The Royal Contract

Thirty minutes later, after Alex arrived, a doctor finally appeared in the room with the latest information about Ethan's health condition. "Mr. Hamilton suffered a minor heart attack. Luckily, the paramedics were able to administer immediate care, which stopped the worsening of his condition."

The doctor tried to explain to them more technical terms. But they did not much care about it. "How is he, Doctor?" Laura could not wait anymore as he interrupted the doctor from his diagnosis.

She did not understand much of what the specialist discussed. But she wished to know if her husband would be ok. That was the only thing that mattered to her.

"He is stable for now, but we would still like to run more tests so that we could completely understand what happened to him." The heart specialist informed them.

"Can we see him now?" Dani asked, hoping that it was safe to, at least, see his father even if they could not talk to him. She could not wait to see him, hoping that he would recover soon. 

"Of course, he is now being transferred to his room." The doctor excused himself to attend to his other patients. But he promised that he would closely monitor her father's condition.

The doctor left them in the care of one of the nurses who assisted them to Ethan's private room. Well, it was more like a hotel rather than a hospital when they came out of the elevator.

But nothing but the best for the king of this city himself, Dani thought as they walked in the hallway of the private wing. She could not expect less from her father, who donated an enormous amount to this hospital.

"Thanks," Dani said as the nurse ushered them to a double doors room with a nice view of the city with its floor-to-ceiling windows.

Lying on the bed was her father, with his eyes closed and calmly breathing with some monitors attached to him and an intravenous dripped attached to his arms.

Her father looked so fragile in a hospital gown as if he was just an ordinary father and not the man controlling the city. She never thought that she would ever see him this helpless.

"Is he sleeping?" Her mom asked the nurse who was checking his vitals and the machines.

"As of now, yes, mam." The nurse answered her.

The doctor did explain to them that they had to sedate him so that he would relax and not worsen his condition. But once he regained consciousness, that was the only time they would determine if the attack caused any damage to him. 

Although in his case, since it was just a minor one and caught early, it might not be anything worse than a few muscles paralysis, or it might not have any effect on him at all.

"Thanks." Laura smiled at the young woman, taking care of her husband. She took a seat placed near his bed and held his hand while he slept. 

Dani, Alex, and his uncle stayed standing at her mother's back to give her support. They could only wish that no detrimental harm inflicted Ethan's body during his heart attack.

Her father was a strong and ruthless man when it came to business. But him lying on a hospital bed reminded Dani that he was still human. He was as vulnerable to illness as anyone of them.

"Explain it to me again. Is your father going to need surgery?" Laura asked, concerned about her husband's condition, wanting to know the extent of the situation.

She was not good at this kind of situation. She hated going to hospitals unless it was the last resort. Now, she was here dreading what her husband's condition would end up.

She could only pray that he fully recovered from this incident. But whatever happened, she would be strong for him. She would take care of him until she nursed him back to his health.

"No, not yet anyway. I think the doctors still planned to run some more tests on him if they would need to perform surgery," Dani explained to her mother what she gathered from the doctor's diagnosis earlier.

She could only sympathize with what her mother was going through. As a daughter, she felt the pain of seeing her father in this weakened condition. But for her mother, she must be suffering three times worse or more compared to her.

"Ethan is strong. Have faith in him." Ben said to his sister, assuring her that they would get through this.

"Thanks," Laura answered her brother with so much love. Without him, her life would have been different. 

Because of his brother's undying support of her, even when they were just a child and until now that they had their families, she only had grown capable of handling everything thrown her way.

"I think you should go back to your work." I can handle it from here. Her mom told her. 

A bit calmer after understanding that she had nothing much to worry about since the worse was through. All she had to do was wait for her husband to wake up.

"I can't leave you, Mom. I am staying right here until Dad has regained his consciousness." Dani was not leaving her mom in her current state. 

She might not be crying, but she could sense that her mom was anxious about her father's condition. The worry lines on her forehead were telltale signs that she was not ok.

Her mother could smile all she wanted, but that would never fool her of what she truly felt. She would stay by her mom's side and assured her that her father got everything he needed.

"Alex, Uncle Ben, I know that you have worked to do. Both of you can go back to the office, and we will update you on what is happening here." Dani said, seeing there was no need for them to be present at the moment.

She believed that since her father was already in a stable condition, she and her mother would be just fine to wait until her father woke up from his deep slumber.

"I don't want to leave you." Alex wished to stay with her. His appointments could wait for another time. 

He believed that Dani's needs would always outweigh all his other responsibilities. As long as Dani required him as her side, he would make sure to be present.

"But you have your obligation to your company. That same rule applies to you, Uncle Ben. We can manage on our own." Dani insisted, wanting both of them to be productive.

She would also go back to work if she must. But she knew she would not be doing much work too. Her mind would surely drift back to her father and worry, despite the doctor's reassurance.

"Dani is right." Finally, her uncle realized some sense in what she was saying. "We are not helping them by being here. We could always come back later if need be." 

Hearing Uncle Ben's words, Alex knew that they did make a valid point. "Ok. But you better call me asap if you need me." Alex reminded Dani, finally conceding to what she wanted.

He knew now that he was willing to give up everything for her if she would ask him too. But knowing her, she would never ask him to do any of that.. She was too selfless to think of herself first before others.