Chapter 2 From Interviewee To Indebted

• Blair’s P.O.V
• I paid the cab in a hurry, telling him to keep the change for the twenty I gave him as I ran out into the parking of the ER and then I was pushing past everyone in my way to make it to the reception.
• “Blake Avalon!” I panted, my throat parched and my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. “Is he alive?”
• I hadn't meant to say it out loud, but the fact that the phone call had said his bike was completely crushed…I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I hadn’t just lost my little brother...had I? He was barely eighteen years old and I had lost him…
• “I’m sorry, ma’am,” the nurse looked up from the phone and my heart literally stopped for a second, that was until she continued speaking. “There’s been an accident on the highway. We have too many patients coming in. Please check the board at the front to see if your patient’s name is on it. If we have an ID, we’re pinning it to the board. The ID’s will tell you if your patient is alive or…”
• “Alright,” I placed a hand on my chest, holding onto the desk as my vision went blank for a second. “A-alright…al…”
• I can’t lose him! I can’t lose Blake! He was all I had left!
• “Ma’am! Can you hear me? Ma’am?”
• When I blinked myself back into consciousness once again… I was sitting on the floor and one of the nurses, who had been behind the reception desk, talking on the phone, was now sprinkling water onto my face.
• “Huh?” I looked at her dumbfounded. It was as if my mind had been detached from my body. Had I just fainted? Or had I just blanked out? I couldn’t tell anymore.
• “You don’t look so well.” The nurse looked at me with concern. “Why don’t you have a seat and compose yourself first? You haven’t even checked the board yet. There’s still hope.”
• Hope…that felt like a foreign word to me.
• Over the years, I was desperately trying my best to hold onto hope as best as I could…after everything both me and Blake had been through…but now, it seemed to be slipping right through my fingers.
• “Please…come with me.” The nurse held out her hands and I took them almost numbly, as she pulled me to my feet.
• With her help, I was able to walk over to the sitting area not far from the reception, which seemed to be fairly empty, because the main crowd was forming at the reception. Several of the family members of the people who had been affected by the crash were now starting to show up. According to the news on the huge plasma screen on the opposite wall, an eighteen wheeler had overturned due to huge overloading of goods and skidded across the highway, taking down several vehicles and motorbikes in the process.
• It had happened in a fairly crowded locality and because of that, the casualties were also high. So far, only ten people had been confirmed dead, however, the number of injured were still being calculated, as several of the other vehicles had skidded into the sidewalk in order to avoid being hit by the truck. But in doing so, they had hit a number of pedestrians and caused even more damage. Overall…it looked like a scene out of a horror movie.
• However, I couldn’t just sit around anymore. I needed to know if my brother was alright. Whatever the results…I needed to see them right then…
• So I gathered every last drop of my willpower and stood up on shaky feet. The board was not too far away, but there was a huge crowd of people right in front of it. Some were crying profoundly…probably at the loss of a loved one…while others were crying tears of relief, from what I could tell by the smile on their faces.
• I made my way to the board, pushing past several people. It was difficult at first, since no one wanted to budge…but eventually, I made it…and nearly collapsed onto the floor.
• Because Blake’s card was right there on the top left corner. It was there! He was alive…my little brother was alive!
• I burst out of the crowd and collapsed on my hands and knees, unable to hold up my weight any longer. It was a mix of both relief and horror. My brother was alive…but how was he? What condition was he in? Whatever it was…none of it was an advantageous situation.
• Crawling back up on my hands and knees, I made my way to the reception desk, to the same nurse who had helped me not long ago.
• “Did you find the name?” She asked me, sounding hopeful.
• “Y-yes.” I nodded, handing her the ID that I had managed to take off the board. “Here…this one.”
• “Okay.” She offered me a kind smile as she took the card. “Let me check his details real quick.”
• I nodded and waited for her to check his information impatiently. I had no idea what I was going to do next. The hospital bills were going to be huge, depending on the condition he was in. And if his condition was severe…I would need to take a loan to pay for his bills because there was nothing I had to offer instead. I had no insurance…nothing I could use to pay for his bills…and now that I had just run out of the interview room like that…there was no way I was getting the job either.
• The only option left was to…NO! I wasn’t going back…I ran away from that house for a reason! And going back now would mean admitting defeat! I couldn’t…wouldn’t…go back! Ever!
• “I may have some bad news for you, ma’am.” The nurse’s voice brought me back to the present. “Your brother is in critical condition.”
• “P-pardon?” My heart thrashed against my ribcage in panic. “W-what do you m-mean?”
• She gave me an almost pitying look. “His bike had skidded along the highway before he hit a car at his back. The impact has left him with a severe concussion, three broken ribs and a broken leg. Moreover, the skin of leg has second degree burns because of the skid. He had entered into a coma, and we’re afraid we don’t know how long he will take to recover.”
• It felt like the ground had slipped right from under my feet. But the nurse still wasn’t done delivering bad news.
• “Ma’am…you need to sign some papers to begin his treatment…and we need some deposit amount to get him started on his medications.”
• There it was…exactly what I had been dreading…
• “H-how much?” I managed to stutter out, my throat as dry as the Sahara’s.
• “Seventy five thousand dollars.” She told me, pushing the form forward. “We’ll need it as soon as possible for the operation and immediate treatment. Extra charges will be notified to you as we complete his emergency surgeries. Do you have medical insurance?”
• Insurance? I could hardly make ends meets…how was I going to have money for insurance?
• “I…No…” I shook my head, swallowing hard. Dear lord! Seventy five thousand!
• “Then how would you like to pay for the fees?” This time, the nurse’s voice was no longer as kind, and it made me feel faint once again.
• “I…I…”
• “Ma’am, if you can’t pay-”
• “I would like to pay for the young lady.”
• Someone came to stand beside me and my eyes widened in surprise as I turned and saw the person that I had least expected to find. Bernard Maxwell, the CEO of Maxwell Buildings Incorporated.
• “S-sir?” I asked, eyes widened in astonishment as he handed the nurse his credit card.
• “From now on, please place the bill in my name and call me directly when the hospital needs to clear the fees.” Mr. Maxwell said with the same kind smile.
• I was speechless. Completely and utterly speechless as I was looking at this man. Maybe that’s why I failed to see the suspicious glances of the other people around me.
• Once he was done with the payment and all the formalities, while I stood and gaped at him, Mr. Maxwell turned to face me and motioned for me to follow him to the sitting area.
• I followed behind him silently, not knowing what was about to happen. Why did my boss, who wasn’t even my boss yet, come to my rescue and offer to pay my brother’s hospital bills? What could possibly be the reason behind his kindness?
• And most importantly…what exactly did he want from me in return?
• Because now I was in his debt. Seventy five thousand dollars and counting. And it wasn’t something I could just pay to him immediately, even if I were to sell out my own organs!
• I sat next to him once he patted the seat next to him. I hadn't noticed at first, but now I saw the four men in black suits, two of them standing at the entrance and two standing behind the sitting area. And I immediately knew that these were his bodyguards.
• “You must be wondering why your interviewee suddenly appeared at your hospital and wanted to help you out?” He said as if reading my mind. “Don’t worry. It’s not just your family, but two of my important clients have been injured in the accident as well. I was here to visit them, and I ended up catching sight of a familiar face. And I couldn’t possibly leave a young lady in trouble.”
• “Mr. Maxwell…” I swallowed hard, looking down at the ground. “That’s a lot of money to spend on someone who you barely know. I haven’t even gotten the job…so I have no idea how to even repay you. If…if there is anything I can do for you…”
• “Now we’re talking business.” The sudden change in his tone made me look up at him sharply, but Mr. Maxwell never lost his polite smile. “Since you understand that you are now indebted to me…I have work for you. You will work as an assistant in my company, but not for me. You will work for my son.”
• “Sir?” I blinked, not understanding what was going on.
• “From now on, I want you to report everything he does to me.” He gave me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “What he does, what he eats, who he talks to, every single detail about his deals! I want to know everything. And anything that I ask you to do…you will do it for me. How about we make that deal?”
• I swallowed again. So…Maxwell wanted me to spy on his son for him? That was invasion of privacy!
• But what choice did I have? It was either follow through with his order…or return the money. I should be grateful that I still got to keep my dignity…right? The situation could’ve been a lot worse…right?
• “Okay.” I nodded, agreeing to the terms. “I’ll do it.”
• “Good.” He offered me an almost sinister smile as he held out his hand. “Welcome to Maxell Buildings Incorporated.”
• As I shook his hand, weary of how my life was going to turn out to be from now on…both of us failed to notice the young man who stood by the door, watching the entire scene and misunderstanding us right from the start.