Chapter 5 - THE HOSPITAL
It happened during a Thursday board dinner.
I had been feeling sick all afternoon.
Sharp abdominal pain.
Nausea.
Sweating.
I blamed stress.
By dessert, I could barely sit upright.
Evelyn noticed first.
“You’re gray.”
“I’m fine.”
“You are absolutely not fine.”
Grant sighed.
Not worried.
Annoyed.
“We have investors here.”
I looked at him.
“I think I need a hospital.”
That finally got his attention.
An hour later, I was in an emergency room being told I needed surgery that night.
Nothing dramatic.
Nothing mysterious.
A severe gallbladder infection had progressed further than anyone realized.
The surgeon was calm.
Treatment was straightforward.
But I was frightened.
Hospitals do that.
They reduce every powerful adult into a person wearing a plastic bracelet waiting for somebody else to decide when they may drink water.
Grant sat beside me for twenty minutes.
Then his phone rang.
Scott.
Grant stepped into the hallway.
When he returned, he looked irritated.
“I need to leave for a couple hours.”
I stared at him.
“I’m going into surgery.”
“They haven’t even scheduled the room yet.”
“They said tonight.”
“My mother and Scott are dealing with something that could affect the Orion deadline.”
There it was.
Orion.
I watched his face carefully.
“You’re leaving me here because of Orion?”
“Don’t turn this into something emotional.”
I almost laughed.
“I’m in a hospital gown.”
“And you’re safe.”
“How do you know?”
“Because doctors are here.”
He kissed my forehead.
Then he left.
I watched the door for a long time.
Evelyn arrived forty minutes later.
She sat beside me without saying I told you so.
That was why I trusted her.
Just before they took me upstairs, a nurse brought in a document envelope.
“Your husband asked us to give this to you.”
I opened it.
Inside were corporate papers.
A signature page marked with tabs.
Grant had left instructions that the documents were time-sensitive and should be signed before midnight.
I stared at the paper.
Then at Evelyn.
She took it from my hands.
Her entire expression changed.
“He sent this here?”
“Yes.”
“After leaving?”
“Yes.”
She read three pages.
Then she looked at me.
“Claire, do not sign anything.”
“I wasn’t going to.”
“No. Listen to me. Do not sign your name on so much as a hospital menu without telling me first.”
That frightened me more than the surgery.
“What did he do?”
Evelyn held the papers against her chest.
“He just proved intent.”
I was still processing that when my phone rang.
Margaret.
Grant’s mother.
I answered.
Her voice came bright and impatient.
“Claire, sweetheart, Grant says you’re making things difficult.”
I looked at the ceiling.
“I’m waiting for surgery.”
“Yes, of course. But this paperwork has been planned for months.”
“Not with me.”
A pause.
Then Margaret said, “Grant has spent years building that company into what it is. At some point, your father’s name cannot be allowed to control everyone from the grave.”
Something inside me went completely still.
I ended the call.
Then I looked at Evelyn.
“What can I stop?”
May you like
She smiled for the first time that night.
“More than Grant remembers.”
