kid?" Julian asked.
"Vanessa already did a background check on the entire hospital staff to see who had access to Arthur's room."
Caleb froze, a sudden chill running down his spine.
"We know all about your little sister, Mia," Julian whispered.
"If you don't let me get up and finish this, Vanessa will make a single phone call."
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Julian smiled maliciously as he looked deep into Caleb's terrified eyes.
"She'll have Mia kicked out of this hospital before morning, and your sister will die on the street."
