Gregory’s Dismissal
“Your mother isn’t sick, Camille. She’s acting so you’ll keep funding her little whims,” Gregory said, eyes glued to his phone.
I felt the sting of his words like a cold wind. “She’s 75, Greg. She’s never complained before.”
He chuckled, thumb scrolling. “Listen, Camille, you’re not spending a single cent without running it by me first.”
The room seemed to shrink around us, the cheap kitchen tiles echoing his smug tone.
“She’s my mother!” I snapped, heart pounding.
He lifted a brow, still not looking up. “And I’m your husband. We have a budget, remember? No more ‘medical emergencies’ without my approval.”
My throat tightened. “You think she’s faking because you want the money.”
He finally glanced at me, a brief flash of amusement before his gaze slipped back to the screen. “If she’s really ill, a doctor will tell us. Until then, stop worrying and stop draining my accounts.”
I clenched my fists, feeling the weight of his control settle like a stone in my palm.
Secret Drive to Sandhurst
Before dawn, I slipped the keys into a grocery bag, hid my purse, and slipped out while Gregory headed to the office.
Rosa’s hands trembled as we pulled into the private clinic’s stark parking lot; the early light painted the building in sterile whites.
Inside, the nurse’s voice was soft, almost soothing, as she wrapped the cuff around Rosa’s arm. “Blood pressure, dear.”
She took the reading, frowned, and repeated the process. “Again, please.”
Rosa clutched her abdomen, eyes darting to the ceiling tiles. “It feels like a fire, Camille,” she whispered.
The nurse noted something on a clipboard, then called for the doctor. The hallway smelled of antiseptic and faint ozone.
When the doctor entered, his coat swayed, and his eyes flicked to the monitor. “We’ll need a CT scan, just to be thorough,” he said, voice low.
Rosa’s breath hitched; the nurse pressed a cold gel on her skin, the sound of the scanner humming like a distant storm.
“You’ll be fine,” I murmured, trying to steady my own shaking voice.
After the scan, the doctor motioned toward the viewing room. “Camille, please step inside.”
He shut the door behind me, the latch clicking ominously. The room fell silent, the glow of the screen waiting.
Suddenly, the heavy door clicked shut and locked, sealing me in just as the doctor poised to reveal what lay hidden inside Rosa.
The Doctor Reveals the Truth
The doctor clicked a button, and the viewbox lit up with a stark, black-and-white image of my mother's abdomen.
He pointed to a small, elongated shape. "This didn't get there naturally, Camille. It's a metal capsule."
I felt the blood drain from my face. "A tumor?" I whispered, hoping against hope.
The doctor shook his head. "It's too symmetrical. Too defined. This was placed there deliberately."
Rosa started to cry, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. She clutched my hand, her grip tight and trembling. "Forgive me, sweetie. Forgive me."
I stared at her, shock and confusion swirling inside me. "Mom... what is this? Why didn't you tell me?"
She looked up at me, her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and resignation. "I couldn't, Camille. I just couldn't."
The doctor's voice was gentle but firm. "Camille, we need to find out who put this capsule there and why. This is not a simple medical issue."
I nodded, my mind racing. "What do we do now?"
"We need to get to the bottom of this," he said, his eyes meeting mine with a serious intensity. "And quickly."
The Unexpected Intrusion
The door burst open with a loud crash. Gregory stormed in, his face flushed and his breathing heavy as if he had sprinted through the halls.
"What the hell is going on here?!" he demanded, his voice tinged with panic.
