Chapter 22
DAMIEN
I didn’t wait for Diana.
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My feet moved faster than my mind could catch up. I ran toward the car, every breath quick, like my lungs were folding in on themselves.
Behind me, I could hear Diana shouting my name, and Jeff’s. Her footsteps stumbled as she caught up.
“What’s wrong with him? Damien, what happened?!”
1 didn’t answer.
I opened the back door and laid Jeff down as gently as I could. His little head rolled to the side, and that’s when I saw blood.
A thin, red trail slipping from his nose, staining the collar of his shirt.
My throat closed up. My pulse kicked into overdrive.
I slammed the door shut and ran to the driver’s side. But just as I got in, Diana had already climbed into the back, pulling Jeff into her arms, cradling him like she could will him awake just by holding on tighter.
“Jeff… baby, open your eyes. Please. Say something. Please…” she sobbed, rocking him.
I dialed the hospital as I yanked the car onto the road, swerving very hard and fast. I didn’t care.
The receptionist picked up.
“My son is unconscious,” I barked. “He is five years old. Blood from his nose. I’m bringing him in. Now.”
“Yes, sir,” came the quick reply. “We’ll have the emergency room ready. Doctors are being alerted.”
I ended the call without another word and hit the accelerator harder.
Diana wouldn’t stop asking questions, her voice trembling between cries.
“What happened to him? Damien, what happened? He was fine this morning. Did he fall? Did he eat something? Did….”
I didn’t respond. I just stared at the road, my fingers gripping the steering wheel like it was the only thing anchoring me to reality.
Every red light became an enemy. Every car in front of me an obstacle I wanted to smash through. Jeff’s silence in the backseat was louder than anything I’d ever heard.
When we pulled up to the hospital, I didn’t wait for the nurses. I threw the door open, ran to the back, and took Jeff from Diana’s arms.
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Chapter 22
He felt even smaller than I remembered.
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Inside, the team was ready. A stretcher waited by the doors. A nurse reached out, he was gone from my arms and into theirs in seconds.
The doctor I’d spoken with nodded at me. “We’ve got him. You said he was on the floor unconscious?”
I managed a hoarse “Yes,” and then they were wheeling him away.
Diana and I tried to follow him into the emergency room, but a nurse stepped in front of us.
“Please wait outside.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but the look in her eyes told me I’d be wasting time. So I stepped back.
Diana didn’t argue either. She just crumbled.
Right there by the emergency room door, she collapsed into a crouch and pulled her knees to her chest. Her cries were quiet at first, then louder, ragged, the sound of a woman unraveling.
I stood there, frozen. Watching her.
I’d convinced myself that Diana was unfit. That she was selfish, neglectful, emotionally absent. I believed she cared more about her status than about Jeff.
But seeing her like that… crying like her world had ended… I couldn’t lie to myself.
Whatever else she was or wasn’t, she was still his mother.
And a mother’s grief was universal.
For a split second, I felt something twist in my chest. A quiet guilt. I’d been so sure of everything earlier. So quick to judge.
But now?
I didn’t know what to think anymore.
All I knew was that my son was behind those doors, unconscious, and I didn’t know why.
And I’d give anything to trade places with him.
I couldn’t keep watching her like that.
Almost thirty minutes later, Diana sat crumpled on the cold hospital floor, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees, sobbing like the walls were closing in. Her cries were still raw, loud, aching. They tore through the silence of the corridor and twisted something inside my chest.
Maybe it was instinct. Maybe it was guilt, I didn’t know. But my feet moved before I could stop them.
I walked up to her, reached down, and gently pulled her into my arms.
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Chapter 22
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She didn’t resist. She clung to me, face buried in my chest, soaking my shirt with every broken breath. Her body shook so hard I had to tighten my grip to keep her steady.
We stayed like that for what felt like an eternity.
Then I heard urgent footsteps approaching.
The doctor.
His expression was grim. No smile. Just a quiet gravity that froze my heart.
I let go of Diana and stepped forward. “What’s wrong with my son?” I asked, my voice already cracking.
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he nodded toward the hallway. “Let’s go to my office.”
The weight of that one sentence nearly dropped me to my knees.
I followed him like a man heading to his own sentencing. Diana came too, her face streaked with tears, her eyes wide with fear. The silence between us was loud. I didn’t dare break it.
Inside his office, the doctor gestured to two chairs. We sat.
“I need you both to listen carefully,” he said, settling behind his desk. “Your son’s condition is
very
serious.”
My heart skipped.
“Just tell me what it is,” I said quickly. “Please. What’s wrong with Jeff?”
He looked between us before speaking. “He has Fanconi Anemia.”
The words hit me like ice water.
“What?” I frowned. “What is that?”
He leaned forward. “Fanconi Anemia is a rare genetic blood disorder. It affects the bone marrow and reduces the body’s ability to produce blood cells. Children with it are at risk for a variety of complications, including anemia, leukemia, and organ issues.”
I blinked. It didn’t make sense. Jeff had always seemed… okay. Tired sometimes, sure. Pale maybe. But sick?
The doctor continued, “Has he had frequent nosebleeds? Any signs of fatigue or unusual paleness?”
Diana nodded immediately. “Yes… yes, he’s had nosebleeds. Usually after he plays. But I just thought… I thought it was from running too much. He plays hard sometimes, and I didn’t think…”
I turned toward her slowly.
“You didn’t think?” My voice came out colder than I intended. “You noticed nosebleeds and did nothing? You didn’t tell me. You didn’t take him to a hospital. You thought he was fine?”
“I didn’t know he was sick,” she whispered, trembling. “I swear, Damien. I’m sorry. I thought he was okay. I
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Chapter 22
didn’t….”
:
“You’re his mother,” I snapped. “You should have known.”
Tears spilled down her cheeks again, but I looked away.
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The doctor cleared his throat gently. “Fanconi Anemia doesn’t always present you with obvious symptoms at first. But it progresses. In some children, it causes stunted growth, deformities, even infertility. In Jeff’s case, the nosebleeds and pallor are clear indicators.”
I closed my eyes.
God.
I remembered thinking something was off when I saw Jeff at that hotel. He looked pale. I told myself it was just Diana.
I never thought to ask if he was sick.
I ran a hand down my face, trying to push back the storm in my chest. “Is he going to be okay?” I asked.
I don’t know what I expected to hear, but it wasn’t this.
“His bone marrow has almost completely failed,” the doctor said.
I stared at him, unable to speak. My hands curled into fists in my lap.
Diana gasped beside me, and then came the sound….. low at first, then rising, a sob that scraped out of her throat like it had claws. She broke into another round of tears, but the doctor didn’t flinch.
“We’ve already tried blood transfusions,” he continued, calm but firm. “It’s not working. What Jeff needs now is a bone marrow transplant. That’s his best and only real chance.”
My ears rang. My body went cold, like something inside me had just shut down.
A transplant.
He was just a boy.
A little boy.
Mine.
Diana wiped her eyes with shaking fingers, but the doctor’s voice didn’t soften. “We don’t have time. We’ve started reaching out to registries for a donor match, but that process can take months–sometimes even years. And Jeff… Jeff doesn’t have that long,”
My stomach turned.
“So what’s the fastest solution?” I asked, my voice raw.
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He looked at me carefully. “A sibling.”
My mind stalled.
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“A sibling?” I repeated.
“Yes. A full sibling offers the highest chance of a compatible match. Or, if a baby is born, the cord blood from the umbilical cord can be used…. it’s rich in stem cells and highly effective for this condition.”
I swallowed hard. “But Jeff doesn’t have a sibling.”
He nodded slowly. “Which is why I said if a sibling exists or can be conceived quickly, the cord blood may be our best hope.”
Diana suddenly sat up straighter beside me. “Then I can get pregnant,” she said quickly. “We can start working on it right away.”
“No,” I said, firmly.
She turned to me, wide–eyed.
I shook my head. “He doesn’t have time. We don’t have nine months to gamble with. I’m going to find a donor. Whatever it takes.”
The doctor sighed. “A non–relative match would be better than nothing, but… if either of you happens to be a match, even as parents, it would still give us a chance to save him.”
I straightened. “Then test me.”
He nodded. “We’ll do a genetic test to see if either of you is compatible. It’ll also confirm that Jeff inherited Fanconi Anemia from both of you.”
I blinked. “So… this came from us?”
“Yes,” the doctor replied gently. “Fanconi Anemia is hereditary. Both of you are likely silent carriers of the defective gene.”
“So we did this to him?”
My voice cracked.
“It’s not your fault,” the doctor said. “Silent carriers never show symptoms. Most people don’t even know they carry it unless there’s a genetic test. It’s rare for two carriers to end up together, but when they do…”
He didn’t finish.
But I understood.
We gave Jeff life… and we gave him this.
I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until my lungs burned.
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Chapter 22
The doctor reached for his phone, made a quick call, then placed it back on the desk.
“We’ll collect your samples shortly.”
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I nodded. I didn’t care how many tests they needed. They could take all the blood they wanted. Cut me open if they had to. I just needed my son to live.
But then Diana stood up.
Abruptly.
Her chair screeched against the tiles, making my nerves twitch.
I looked up at her. “What’s the problem?”
“I…” Her voice wobbled. “I’m scared of needles.”
I stared at her.
Was she serious?
“You’re scared of needles?” I repeated, slowly. “Diana, your son is fighting for his life. And you’re talking about needles?”
I couldn’t stop the bitterness from rising. It came out in my tone, my body, my glare.
The doctor raised a calming hand. “It’s okay. We can also use saliva for the genetic test. No needles needed.”
He gave her a reassuring nod. “The nurses will be here shortly to collect your samples. Please, both of you…. just stay seated.”
I turned back to Diana. “You heard the doctor. Sit down.”
But she didn’t.
She just stood there, fidgeting with her fingers like a child about to be caught in a lie.
And then I noticed sweat.
Beads of it glistening at her temples, trailing down her neck. But the room was cold. The AC was running strong. I was almost shivering.
So why the hell was she sweating?
Why did she suddenly look like someone had just pulled the floor from under her?
My eyes narrowed as I watched her.
Something wasn’t right.
Something about the way she stood there, avoiding my eyes, frozen, like she’d just heard a death sentence
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that hadn’t been spoken aloud… made my blood run cold.
What the hell was she hiding?
