Aria stepped forward with fluid grace, her heels clicking authoritatively against the hospital’s polished floor. The three nurses continued wheeling Pervis’s grandmother down the corridor, their faces set in stubborn determination.
“Put her down,” Aria commanded, her voice carrying an unmistakable tone of authority.
The lead nurse turned around, her expression morphing from indifference to outright hostility when she saw Aria approaching.
“And who exactly do you think you are?” the nurse sneered. “Another one of his little girlfriends? This doesn’t concern you, sweetheart.”
“Put the patient down immediately,” Aria repeated, her voice growing colder with each word.
The second nurse, a thin woman with sharp features, laughed mockingly. “Listen here, princess. We have direct orders from Anna Morrison herself to remove this old hag from the premises. She’s no longer a patient here.”
“Orders from Anna Morrison?” Aria’s eyebrows rose slightly. “How interesting.”
“That’s right,” the lead nurse said smugly. “Mrs. Morrison owns ten percent of this hospital and sits on the board of directors. When she gives orders, we follow them. So unless you want security to escort you out too, I suggest you mind your own business.”
Pervis watched helplessly as his grandmother’s confused eyes searched for him from the hospital bed. Her frail hand reached out toward him.
“Pervis? What’s happening, dear? Why are these people being so rough?”
“It’s going to be okay, Grandmother,” Pervis called to her, though his voice shook with barely controlled emotion.
Aria remained perfectly calm, pulling out her phone with deliberate slowness. She pressed a single button and spoke clearly.
“Jackson, I need you at Metropolitan General Hospital immediately. Bring the team.”
“Jackson?” the thin nurse scoffed. “Who’s Jackson? Your bodyguard boyfriend?”
Before Aria could respond, the elevator doors at the end of the hallway opened with a soft chime. Six men in perfectly tailored black suits stepped out, their movements coordinated and purposeful.
“Ma’am,” the lead man said respectfully, approaching Aria with measured steps.
“Handle this situation,” Aria instructed simply, gesturing toward the three nurses.
The men in black moved forward without hesitation, their presence immediately changing the atmosphere in the corridor. The nurses’ confident expressions faltered as they found themselves surrounded.
“What is this?” the lead nurse demanded, though her voice had lost much of its earlier bravado. “You can’t intimidate us! We’re hospital employees!”
“Release the patient,” one of the men said calmly.
Pervis didn’t wait for the nurses to comply. He rushed forward, gently taking his grandmother’s hand in his.
“I’m here, Grandmother,” he said softly. “Everything’s going to be alright.”
But even as he spoke, he could see that her condition had worsened. Her breathing was labored, and her skin had taken on a grayish pallor that filled him with dread.
“She needs immediate medical attention,” Aria observed, her trained eye taking in the elderly woman’s declining state. She turned to the nurses with steel in her voice. “Get a doctor here now.”
“We can’t!” the thin nurse protested. “Anna Morrison specifically ordered us to—”
“I don’t care about Anna Morrison’s orders,” Aria interrupted. “This woman needs medical care.”
The lead nurse straightened defiantly. “Mrs. Morrison is a board member of this hospital. She holds ten percent of the shares. We have to follow her directives, not yours.”
Aria’s expression grew thoughtful for a moment, then a slow smile spread across her lips—a smile that somehow managed to be both beautiful and terrifying.
“Ten percent?” she mused. “How… quaint.”
She pulled out her phone again, this time scrolling through her contacts with deliberate care.
“What are you doing?” the thin nurse demanded.
“Buying the hospital,” Aria replied casually, as if discussing the weather.
Everyone in the corridor froze. Pervis stared at his supposed sister in shock, while the nurses exchanged uncertain glances.
“You can’t just buy a hospital!” the lead nurse sputtered.
“Can’t I?” Aria asked, pressing a number on her phone. “Davidson? Yes, it’s me. I need you to purchase Metropolitan General Hospital immediately. Full acquisition, controlling interest… Yes, right now.”
She ended the call and looked at Pervis, whose face had gone white with amazement.
“Should I give the order to finalize the acquisition, brother?” Aria asked, her tone gentle but her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
Pervis opened and closed his mouth several times before finding his voice. “I… I don’t understand. How can you just…”
“You’re the heir to our family now,” Aria explained with a warm smile. “That means these people work for you. All you have to do is give the order.”
The nurses, the bodyguards, even the patients who had gathered to watch the commotion—everyone stared at Pervis in stunned silence. They all knew him as Anna Morrison’s useless husband, the man who existed solely to donate blood and endure humiliation. The transformation was incomprehensible.
Pervis looked down at his grandmother’s weak form, then back at Aria’s expectant face. He took a deep breath, straightening his shoulders.
“Buy the hospital,” he declared loudly, his voice echoing off the corridor walls.
“Did you hear that?” Aria asked the nurses sweetly. “The new owner has spoken.”
Before anyone could respond, a condescending laugh echoed from behind them. All heads turned to see a tall man in an expensive suit striding down the corridor, his silver hair perfectly styled and his face wearing an expression of supreme arrogance.
“Buy the hospital?” the man repeated, his voice dripping with mockery. “What is this, some kind of children’s game?”
Pervis’s stomach dropped as he recognized the speaker. “Charles Henderson,” he muttered.
“Dr. Charles Henderson,” the hospital director corrected with a sneer. “And you’re still the same pathetic boy toy I’ve always known, aren’t you, Pervis? Living off Anna Morrison’s generosity while pretending to be something you’re not.”
Charles looked Aria up and down with obvious disdain. “And this must be your new sugar mama. Tell me, darling, how much are you paying for his services these days?”
Aria’s expression remained perfectly composed, though her eyes had turned to ice. “How amusing.”
“What’s amusing,” Charles continued, warming to his theme, “is watching two delusional people think they can intimidate their betters with ridiculous threats. Buy the hospital? Please. Do you have any idea how much this facility is worth?”
“Enlighten me,” Aria said pleasantly.
Charles puffed out his chest proudly. “Two billion dollars, my dear. Not exactly pocket change for people like you.”
“People like me?” Aria repeated, her smile growing sharper. “And what kind of person do you think I am, Dr. Henderson?”
“The kind who picks up desperate men from hospital beds and feeds them fantasies about power they’ll never possess,” Charles replied smugly.
Aria’s laugh was soft but somehow more menacing than any shout. “We’ll see about that. Perhaps you’ve heard of the Coleman family?”
The name hit the corridor like a thunderbolt. Everyone—nurses, bodyguards, even passing patients—went completely silent. Charles’s confident expression wavered for just a moment before returning full force.
“The Coleman family?” he scoffed. “You expect me to believe you’re connected to one of the wealthiest families in the country? That’s utterly non-sense.”
“Is it?” Aria asked, pulling out her phone once more. “Perhaps you’d like proof.”
“This should be entertaining,” Charles said, though his voice had lost some of its earlier conviction.
Aria pressed a single contact and held the phone to her ear. “It’s me. I need you at Metropolitan General Hospital. Fifth floor, east wing. Immediately.”
She ended the call and checked her watch with theatrical precision. “Thirty seconds should be sufficient.”
Charles laughed nervously. “Thirty seconds? What kind of—”
The elevator chimed, and an elderly man in an impeccably tailored suit stepped out. His hair was silver-white, and his face bore the kind of smile that came from years of practiced diplomacy.
Charles’s eyes lit up with vindication. “Perfect timing! Chairman Williams, thank goodness you’re here. These people are causing a disturbance and making ridiculous claims about buying the hospital. I will surely teach them a lesson.”
The chairman’s gaze swept across the scene, taking in the nurses, the bodyguards, and finally settling on Aria. His face brightened immediately.
“Miss Coleman,” he said respectfully, approaching her with obvious deference. “What an unexpected pleasure to see you here.”
Charles stood frozen in the corridor, his mouth opening and closing soundlessly as his brain struggled to process what he was witnessing. His face had drained of all color, leaving him looking like a marble statue of confusion and terror.
“Chairman Williams?” Charles’s voice came out as barely a whisper, trembling with disbelief. “You… you know these people?”
Chairman Williams bowed his head respectfully toward Aria, completely ignoring Charles’s question. “Miss Coleman, I had no idea you were visiting our facility today. Had I known, I would have ensured you received our finest accommodations.”
Aria’s smile was sharp as a blade, beautiful and deadly in equal measure. “Oh, I’m not here for medical care, Chairman Williams. I’m here because your staff has been treating the grandmother of the Coleman family heir with shocking disrespect.”
The chairman’s face went ashen. “The Coleman family heir?”
“My brother,” Aria said simply, gesturing toward Pervis.
Charles let out a strangled laugh that sounded more like a sob. “That’s impossible! He’s just… he’s Anna Morrison’s husband! He’s nobody!”
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
