Chapter 12 - The Boardroom CoupThe executive conference room on the fifth floor of San Gabriel Civil Hospital was choked with tension.
When I burst through the double doors, I expected to see hospital administrators, security chiefs, or local police. Instead, I found a half-dozen unfamiliar faces in custom-tailored charcoal suits sitting around the polished mahogany table. At the head of the table sat a woman I had never seen before: tall, immaculate, with short silver hair, piercing ice-blue eyes, and an expression colder than a winter storm.
Dr. Henderson, our hospital director, was standing near the corner, looking pale and thoroughly defeated, her hands trembling as she clutched a leather portfolio.
"Dr. Rivera," the silver-haired woman said, her voice cutting through the heavy silence like a scalpel. "Please, take a seat."
"Who are you, and what is the meaning of this interruption?" I demanded, remaining standing near the door, my hands clenched into fists at my sides. "This is an active pediatric care zone, and—"
"My name is Katherine Vance," she interrupted smoothly, crossing her legs with effortless arrogance. "Victor Vance’s older sister. And, effective as of nine o'clock this morning, the majority stakeholder and chairperson of the Vance Foundation, which currently holds the financial debt and operational lease of San Gabriel Civil Hospital."
The room seemed to tilt on its axis.
Vance's sister.
"Victor is in federal custody," I said, my voice rising in anger. "Your family's corruption is being dismantled by the Department of Justice. You have no legal authority here!"
Katherine smiled—a thin, cruel smirk that bore a terrifying resemblance to her brother's.
"My brother was a brilliant visionary, Daniel, but he was careless. He allowed personal vendettas to cloud his business judgment," Katherine said, standing up and walking slowly toward me. "He wanted to play games with you and that dead girl, Mariana. I don't play games. I clean house."
She reached into her designer jacket, pulled out a thick legal document, and tossed it onto the table in front of Dr. Henderson.
"As of today," Katherine continued, locking her cold eyes onto mine, "the hospital is exercising an emergency continuity clause due to 'unforeseen operational liabilities and ethical breaches' tied to your department. Specifically, the unauthorized housing of unverified minors—namely, Sofia, Mateo, and Lucía Morales."
My blood turned to liquid ice. "You leave the children out of this."
"They don't belong to you, Doctor. Legally, you are just an emergency physician who overstepped his bounds," Katherine hissed, stepping closer. "By sundown, child protective services—operating under our foundation's private charter—will arrive to take custody of the three children and relocate them to a secure state facility. And you? You will be stripped of your medical license for professional misconduct."
May you like
She leaned in close, her breath smelling of expensive mint and poison.
"You took everything from my brother, Daniel. Now, I'm going to take everything from you."
