Chapter 5 - The Poisoned Apple
I sprinted out of the abandoned diner and jumped straight into the driver's seat of my car.
The terrifying drive to the city hospital was a blur of red traffic lights and blaring car horns.
I abandoned my vehicle at the emergency entrance and ran desperately through the sliding glass doors.
Marcus was pacing anxiously in the surgical waiting room with a deeply grim expression on his face.
"Where is she and who exactly did this to her?" I demanded while grabbing his shoulder.
"They are actively pumping her stomach in the intensive care unit right now," Marcus answered quietly.
"They found traces of a highly toxic rat poison hidden in the breakfast tray she was served in lockup," he explained.
I felt a massive surge of pure, unadulterated rage burn fiercely through my entire body.
Sarah had been entirely right about Beatrice having dangerous, corrupt assets on her payroll.
They literally tried to murder my daughter right under the nose of the police department.
A terribly tired-looking doctor pushed heavily through the swinging double doors and approached us.
"Eleanor, we have finally managed to stabilize Maya's vital signs," the doctor announced.
I collapsed heavily into a waiting room chair and let out a massive sigh of pure relief.
"Can I please go in there and see her right now?" I asked while wiping fresh tears from my eyes.
"You can, but I really need to discuss a very complicated medical complication with you first," the doctor said cautiously.
My anxiety immediately spiked again as I quickly stood back up to face him.
"The poison did significant internal damage, but we are much more concerned about the secondary patient," the doctor stated.
I stared at him with complete and utter confusion.
"What exactly do you mean by secondary patient?" I asked slowly.
"Your daughter is exactly fourteen weeks pregnant," the doctor revealed softly.
The sterile room started to spin as the devastating reality of the horrible situation hit me.
Ethan was not just trying to kill his wife to freely inherit her massive fortune.
He was actively trying to secure permanent legal ties to her bloodline and our family wealth.
If Maya tragically died, Ethan would likely try to claim the unborn child had survived or use the tragedy to sue us.
"Is the baby actually going to survive the severe poisoning?" I asked in a terrified whisper.
"The fetus is remarkably resilient, but the stress on Maya's physical body is highly critical," the doctor replied.
I rushed straight past him and entered Maya’s private hospital room.
She looked incredibly small and fragile tangled in a massive web of plastic medical tubes.
She slowly opened her tired eyes and looked at me with deep, haunting sorrow.
"Mom, I am so incredibly sorry for everything," she rasped out through a terribly dry throat.
"You have absolutely nothing to apologize for, my brave girl," I said while gently kissing her forehead.
"I heard the nurses talking in the hallway, Mom, I know I am pregnant," she cried softly.
Before I could even attempt to comfort her, the heavy wooden door to the hospital room swung aggressively open.
Two massive men in dark suits stepped into the room with Ethan walking proudly right between them.
His supposedly injured arm was neatly wrapped in a perfectly clean white bandage.
"Get away from my pregnant wife right now," Ethan smiled with sickening malicious glee.
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He confidently held up a brightly stamped legal document boldly signed by a federal judge.
"I have full medical power of attorney, and I am transferring her to a private psychiatric facility," Ethan announced.
