Chapter 5 - The Pediatric Ward
The sterile white lights of Massachusetts General Hospital hummed softly, a stark contrast to the amber glow of Lumière. Yet, for Victor Hail, the antiseptic smell of rubbing alcohol and fresh linens felt more real than the boardroom towers of downtown Boston.
Dr. Sarah Vance, a seasoned pediatrician with silver streaks in her dark hair and kind eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses, closed the examination chart and looked up at Victor. Leo was now resting comfortably on a warm hospital bed, hooked up to a saline drip to rehydrate his tiny, depleted body. Color had slowly returned to his cheeks, and his breathing was steady and deep.
Milla sat on a chair beside the bed, wrapped in a warm hospital blanket, clutching a paper cup of warm apple juice like it was a sacred chalice. Her eyes darted anxiously between the doctor and Victor, who stood near the window with his hands tucked into his pockets.
“He’s going to be fine, Milla,” Dr. Vance said with a reassuring smile. “Extreme exhaustion, severe dehydration, and an upper respiratory infection brought on by the cold. But we caught it just in time. A few more hours out in that freezing rain, and things could have taken a very dark turn. He needs rest, nutritious food, and warmth for the next few days. We’ll keep him here under observation.”
Milla let out a long, shuddering breath that sounded like years of accumulated terror finally leaving her small body. She buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking as silent tears finally broke through.
Victor crossed the room in two strides. He knelt beside her chair, putting himself at her eye level, just as he used to do with Olivia when she scraped her knee on the playground.
“Milla,” he said softly, resting a hand on her knee. “You did good. You walked all that way, you kept him safe, and you were brave. You saved his life today.”
Milla looked up, her tear-streaked face twisted with grief. “Mama’s gone, isn't she? When they took her in the ambulance three weeks ago, she told me to be a big girl and watch the apartment. But she never came back. I didn't want to call the state because they take kids away and put them in different houses. I wanted to keep Leo with me.”
Victor’s heart clenched violently. The thought of two children hiding in a cold, abandoned apartment, waiting for a mother who would never return, tore open the scars of his own devastating loss. The system she feared was cold, bureaucratic, and impersonal—the very same system Victor had funded blindly through corporate checks without ever looking into its human cost.
“You won't be separated, Milla,” Victor said, his voice hard as iron and soft as velvet all at once. “Nobody is taking Leo away from you, and nobody is putting you in a shelter. I give you my word.”
Dr. Vance looked at Victor, recognizing the billionaire philanthropist from financial news broadcasts, but seeing something entirely different in his eyes tonight—a man who had found a purpose amidst the ruins of his grief.
“Mr. Hail,” the doctor said quietly, walking over. “The social services office will need to be notified in the morning regarding their legal guardianship status. Given their mother’s passing at St. Jude’s Hospital last month—which I can confirm from city records—they are legally unhoused orphans.”
“Let the social services department contact my legal team at Hail Urban Capital first thing in the morning,” Victor instructed, standing up to his full height. He pulled out his gold-plated fountain pen and a business card, scribbling a direct private line on the back. “Tell them to speak directly to Marcus Vance—no, my chief counsel, Jonathan Sterling. Tell them Victor Hail is assuming full interim custody and financial responsibility for Milla and Leo.”
Dr. Vance blinked in surprise, then smiled warmly. “I’ll make the necessary calls, Mr. Hail. It seems these two found the right person to beg from tonight.”
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Victor looked back down at the sleeping toddler, then at Milla, who was nodding off against the pillows, exhaustion finally claiming her. He took off his expensive cashmere jacket and draped it gently over Milla’s shoulders like a cloak.
“Rest, Milla,” Victor whispered, brushing a stray lock of hair from her forehead. “Tomorrow, we go home.”
