While Angela was busy trying to find Aiden's phone number from Nick, Aiden was wallowing in disappointment in the hotel bedroom.
It was one thing to be refused treatment by the famous White Chapel hospital.
It was another thing to comfort the dejected Aiden whose high hopes had been crushed by a single rejection.
It was, in fact, not the rejection itself that depressed the young man so. It was the lack of knowledge for the reason for said rejection.
He had the money.
Money was all he needed, right?
So why? Why were they rejected?
Next to him, Grandma Thompson tried her best to comfort her distressed grandson.
"Aiden, listen to Grandma. White Chapel is not the only hospital I can go to. I can go to any hospital. We go back to Harrow Lane first and then we can ask him about the second-best hospital to treat leukemia, alright?"
Aiden sighed. He buried his face in both hands. He never felt this devastated before. Not when his grandmother fainted, not when she was diagnosed with leukemia, and also not when he read the astronomical price of the treatment package on the pamphlet.
Why? Because he always knew what to do next. The closest he came to desperation was when his grandmother decidedly refused Aiden's money unless it came from a trustworthy source.
After overcoming that last hurdle, Aiden put his hope into a single final basket that bore the inscription "White Chapel". Admitting his grandmother to White Chapel was supposed to be the first step toward Grandma Thompson's recovery. Aiden had full trust in the abilities of the vampire doctors. If they could not do it, then no one could.
"Aiden..."
Aiden swallowed back his tears. He could not let his grandmother discover his disappointment. Aiden thus hid his pain deep in his heart and forced himself to smile at his grandmother.
"Grandma, you are right. Why don't I make a call to Dr. Hunter now? Maybe the second-best hospital is in Dominion. We can go straight there."
Grandma Thompson beamed with a smile. She pinched at Aiden's cheek. Although the young man was no longer the six-year-old boy who came to live with her twelve years ago, he would still be a baby in her eyes.
"There's the spirit. While you are on the phone, why don't I order some snacks from the room service?"
Aiden smiled.
"Go ahead, Grandma."
Grandma Thompson waddled to the adjacent room to get the room service menu, leaving Aiden alone in the bedroom.
Aiden grabbed his android and clutched it with both hands.
He took a deep breath and threw himself at the hotel bed.
Was he being too obsessed about White Chapel? Sure, it was the best hospital there was to treat leukemia. No one would fight him about that. Did it mean that no other hospitals successfully treated leukemia? No, of course not. He needed to get rid of his mental block and accept other options.
Yeah.
He should do that.
Aiden opened the address book and found Dr. Hunter's contact information. The doctor had been kind enough to share Aiden his personal phone number just in case Aiden needed him. It turned out that he did.
Before Aiden punched the dial button, his android started to vibrate. On the display, an unknown number was written.
Aiden hesitated to pick up.
Which unknown person would call him?
He had already saved Nick's number.
Maybe it was Serena.
Aiden pressed the accept button and spoke into the phone.
"Hello?"
"Aiden?"
The voice sounded familiar, but Aiden could not put a face to it. It was definitely not Serena.
"Yes, who is this?"
The person on the other side heaved a sigh out of relief.
"Aiden, this is Angela Kendall. Are you and your grandmother still in Dominion?"
"Yes, we are."
"Where are you staying? I am going to pick you up at nine tonight. Mr. Ryan Caldwell would like to take a look at your grandmother."
Mr. Ryan Caldwell?
Caldwell.
The surname alone was enough to freeze the blood in any human being's vein.
-That- Caldwell family?
If Aiden was not mistaken, the Ryan Caldwell often made appearances in the newspaper with or without his grandfather, the mighty Lord Marcus Caldwell. What did the newspaper say about him? Ah yes. They called him the "Prince of The Vampires". Why would such an important person, no, vampire, deign to help two inconsequential human beings?
Thinking that Aiden required more coaxing, Angela added, "Mr. Ryan Caldwell is the director of White Chapel hospital."
True to her words, Angela came to pick Aiden and Grandma Thompson at 9 PM sharp. The luxurious electric limousine looked as if it had just come out of the showroom in the next building.
Aiden and Grandma Thomson never sat in a limousine before. They inadvertently let out a gasp of surprise when they sank into the comfort of the soft cushioned seats with fleece covers.
Most people would feel flattered when treated this way. How many people could boast about being picked up by Ryan Caldwell's personal assistant to meet him in person? Not many. Aiden was just not sure why. He and his grandmother were average people with no outstanding background. To what did they owe the honor?
Despite the increasing unease by the minute, Aiden decided to go through with whatever was coming. They had already been rejected by White Chapel. Now Ryan Caldwell - the director of the hospital himself - for some unknown reason, took pity on them and decided to grant them some help. Aiden would be stupid to say no. He sneaked a furtive glance at his grandmother, who was as calm as the rock in face of the storm. His grandmother turned to smile at him. She reassuringly patted Aiden's hand.
"Don't worry, my child. What else can happen?"
Aiden nodded. He sucked in a deep breath and tried to calm down. His grandmother was right. What else could happen?
The director's office was located on the highest floor in White Chapel hospital. To access the floor, it was necessary to use a special elevator that only limited people had access to. Angela took out a gold card and swiped it at the scanner that was embedded into the wall.
"Ms. Angela Kendall, welcome," the mechanical voice greeted shortly after.
The elevator door opened. Angela stepped aside to let Aiden and his grandmother enter the elevator first.
Once the elevator door closed, a strip of red light started to scan the people inside the elevator. Afterward, the mechanical voice spoke up again.
"Guests, please enter your identification number into the display."
Aiden approached the screen at the wall and entered his and his grandmother's identification number into the system.
"Aiden Thompson, Lily-Anne Thompson, welcome to the 47th floor."
The elevator door opened with a ding sound.
The three people walked into a dark corridor which immediately lit up when the sensor detected movement in the corridor. At the end of the corridor was a double door that opened up to a large lounge.
There was a big television screen at the left side of the room, surrounded by a few leather recliners. At the right side of the room was a reception table manned by an attractive dark-skinned lady with ink-black hair. She rose from her seat as soon as Angela and the two guests entered the lounge.
"Hi, Angela. Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Thompson. Mr. Ryan Caldwell is waiting inside. Please come in."
"Thank you, Harriet. Aiden, Mrs. Thompson, please go ahead."
Angela gestured at a double door located behind Harriet's table. Aiden took his grandmother's hand and they walked toward the door. After knocking three times, Ryan's authoritative voice was heard coming from behind the door.
"Come in."
Aiden opened the door and entered.
Ryan Caldwell sat before a white marble executive desk. On top of it lay a stack of documents. Ryan did not ask the two guests to take a seat. He rose to his feet, smoothed down the white lab coat that he was wearing, and gestured to them to follow him to the adjacent room.
In the adjacent room, a vampire doctor and a nurse were waiting.
"Charles, take Mrs. Thompson for a re-examination. Give me the results within an hour.
Claudia, go with Mr. Thompson to register Mrs. Thompson as a patient. Validate the examination results from the previous hospital, and upload all her historical medical data into the system in an hour."
Claudia just happened to be the nurse who refused Aiden that morning. She repeated what she already told Aiden without blinking.
"Mr. Caldwell Junior, Mrs. Thompson does not qualify for payment in installments."
"Do what I tell you first. I will discuss the term of payment after everything is done."
"Very well."
Charles approached Grandma Thompson with a smile.
"Please come with me, Mrs. Thompson."
Although she had told Aiden not to worry inside the car, the prospect of having a vampire doctor attend to her unwittingly made her nervous. It was Aiden's turn to calm her down then.
"Don't worry, Grandma. Everything will be alright."
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