Love in the Eye of the Storm

Chapter 11

"How could she do this to the man who saved her?" another reporter blurted out.

I didn't have an answer for that. How could someone be so heartless?

"Madeline, are you really going through with the divorce?" a reporter asked hesitantly.

"Yes," I said softly. That was my final wish, to cut all ties with Alexander before I died. But as I was about to say more, a sharp, metallic bitterness surged up my throat. Before I could stop it, blood spilled from my mouth.

"Madeline!" Several voices cried out at once.

"Why are you bleeding?" one of them asked, panic rising in his voice.

"B-Because I'm dying..." I whispered, the words barely leaving my lips.

I needed to take Daniel home. That was all that mattered now. Clutching the box, I tried to walk away, but the pain in my abdomen hit me like a wave of fire. I doubled over, gasping for breath as darkness started closing in around me.

"She's bleeding everywhere!" someone screamed.

I looked down. The lower half of my dress was soaked in blood. I pressed my hands to my belly. The child... slipping away, just like everything else. I tried to hold on, but the pain was too much. My legs gave way, and the world faded to black.

"Madeline..." A voice called my name, distant and faint.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital room. Tanya, my best friend, was holding my hand tightly, her eyes swollen and red from crying. As soon as she saw me stir, she rushed over and hugged me fiercely, her sobs shaking her body.

"Why didn't you tell me you were sick?" she cried. "How could Alexander treat you like this? He promised us he'd take care of you, that he'd never hurt you! How could he bring a mistress into our home behind your back?"

Tanya and I had grown up in an orphanage together. I had a brother, but Tanya had no one. We weren't related by blood, but she was closer to me than any sister could ever be. Seeing her cry like that shattered me even more.

I hadn't told Tanya about my illness because I didn't want her to worry. But now, with everything falling apart, there was no hiding it anymore.

She even called my brother "brother." "How could he let that snake, Chelsea, dig up my brother's grave?" Tanya's voice cracked with anger.

Her words jolted me awake. The last thing I remembered before passing out was holding my brother's ashes. My heart raced as I looked around, terrified I might've dropped the box, but then I saw it on the table next to me, thankfully, untouched.

"Thank God..." I whispered under my breath. My brother's ashes were safe.

I turned to Tanya, my voice weak. "Tanya, please don't cry. I don't care about Alexander anymore. But, once I'm gone, can you do me a favor? Bury me next to my brother," I said softly.

"T-Tanya, shut up! You're not going to die!" She cried out, her voice breaking again.

"We'll get you the best treatment. If we can't find it here, we'll go abroad! You're still young, you'll get better!"

But deep down, I knew it wasn't possible. Pancreatic cancer was called the king of cancers for a reason, it was brutal, especially in the late stages. There was no cure. But Tanya was crying so hard, I didn't have the heart to tell her the truth, so I stayed quiet.

I placed my hand gently on my flat belly, remembering the blood soaking my skirt before I passed out. My voice trembled as I asked, "Did I... did I lose the baby?"