GETTING THE HEART OF THE CEO

In the operating room, four doctors fought to keep Courney alive. She was in critical condition, and they struggled to control the bleeding. She had lost a significant amount of blood, and an immediate blood transfusion was administered. During the operation, as two doctors were removing the bullet, the machine connected to Courney started beeping; she was experiencing cardiac arrest. A third cardiologist applied chest compression maneuvers while shouting to one of the assistants in the operation room.

“Prepare the cardiac defibrillator.”

When the device was ready, it delivered electric shocks until the heart rhythm normalized. The doctors breathed a sigh of relief and continued with the operation. After extracting the bullet, which had not damaged any organs, they sewed up the wound.

A medical obstetrician proceeded to perform a cesarean section to remove the fetus that had already died, confirmed during an ultrasound examination.

After five hours of surgery, one of the four doctors emerged to deliver the news. Oscar and Lindsey, seeing a doctor approaching, stood up simultaneously, their eyes filled with anxiety.

The doctor, recognizing Lindsey’s distressed expression, didn’t need to ask if they were family.

“Gentlemen, Mrs. Courney Girt is in critical condition. She suffered a cardiac arrest during the operation, which we managed to stabilize. We removed the bullet, which caused no organ damage, but she has lost a considerable amount of blood due to latent bleeding. Despite multiple blood transfusions, we must wait for her to wake up.”

“And the baby, doctor?” Lindsey asked with a choked voice.

“Unfortunately, the fetus did not survive. We performed a cesarean section. Mrs. Girt was in her 23rd week of pregnancy, and it was a boy.”

Lindsey burst into tears and embraced her husband tightly. Thoughts raced through her mind, ‘Poor little nephew, he suffered before even being born.’

“Can we see her, doctor?” Oscar inquired anxiously.

“She is currently being cleaned up, and then she will be transferred to the intensive care unit. We will keep her in an induced coma for 72 hours. Her body has endured a lot, and we need to keep her completely unconscious during this time, monitoring for any complications arising from blood loss. When she’s in a regular room, a nurse will come to fetch you.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Kyle responded, holding onto his wife.

Lindsey separated from her husband and began to wipe away the excess liquid from her eyes. She glanced at Oscar’s appearance; his shirt was covered in her sister’s blood.

“Oscar, should you go home and change?” she suggested.

“I won’t move from here!” he asserted firmly.

“The doctor said she’ll wake up in three days. She’s strong, I know it. You should have seen how she defended your daughter to prevent that man from hurting her,” Lindsey said with melancholy in her words.Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

“I know! If it weren’t for her, I don’t know what would have happened to Oriana. I hope he rots in jail.”

“I’ll take care of that; that man won’t leave jail. He has too much blood on his hands. He’ll receive the worst punishment,” Kyle expressed with resentment in his voice.

“Go home, be with your daughter, freshen up and rest. Then come back so I can do the same,” Lindsey said with a lump in her throat.

“Alright.”

With sorrow, Oscar left the hospital. Upon arriving at the mansion, everyone was in the living room, anxiously waiting for news about the two wounded. Oscar informed them of each one’s condition.

“Where is Oriana?”

“Come with me,” Sussan guided him to one of the rooms and let him in.

Oriana was peacefully asleep with a pacifier in her mouth. Next to her was her grandmother, who, upon seeing Oscar, embraced him tightly and offered words of encouragement to her son. After talking with his mom, he went to his room, showered, and collapsed onto the bed.

After a few hours, Oscar woke up, got dressed, and Sussan wouldn’t let him leave the house until he had eaten. Reluctantly, he sat at the table and devoured the food, then left in his car towards the hospital.

Freed was trying to convince Janna to go to their new home, where she would be more comfortable for the baby. Still, she refused to leave the mansion until Courney was out of danger.

Lindsey cautiously entered her sister’s room. Before turning the handle, she sighed several times. Pushing the door open, she couldn’t help but feel her heart squeeze, and tears fought to escape. Hugging herself, she observed Courney’s motionless body, pale as paper, connected to two devices. One had two hoses attached to a mask over Courney’s mouth, and the other had various cables monitoring her heart. A line ran through her hand, delivering treatment. Lindsey approached slowly and touched Courney’s right hand.

“Sister, react soon. Your family is waiting for you. In this tragedy, your baby couldn’t make it, but you have to be strong. You have a man who loves you by your side, and you have me to support you in everything. We were dealt a cruel fate with heartless parents. Your mom can’t hurt us anymore, and as for our father, I’ll make sure he never appears in our lives. Fight, little sister. There are people who love you by force. You are a part of our lives.”

In every word she spoke, Lindsey swallowed hard, and tears rolled down her saddened face. Kyle silently observed the sisters’ pain from the doorway, clenching his fists. At that moment, he vowed, “I promise that the three vermin in jail will never see the light of day, no matter the cost. Even if I have to leverage old Hugo’s contacts.” His eyebrows furrowed, and his expression turned somber.

Seeing his wife tremble, he approached her, taking her by the waist, guiding her to sit on a sofa in the room.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. It breaks my heart to see you like this. The doctor said she’s stable; she’s strong. You’ll see, in three days, she’ll wake up, and what she went through will be just a memory in her mind and yours.”

“I don’t know how to control myself! The strong woman in me is nowhere to be found. Seeing her like this with those machines and without her belly, I can’t help but cry and feel a weight on my heart. Tell me, how do I do this? Help me not to feel what I’m feeling.”

Kyle pulled her into his chest, gently caressing her back, unsure of how to console her.

Oscar arrived to spend the night with Courney. Kyle carried his wife because she didn’t want to leave the room.

The two sisters, after reuniting and forgiving each other, formed a strong bond of affection.