HER ILLEGAL HUSBAND

" Am I speaking with Mr Levi Derricks~ Phoenix's brother?" The unfamiliar voice queried and he nodded with an uncertain yet, soft yes.

" Who are you and why are you with her cell...Is she alright?" He asked, his voice tensed with worry.

" NOTEL PRIVATE HOSPITAL~ hurry over, please. It's urgent." He said and the line went dead before Levi could ask further.

Levi did not react to the piece of information for some time and the silence created a tense atmosphere. The phone slowly dropped down along with his hand as his eyes trailed to his parents.

His face instinctively gave off the bad news as it waned into terror and worry. " Talk...!, Levi, what is it?" Kalisa howled, her patience totally dried out.

" Notel hospital~" the words poured out in rapid succession as he grabbed the keys off the table and dashed off in a daze. Kalisa's heart intuitively sank with the news. Her brain felt dead for some reason.

" No...Phone, you can't do this now, please" His subconscious mind kept ringing the words as he managed his way to the car.

Stanly and Kalisa huddled after him in an instant. Their feet trembled with every step they made. Kalisa at this moment was a living dead–her heart raced and several thoughts raced along paralleled lines with her heartbeats.

" Please, Phone, Please..." These were the only words her lips managed out as the car screeched onto the road.

NOTEL PRIVATE HOSPITAL

Phoenix's condition was worse than Irish thought possible. She had been rushed into the emergency ward on arrival with several nurses and doctors at her aid but her state was not getting any better~ she was deteriorating at the tick of every second.

" This wouldn't do~" the doctor in charge had announced, verbalizing his frustration. They needed to do something before things got out of hand and the only option was that Surgical scheme, the one under the " HEART ENHANCING AND RENOVATIVE PROJECT ".

It was a new surgical project that was set in motion with Phoenix's condition as a research model– which is to say, she was their experimental tool in a way. Although it was yet to be tested after approval, they had no options.

It was a 90-10 succession project that needed a guardian's careful understanding, cooperation, and agreement to accept any outcome no matter what. This they made Irish aware of.

" Give me a few seconds, please~ I need to think this over a little bit more."He excused.

In this case, he was not her guardian and had little to do. For that reason, he called out her family but they were taking more time than needed at the moment.

" Mr. Irish...?" the doctor came again. " ... we have no more time to spare at this moment. Miss. Phoneix would be taking her last breath at this point." He said and his heart skipped in terror.

Through the glass panel door, he scanned at the motionless familiar figure. She had tubes running through her nose and hands. An oxygen mask was soon put over her nose just after the doctor's message.

Phoenix had already consumed about three bags of drips and a blood bag but looked so pale and seemed to be in a lot of pain. He couldn't stand it any longer– he couldn't lose her just yet when he'd not even made her his.

" Let's do it~ I'll sign for it..." He finally said without a second thought.

" I'll let the nurses take you through it while we prepare for the surgery." The doctor said. Taking his leave, he signaled to one of the nurses over the counter who led Irish to one of the offices lined along the corridors.

" Who are you to the patient?" The nurse asked, dropping the document in front of him as she keyed in a few things on the monitor in front of her.

He contemplated for a second before answering. " Her husband..."He said without hesitation. He might regret this someday to come but then, he had to risk it.

Irish's eyes were still full of stars and so they could shine only at night. He could only think of the object of his love and not about others or what the consequences of his actions might breed.

" Over here, sir~kindly sign" She instructed and in a bit, he had everything wrapped up. He was soon ushered out thereafter.

In about 20 minutes, the door to the ward she had occupied shot opened. Phoenix was slowly and carefully pushed out toward the surgical ward. " Let's fight this together, Phone" He muttered a word of prayer. " I'll be right here for you, waiting..."

" Phone...!!, Phoenix!!~ doctor, please where is my daughter?" Her voice cut into his thoughts from behind, accelerating the already rampant pounding of his heart.

" Where is my daughter, please say something." The desperate mother cried with so much passion as she held onto one of the nurses close by. Levi, Stanly, and the few nurses around instinctively held onto her in an attempt to pull her off.

" Mum..."

" Kalisa!!" Both Levi and Stanly had cried in a small voice full of emotions.

" Get a grip, please," Stanly added, his voice still soft yet anxious.

" Somebody, talk to me, please..." She wailed, sinking to the floor as her hands slowly slipped off the nurse's collar. Irish was devastated by the scene in front of him and felt his heart wrecking into a thousand pieces.

It was a familiar scene, like a replay of the night he witnessed his mother's death. Her mother's hand slowly turned ice-cold in his, her blood-stained face washed in tears as she slowly closed her eyes.

" Irish..." Her soft voice faded along with her breath.

He was too little then. There was nothing he could do, even though he desperately screamed for help~ they were at a dead end. He tried to reach for the phone but his vision slowly blurred out. " No...Mum!!" He whispered, his voice engulfed in silence as his surroundings turned dark.

" Get hold of yourself, Mrs. Kali...she's doing well." the voice jerked him into reality. Irish intuitively reached over.

" Allow me to handle this..." he requested and the nurse nodded. Kalisa instinctively stared up at the unfamiliar man. Levi and Stanly were no different.

"Were you the one who called?" Stanely asked and he nodded with a yes.

" How is my baby?...where is she?" Kalisa shot to her feet. The words flared out before her brain could think of who he was or how he got to know the whereabouts of her daughter.

" In the surgical ward~ can we talk somewhere a little private?" He asked but just then, Del and Berla stormed in. They had no idea what happened but for some reason, Del was covered in blood.

They all stared at them in utmost surprise. Irish were the most puzzled among them.

" You two had the gust to come here?" His thoughts fumed in wrath. Before he could react, Kalisa already had Del at his neck. Her hand continually hit his chest as she wailed.

" You beast..." She wept. "How could you do this to my poor girl, how?" They tried to stop her but it continued for some time before finally, she sank to the floor in despair.

At this point, Kalisa had her energy totally drained out. She stayed there in a daze. There was no excuse he would make that would rectify what he had done. There, in one of the wards was her precious daughter battling for her life.

SURGICAL ROOM

Just like a battlefield, the doctors and nurses were on. Putting on their best armor as they trailed on for her life. At every minute, her pressure and heart rate were announced as the surgery proceeded to determine if she fell in danger at any point.

So far so good, everything was going well. It seemed they had the heavens on their side. Not until suddenly her heart dropped. " Beep...." The red curvy line on the monitor had suddenly turned into a straight line. Their worst nightmare had hit at the most unexpected moment.

" What happened ?" the doctor barked in terror. " Not sure what went wrong." the nurse in charge of the monitor cried. The ward was soon thrown into desperation.

" Hurry~ the Defibrillator" He ordered. " Shoot " He went on. Once, twice and it continued but nothing. His hands reflexed to his sides with all hopes lost.

Checking at the time on the wall, he announced. " Name, Phoenix Derricks, Cause of death; cardiac arrest. Time, 1 am...Death registered."