Chapter 36 Uremia
Mrs. Patel forced a smile, “I’m fine. I just ate too much at lunch. I’ll take some medicine.”
As she tried to reassure Leila, she suddenly began vomiting.
Leila panicked, “Mom, what’s wrong with you?”
Seeing Leila’s panic, Mrs. Patel grabbed her hand and tried to say something, but before she could, she passed out.
Leila looked at her mother, now unconscious in her arms. After a moment of confusion, she forced herself to stay calm and called emergency services.
After making the call, Leila realized they were in an old-style apartment complex. Worried that a stretcher might not fit in the narrow hallway, she fought back tears and ran out to ask the neighbor next door for help.
“Auntie, are you home?”
Leila kept calling out, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
As she called out, she heard a familiar deep voice from downstairs, “What’s wrong?”
Leila turned around to see Mason looking at her with deep concern. “Tell me, what’s going on?”
The only reason Mason came up was because Leila didn’t answer the phone. He had no idea Samuel had left. Fueled by Daniel’s gossip, he imagined a romantic scenario out of thin air. He couldn’t take it anymore and was ready to come upstairs to her.
He regretted coming up the stairs the moment he did, but he couldn’t control his legs.
Then, he heard Leila crying.
The two of them, one looking up, the other looking down, faced each other in the dimly lit stairwell. Leila’s eyes were red from crying too hard, even her nose was red.
Seeing her silent, Mason frowned, “Speak.”
Leila’s mind was in chaos. “My mom fainted. I called an ambulance. But the stairs in the hallway are too narrow. I’m worried the stretcher won’t be able to come up. I…”
Before Leila could finish her sentence, Mason strode up the stairs under her gaze. “Take me in.”
They returned home. Mason squatted down to lift Mrs. Patel, then stood up and turned to Leila. “Let’s go. Daniel is downstairs.”
With that, Mason took the lead.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the hospital. From entering the emergency room to completing the admission procedures, Mason personally handled everything. After everything was done, he arranged for Daniel to buy the necessary items for the hospital stay.
Leila stayed in the emergency room with Mrs. Patel for the examination. The doctor examined and made a phone call, “Dr. Hans, did you receive a patient named Dasha Galang before?”
Leila couldn’t hear the other end of the conversation, but she saw the emergency room doctor’s face darken more and more. “Yes, the patient is in the emergency room now. Come over.”
After hanging up the phone, the doctor looked at Leila. “Your mother has been admitted to our hospital before. She has her own long-term attending physician. I’ve contacted him, and he’s on his way.”
Leila felt a surge of unease. “Doctor, what’s wrong with my mom?”
Seeing her alone, the doctor couldn’t bear to tell her the truth. “Wait until Dr. Hans arrives. He will tell you about the patient’s condition in detail.”
Mrs. Patel’s sudden illness caught Leila completely off guard. Not only was she emotionally unprepared, but she also wasn’t financially prepared. Most of the money she earned over the years went to paying off debts, and what was left was barely enough to cover her and Mrs. Patel’s daily expenses. It wasn’t that she lacked crisis awareness, but the debts were too much, and she wanted to pay them off as soon as possible.
Mason and the Dr. Hans almost entered the room at the same time. Mason walked to Leila’s side with the paperwork, while Dr. Hans went to check Mrs. Patel’s condition.
A few minutes later, Dr. Hans took off his stethoscope and looked at Leila. “You’re Ms. Galang’s daughter?”
Leila replied, “Yes.”
Dr. Hans smiled wryly, “Seeing is believing.”
Dr. Hans’s remark was mocking Leila.
“Dr. Hans, what’s wrong with my mom?”
“You’re her daughter, and you don’t even know what illness your mother has?” Leila was about to explain when Mason interjected coldly, “As a doctor, you can’t even adhere to basic professional ethics. Is it a problem with the overall professionalism of your hospital’s doctors, or is it a personal issue with your professional ethics?”
Mason’s aura was imposing, especially when he wasn’t smiling, it made people around him involuntarily feel intimidated.
Dr. Hans looked up, about to get angry, but was pulled back by the older doctor behind him. “Dr. Hans.”
Taking a deep breath, Dr. Hans steadied his emotions and said, “She has uremia and needs surgery urgently.”
Upon hearing Dr. Hans’s words, Leila’s mind went blank. She felt dizzy, almost unable to stand steadily. Fortunately, Mason was right behind her. He reached out and supported her waist. “Don’t panic.”
Leila didn’t know how to describe her current feelings. She wasn’t the type to give up easily when faced with difficulties, but at this moment, she suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness. It was the kind of feeling that no matter how hard you tried, how much you progressed, you couldn’t resist the powerlessness of fate. The doctor’s words made Leila feel like her efforts over the years were a joke. She had been striving to live, giving her all to live, but in the end, she was repeatedly defeated by fate.
Dr. Hans had originally thought that Leila was someone who didn’t care for her elders, but now, looking at her pale face, he suddenly understood something.Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.
Compared to Leila, Mason was much calmer. He supported Leila’s waist and asked in a deep voice, “Is it in the early stage or late stage?”
Dr. Hans felt somewhat guilty for embarrassing Leila without understanding the situation. “Early stage.”
Mason asked, “What’s the survival rate?”
Dr. Hans replied, “Around ten percent.”
Ten percent, a slim chance.
There was silence for a moment before Dr. Hans continued, “The most important issue now is not the survival rate, but the issue of kidney source. A few days ago, there was a matched kidney source, but Ms. Galang refused the surgery.”
Leila couldn’t help but tremble, and Mason’s hand around her waist tightened slightly, as if to comfort her. “I’ll figure out the kidney source issue.”
Leila pursed her lips and didn’t respond.
Until Mrs. Patel was settled in the hospital room, Leila didn’t say another word.
When Daniel entered the hospital room with bags of supplies, Mason was standing by the French windows, making a phone call. Mason’s voice was low and deep, “Yeah, as soon as possible.”
As Daniel placed the items down and approached, he spoke softly to Mason, “Boss, all the supplies have been bought.”
Mason ended the call just in time and turned to Daniel, “Hmm.”
“And there’s one more thing, sir. Your grandfather wants you to come back. Miss Powers is causing a scene,” Daniel continued, expressing his concern.
Mason casually closed his phone, his expression unchanged, “Let her be.”
Daniel still had his reservations, “But sir, the old…”
Mason diverted the topic dispassionately, “Go hire a caregiver, find someone experienced, preferably with over ten years of nursing experience.”
Daniel sensed that Mason wasn’t concerned about Miss Powers at all. He sighed inwardly, “Alright, I’ll go handle it right away.”
As Daniel left once again, the hospital room was left with only Mason and Leila.
Mason walked over to her and pulled up a chair, sitting down beside her. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Leila nodded, “I’m much better now.”
After a moment of silence, Leila looked up at Mason and said, “Thank you for today.”
Normally, Mason would have seized the opportunity to tease her, but not today. He simply nodded, “You’re welcome. Let’s talk about something else.”
Thinking he wanted to discuss work, Leila mentioned, “I’ve already sent the revised proposal to your email.”
Mason glanced down at her, not arguing. “Yes, I’ve seen it. Well done. It’s approved. What I wanted to say is, I’ve already arranged to find a kidney source. We should have an answer within a week.”
Leila didn’t expect Mason to bring this up again. She thought his reassurance in the emergency room was just a casual remark. Clenching her hands on her lap, she said, “Mr. Ramirez, what do you want from me?”