Chapter 44

"Mama... I'm cold, let's get out of here. Mama?" I shook her hard on the cold street, but she didn't move.

"Mama! Please, get up, get up... please, don't leave me alone. Mama..."

"Miss Belle? Miss Belle! We've arrived, hurry." I quickly got out of the car and vomited on the sidewalk.

"Good heavens, are you sure you're okay?" I nodded shakily, and he handed me a handkerchief, which I used before thanking him with a slight nod.

"I'm fine now, let's hurry."

♡

**Joffre**

She was clearly not okay. Ever since she got in the car, her gaze seemed dead, as if she had seen a ghost. She didn't even know she had a family member in the hospital, and the terror in her eyes said it all. When she got out of the car, I followed her, but her steps were slow, and she would occasionally stop as if it was difficult for her to keep going. She approached the reception desk, giving the name of the patient in question. When I had a chance, I stepped aside for a moment and, unable to continue with this situation, I informed Master César.

A few hours earlier

I closed my eyes and finally wished to fall into Morpheus's arms after two weeks of not being able to get Belle out of my mind. Today had been an exhausting but fruitful day... If my biggest problem was that girl leaving, bringing her back gave me peace. So, tonight I just needed to sleep... Suddenly, I opened my eyes again.

"How long have I slept?" I ran my hand over my face, noticing it was still night.

"Wait a minute... I brought that woman back into my life..." I said, sitting up in bed with utter disbelief. This was the first time I had invested so much time in something that wasn't my work, and I hadn't even realized it.

"So, this is what they call frustration. Having something and then having it taken away without the ability to get it back." Then I remembered how Belle had resigned and those two weeks without seeing her; it was driving me crazy. My throat started to close, making it hard to breathe, and my chest hurt again.

"She was the first woman I met who rejected me, and that had damaged my ego and my confidence like never before." I wanted a reason to go see her now, but it was almost three in the morning, and I would just look like a fool standing at her door. Why did I feel this way about this woman? Or rather, what was this overwhelming feeling, something I didn't even feel for my own family?

"It can't be..." I got out of bed and paced back and forth, worried.

"This... this is love." The phone started vibrating; I picked it up and answered Joffre's call. If he was calling at this hour, it was something very important.

"What is it, Joffre?"

"Sorry to bother you at this hour; it doesn't even make sense, but we're at the hospital right now."

"What happened to Belle?"

"How did you know it was her?" I calmed myself and replied,

"Is she okay?"

"She is, but it seems a family member of hers who was hospitalized received some bad news, and now they have to operate. Miss Belle says she's fine, but something is wrong… she's not herself."

"I'm coming right away," I said, worried after hearing that. It seemed my body was acting on its own. Maybe this would be a good way to test if my hypothesis about love was true.

♡

When I arrived at the hospital, I asked about the patient in question. I don’t think I had ever been informed that Belle had a family member, but I could guess who the affected person might be. I saw Joffre at a water machine and asked,

"Is he already in surgery?"

"Good evening, Mr. César. They haven't informed us of the state of her grandfather yet, or if the operation has started." I checked my watch and frowned.

"But how is this possible? What kind of hospital is this?"

"As far as I understand, it's a detox hospital. I wanted to tell you here before you spoke with Miss Belle, but it seems her grandfather is an alcoholic, and the operation is to remove a piece of his damaged liver." That news hit me like a reality check. This was what she had been dealing with—how long had this been going on?

"Where is she?"

"Waiting to hear if her grandfather is eligible for surgery." I took the glass of water I was about to bring to her and walked towards her. Before reaching the intensive care area, I overheard a conversation.

"We can't perform such a risky procedure on a man of his age, I'm very sorry. We'll look into transferring him to another hospital unit."

"But... then... what will happen to my grandfather? How is it possible that you can't help him? You are the ones who save lives! So save my grandfather's life... he's... he's all I have left..." She was on the verge of breaking down when I interrupted.

"Belle!" I held her by the shoulders, preventing her from collapsing to the ground. She looked at me through her tears and said, confused,

"Mr. César... what are you doing here?" My chest tightened just by feeling her crumble in my hands like fragile sand. I pushed those damned feelings aside and said coldly,

"What happened?"

"My… grandfather, he's not going to make it... they can't save him. Why... why him? Why can't they operate on him, Mr. César?" Seeing her like this stirred so much inside me that at that moment, I knew what I felt for her.

"Belle, calm down now!" I said, holding her face so she would look at me while she sobbed uncontrollably. She looked into my eyes and started crying again. I reprimanded myself, closing my eyes—damn it...

"I'm sorry for yelling at you... Listen to me, your grandfather won't die; I'll get him out of this dump," I said, looking at the doctors, and continued,

"Transfer the patient to this hospital," I said, handing them a small card, "and tell them you're coming on behalf of Mr. César Montenegro."

"But the patient is too delicate to be moved."

"Then do it by helicopter."

"But Mr. Montenegro, that helicopter is only used for medium emergencies in remote areas."

"I'll pay for the transfer, so what's the damn problem?" They exchanged glances, and I pressed on,

"What the hell are you waiting for? For the man to die so I can take you to court for medical negligence? And believe me, you don't want that." Without waiting any longer, they quickly rushed to prepare the patient for transfer.

"Belle..." She turned to me, clinging to my chest as she sobbed, forgetting who I was. She pulled herself together, looked at me, and, releasing my grip, said,

"I'm sorry, you don't have to help me... I'll find another hospital myself," she said, and when she tried to take a step, she stumbled and fell to the ground.

"What are you doing?" I grabbed her arm and firmly said,

"Let go of me! I won't owe you any more things..."