Chapter 77 Life Comes First

Chapter 77 Life Comes First

Jace POV 

“Why is no one talking to me? Am I speaking to the wall? What the heck happened to our mum?” I raised my voice at my brothers for the second time after getting snubbed. 

They were too scared to speak. It's as though I have a gun pointed at their heads that's making them act dumb. 

“She tripped and fell, I guess,” Malia uttered. Finally, a word from someone to ease the tension off my shoulders.

“Slipped, how is that possible? What are you even talking about?” I asked further.

I wasn't satisfied with his response. He wasn't even sure of his explanation. I felt like there was more to how my mother suddenly slipped. 

Just a couple of minutes ago, I was with my mother in the living room, and she seemed to be a lot healthier before I settled in the bathroom.

“I don't really know how it happened, Jace. I guess the slippery tiles contributed to her fall. We heard the loud noise and traced it to the kitchen only to find her lying on the ground,” Malia buttressed. 

He wasn't making sense to me. His explanations keep contradicting each other.

“Is she dead?” Jessie asked like a toddler. “Why is she not talking to us?”

“No, she isn't,” I debunk the negative thoughts in his head.

“She's unconscious but she will be fine eventually,” I explained further. 

I wasn't sure if I was sounding convincing enough to stop Jessie from having his wild thoughts. 

“You know what? Forget about your questions.” I digressed to focus on what's important. 

“Let's take her to the hospital. We can't afford to waste any time right now,” I told the boys. 

“I need you two to stay right here while I go change into something better. I can't possibly go to the hospital dressed in a towel” I instructed them.

“I'd be so upset at anyone who tries to do anything funny. Is that understood?” I issued the last warning to them before dashing to my room at full speed. 

Any minute wasted might be considered very detrimental to my mum's health. I wouldn't want to gamble with my mom's life, knowing how dangerous it could be

Quickly, I put on my trousers and a random shirt I haven't worn for years. It isn't the time to start searching for my nicest outfit when my mum's life is at stake 

I returned to the living room and met the boys still weeping profusely. They weren't like this before I left them to go get dressed.

“What's the problem this time?” I asked them but no one answered. “Why the tears? I thought I assured you two that she will be fine?”

My fear returned to haunt me like a prey. I was afraid that the worst may have happened.

“You might need to go check on her. We don't understand why she's not moving. We are afraid that she's dead,” Jessie beseeched me. 

I proceeded to check my mum's pulse to confirm if she was still alive.

“Thank goodness she's alive,” I exhaled after confirming that she's still breathing.

At some point, I thought that I had lost her. I couldn't have imagined what I would have done without her in my life.

With the last strength left inside of me, I struggled to lift my mum up and made her sit on the sofa. 

“Jessie, you're coming with me to the hospital while Malia stays back to keep an eye on the house,” I passed the verdict.

I reached out for my phone to call the emergency service. To my greatest surprise, I discovered that my phone is out of service. 

The only option left for me is to find a cab to get to the hospital. From the look of things, I will find it very difficult to find one due to the time constraint. 

“Please, let me come with you, Jace. Don't abandon me at home,” Malia pleaded with me as though his life depended on it. He wasn't pleased with my suggestion of leaving him behind.  

“I don't want to be home alone. I am freaking out right now. I want to be closer to mum. I might suffer a mental breakdown before you both return,” he went on his knees to beg me. I haven't seen him that sober before.

“Hey,” I pulled him close to me. “This ain't the time to stage any argument right now. We need to keep Mum alive.”

“First thing tomorrow morning, I'd return home with some good news about her,” I promised him. 

“I understand your point but please — don't leave me behind.  I want to be part of this. Don't deprive me of the opportunity of turning up when it matters the most,” Malia kept on insisting that he join us.

I felt pity for him. I can see a different spirit speaking through him. I hate to see him cry.

“Fine!” I sighed after a thorough deliberation, “You can come with us,” he just awoke my third eye that he might hurt himself if we went to the hospital without him. 

“Thank you so much, Jace. You have no idea what this means to me. You just saved me from a potential emotional trauma,” he appreciated me with so much enthusiasm.

I paid no attention to his display of gratuity. My only aim is to ensure my mum regains full consciousness.

They both assisted me in taking my mum to the road searching for a cab. After several minutes of standing in the dark, we couldn't find a single cab around.

“What are we going to do now? I am having a bad feeling about this. Why is it so difficult to find a cab around? Are we cursed?”  Malia raised the alarm when everyone else stayed mute.  

This is one of the reasons I never wanted him to come with us. He creates unnecessary tension where there is none.

“Let's be hopeful, Malia. Quit being pessimistic. We don't need such negative energy here. You're not helping matters” I scolded Maria. 

I assured him that we are going to get help soon. But inside of me, I'm losing my mind.

I had to stay strong for my brothers. They look up to me as their source of strength. 

It's as though all the cab drivers have convinced each other not to show up tonight.

Everything seems to be going against me tonight. First, it was my phone acting crazy when I required it the most.

Now, I can't find a cab. I regretted not allowing Kingston inside the house. If he were here, he would have bailed us out with his car. 

“Mum, I am trying to get you to the hospital. Please don't die on me. We love you so much,” I whispered to my mum's ears as though she could hear me. 

“That's an ambulance over there,” Jessie alerted me to an ambulance driving toward us from a distance. 

He has sharper eyes than I, and I am not ashamed to admit that.

“Hey, please stop. We require your help. My mom is dying,” I waved at the AMBULANCE as it got really close to us.

Jessie and Malia joined me as we tried to get the attention of the ambulance. 

Sadly for us, we were entirely ignored as though we were invisible. The ambulance drove past us at high speed.

I knew it was finished. I lost hope of ever seeing my mother alive. The ambulance was the only way we could get help.

I buried my face in the ground and wept like a child. Suddenly, I heard the sound of a vehicle. 

Then a voice came saying, “What happened to her?”

When I raised my head, I saw the medical team right in front of me.

I was so overwhelmed with so much excitement that I couldn't speak. I practically lost my vocal cords in the process. 

Kingston's POV 

“Are you going somewhere right now?” Someone startled me just as I was about to sneak outside to drive to the Kidnapper's den.

“You haven't been home all day, and you still want to sneak out like a thief? Is there something you're not telling me? Why do you look so tensed” Margaret kept pushing for an answer.

I never knew she was still awake. I thought she went to sleep when she failed to reach me on the phone.

How do I tell her that I intend to link up with the Kidnappers? She would like to come with me. 

It's pretty late and dangerous out there. I wouldn't want her to get hurt because of me.

“I want to go see a friend for a business meeting. He just called,” I lied to her. 

It took me a while to even come up with that silly excuse that's too lame to deceive a three-year-old 

“A friend? At this late hour?” She glares at her wristwatch. “It's 2:AM already.”

“What's his name? I want to know,” she demanded.

“You don't know him. I just met him recently. He's got the brain for business,” I improved my lying skills, hoping that it would be enough to save the day. 

“Cut the crap, Kingston. No one called you. I saw you walk in a while ago. I decided not to interrupt you because I figured you were heading to the room,” Margaret exposed my tricks when I least expected.