Chapter 7 - The Only Match
Panic erupted in the small ICU room like a bomb going off.
Nurses rushed in with trays of new medication, trying to stabilize Ethan's plummeting blood pressure.
Dr. Evans pulled Sarah and me into the hallway, his face grim and exhausted.
"We need a liver donor immediately," he said, speaking fast to save time.
"A partial transplant from a living donor is his only shot."
"Because he is a child, we need a close family member to ensure a tissue match."
"I'll do it," I said instantly, rolling up my sleeve.
"Take whatever you need, take my whole liver if it helps."
"Me too," Sarah added, crying.
"Test us right now."
They rushed us down to the lab, drawing vials of our blood and running emergency genetic panels.
The thirty-minute wait felt like drowning in slow motion.
When the technician finally walked out of the lab, he refused to make eye contact.
"I'm sorry," the technician said softly.
"Neither of you is a viable match."
"Your blood types are completely incompatible with Ethan's rare AB-negative profile."
Sarah let out a devastated wail, sinking into a plastic chair.
"What about my father?" I asked desperately.
"He's AB-negative."
The technician shook his head.
"Arthur is too old; a liver from a seventy-year-old donor will not survive the transplant process in a child."
"We checked the national registry, but there is no one available within a three-hour flight."
My heart shattered into a million jagged pieces.
We were going to lose him.
Suddenly, Chris walked out of the elevator, looking bruised and battered from his fight with Megan.
"I heard," Chris said, breathing heavily.
"I just checked my medical records."
"Megan is AB-negative, and she shares the same rare genetic markers as Ethan."
The reality of his words hit me like a physical blow.
The only person on earth who could save my son was the monster who had put him in the coma.
"She's in police custody," I said, my voice shaking.
"They're booking her for attempted murder."
"I don't care," Chris said fiercely.
"I know the district attorney."
"We can get her transferred to the hospital under armed guard."
Thirty minutes later, Megan was marched into the hospital in an orange jumpsuit, her wrists and ankles bound in heavy chains.
She looked around the pristine hospital hallway with a look of utter disgust.
They brought her into a private consultation room where Dr. Evans, the police, and I were waiting.
Dr. Evans explained the situation, telling her she was the only one who could save Ethan's life.
Megan listened in silence, leaning back in her chair with a sickeningly calm expression.
When the doctor finished, Megan smiled.
"No," she said simply.
The room went dead silent.
"What do you mean, no?" I asked, stepping toward her.
Megan examined her chipped fingernails.
"I mean, I am not giving up a piece of my liver for that brat."
"Unless, of course, you offer me a deal."
She looked directly at the police detective.
May you like
"I will sign the medical consent forms right now."
"But only if all criminal charges against me are completely dropped, and I walk out of this hospital a free woman."
