Chapter 4 - The Battle in the Lobby
My heart plummeted. Ethan immediately stood up, placing himself between me and the door. "They brought the police? To an ICU?"
"They’re desperate because they lost control," Ethan said, his voice steadying me. "Stay here with Daisy. Let me go down with Dr. Harrison and the hospital security. They can’t do this."
"No," I said, a strange, iron-clad resolve settling into my bones. I looked at Daisy. Her monitor was steady. The machine was breathing for her, but she was safe for the moment. "I’m going. If I hide in this room, it makes me look like I have something to hide. I am her mother."
Dr. Harrison met us in the hallway, his face like thunder. "The hospital administration is already involved. This is a violation of ICU protocol. Come with me."
When the elevator doors opened to the main lobby, the scene was chaotic. My mother was weeping loudly—fake, dramatic tears—into a tissue, leaning heavily on my father’s arm. Madison was standing with her hands on her hips, arguing with a young, visibly uncomfortable police officer.
"There she is!" Madison shrieked, pointing a manicured finger at me as I stepped out. "The unstable bitch! Officer, she’s completely manic. She turned off her phone, she’s keeping us from our granddaughter, and she’s neglecting her!"
The police officer stepped forward. "Ma'am, your family claims—"
"Officer," I interrupted, my voice calm, cold, and deadlier than any scream. "My six-year-old daughter is currently on life support in the ICU following a major vehicular accident. This woman," I pointed to my mother, "called the ICU yesterday pretending to be her legal guardian to bypass hospital rules. This morning, they are here creating a public disturbance during a medical crisis because I refused to buy cupcakes for a birthday party."
The officer blinked, thrown off by my absolute composure. "Cupcakes?"
Ethan stepped forward, pulling his school ID badge from his pocket. "I am Ethan Cross, Daisy’s primary school teacher. I can verify that this mother is exemplary. Furthermore, I witnessed these individuals at a bakery an hour ago acting completely unbothered, planning to disrupt this hospital."
Dr. Harrison stepped up next, his white coat imposing. "And I am the Chief of Pediatric Critical Care. The child’s legal paperwork has been verified by our legal department. These individuals have no rights, and their presence is disrupting a sterile, high-stress medical environment. Officer, if you do not remove them, the hospital will press charges for trespassing and harassment."
My mother’s fake tears dried up instantly. Her face contorted into an ugly mask of rage. "How dare you! We are her family! You selfish, ungrateful brat! After everything we’ve done for you—"
May you like
"You've done nothing," I said, looking her dead in the eye. "You are strangers to me now. Officer, please remove them from my sight."
The officer turned to my parents, his demeanor shifting entirely. "Alright, folks. We’re leaving. Now. Step out of the building before this becomes an arrest."
