MEREDITH'S POV
I was still numb the next morning. My lips were cracked, and my throat was dry. I didn't sleep much last night, mainly because of what happened with Simon. I lost mobility for an hour or two and apart of me worried he was going to come back to my flat and have another go at me. My vagina was rubbed raw and sore. I'd been saving myself for the one and to think this was how I lost my virginity. I drank some water, then got myself ready for the hospital. I needed to take some clean clothes for my mom. She should wake up any time now since she just had her first surgery. If this didn't work, and she didn't get any better then our next stop was a heart transplant. I mustered up the strength I needed to get through the rest of the day. I just couldn't pity myself right now. So what if I was raped by my neighbour? My mother was in the hospital fighting for her life. I couldn't act selfish and think about myself now. Plus, Simon warned me he would kill my mom if I ever told anyone. The taxi dropped me off at the hospital and I paid the driver in quarters. He grumbled, but he had to take them. It was all the money I had. At least it was payday. I planned to collect my check at the diner later on after visitation was over. My mother was sleeping when I entered her room. Her care and hospital bills was where most of my cash went to. I was neck high in debts, plus I was barely hanging on by a thread. I had loans that were overdue and my job as a waitress was not pulling the dollars I needed to take care of everything. So I sacrificed food, rent and paying the loans so I could take care of the parts of my mother's treatments that wasn't covered by insurance. We weren't always like this. We lived in the suburbs most of my life in a nice house in a nice neighbourhood. We were easily upper middle class, but everything went to shit when my mother married John Crow, a handsome Italian immigrant. He was maybe ten years younger than her, but he fooled her into thinking he loved her. He was even good to me. We never saw his treachery coming. Turned out John wasn't who he said he was. He was a gambling addict, and he gambled away my mother's savings. My mom had her first heart attack when she learnt we were broke. Her half a million dollars in savings was gone, just like that. When my mother confronted John, he gave her a crappy story about being scammed by some big shot Credit Union. But that was just another lie. John left us in the middle of the night with all of my mother's jewelleries and expensive family heirlooms. My mother sank into depression and had her second heart attack a few months ago when the bank came to repossess our home. My mother told them that the house was fully paid for, only to learn that John Crow forged my mom's signature and took out two mortgages on our house. Having two hearth attacks so close to each other put a strain on my mother's health. She got so sick and so weak, she was unable to work anymore. She was a Financial Broker and a very successful one too. Money stopped coming in and the stress of it all didn't help her condition and as the months passed by; she became worse. I had to drop out of college, so I could bathe her, feed her and make sure she was OK. I didn't mind doing it. My mother was my everything since my father left us for his Sugar Baby when I was four and, aside from his occasional Christmas and birthday gifts, I hadn't seen or spoken to him since I was ten. "Miss Carver, there you are," Doctor Baldwin chirped. "Can I talk to you for a second?" "Sure, Doctor," I said as I kissed my mother on her forehead and headed in the hallway to hear what the doctor had to say. "I'm not going to beat around the bush, Miss Carver," the doctor began. "The surgery was a success, but it didn't work out the way we wanted it to." "What do you mean, doctor?" I asked. "It means that we only bought her eight months to a year tops. If she doesn't get a heart transplant, then she will die," he let out, clutching the clipboard to his chest. My eyes pooled with tears. I couldn't let my mother die. "How much will it cost?" Doctor Baldwin eyed me with pity. He handed me an invoice. "This is the cost of the surgery. There are programs that your mother might be qualified to get financial aid, but I'm afraid you still will be left with a hefty bill." I looked down at the papers he gave me. My lips trembled when I saw the monetary services listed. I had already used most of them for my mother's first surgery, and they wouldn't grant me any more help. I gulped when I read the total on the invoice. "2,467,070.92." My knees wobbled. "Where will I find over two million dollars from?" Our insurance would cover maybe fifty thousand dollars if we were lucky. "And that's not the worse part, Miss Carver. Your mother is still on the heart transplant list and if you even come up with the money and there's no heart then —" "She still may die," I finished for him. "Yes. I also have a list of a few support groups that may help you cope with all of this," he handed me another list. "Good luck Meredith. Your mother is lucky to have a daughter like you." I shook his hand. “Thank you again, Dr. Baldwin. I appreciate all that you’ve done for me and my mother.” “You’re welcome, Meredith. You take care of yourself now,” he smiled. “I will,” I answered. I lingered in the hallway alone for a while, looking down on the figure once more. I shook my head. I felt defeated. I had to come up with this money to help my mother and I was willing to do anything to get it.MEREDITH'S POVAfter crying and feeling sorry for myself, I went back inside my mother's hospital room. “Hey cupcake.” Her voice was hoarse. “Hey mom, how are you feeling?” I smiled. “Like I could run a marathon,” she lied. Her blue eyes that once sparkled so bright was pale and tired. “Come here, honey,” she opened her arms, and I gave her a hug. She hissed when I lie on her chest. “Does it hurt?” I asked. “Yes, but not as much as seeing my only child sad. You will be OK, honey. You just finish up school and get your degree. You don't worry about little old me,” my mother insisted. She had no clue that I dropped out of school and used my remanding tuition to help with her medical expenses. “OK mom. I will.” I spent the next hour with her until the doctors put her to sleep again. I went to the women's ward and got myself washed out because Simon didn't use a condom. I explained to the nurse that I was raped, she advised me to go to the police, but I told her I'd be fine. Being t
MAXIMILIAN'S POV“Do you smell that, buddy?” Paxton sniffed the air as soon as we stepped out of my chopper. The night was hot and the air dry, making me uncomfortable. "That's the smell of booze and pussy, my friend," he grinned, patting me on the back. I snickered. I didn't feel like partying tonight or any other night for the rest of my life. Not after what Kimberly did to me. I just didn't find pleasure or happiness in things I normally liked. I told myself that those things were temporary, but money and success could last a lifetime if you were smart enough. "C'mon man, don't be a party pooper," Paxton whined. “They'll be other women. You're Maximilian McTavish for Christ's sake. Women are literally lined up to suck the fart out your ass.” His last remark made me chuckle. “See, buddy. That's the spirit. There's no place to go fuck someone out your system better than Las Vegas.” “What if I don't want to fuck her out of my system?” I grunted, bending my collar while the both of us
MEREDITH'S POV Six months had passed since I'd been working for Mr. Fuller, and he was true to his word, I only had to pour the liquor and light the occasional cigar. I thought for sure I would be groped and belittled by now. God knows how many times I had my ass smacked while I was serving as a waitress. I stepped out of the car and was ushered inside the hotel's lobby by Brenda. I was nervous. This was the first time I'd been away from home since my mother was sick. The money I had been making as Mr. Fuller's bartender was enough to pay the hospital bills and buy my mother's medication. The tips I made were suitable to pay my rent and buy my food. Now I just needed a raise so I could save for the down payment on my mother's heart transplant. A ping came in on Brenda's phone. “Wait! It's a voice note from Lenox,” she informed me. She clicked the play button. 'Hey, Darling. Did you ask Meredith to work the floor tonight? If so, please let me know. I miss you my little sugar pus
MAXIMILIAN’S POV My meeting was a success. I finally closed that deal with Addison Corporation after five years. It wasn't an easy road, but my patience and dedication had finally paid off. I turned down celebratory drinks in the Valley with my workers so that I could have my driver take me home to my girlfriend, Kimberly. A text or phone call wouldn't suffice to share my good news with her. I wanted to do it in person. Seven hours later and I was back in my Penthouse Suite overlooking the heart of New York City. But one would think the city was experiencing a blackout if it wasn't for the lights pelting in through the enormous glass windows. “Why was it so dark in here?” I muttered under my breath, shrugging my coat off and then setting it on the rack by the door. I peeled off my shoes and flexed my tired muscles before placing my boots on the stand next to the coat rack. Undoing my cufflinks, I called out; “Kimberly.” But the sound of thunder crashing through the sky d
MAXIMILIAN'S POV "HOW LONG?” I yelled, my voice nearly breaking. Kimmy was full-on bawling, so it was Asher who answered. "A little over a year.” My heart absorbed the words upon impact. I couldn't fucking believe it. My girlfriend and my little brother. Fucking… For a year… Under my roof… While I was still fucking her. Disgust slammed into my body with the force of a tidal wave. I rushed into the bedroom, shoving both of them out of the way. My mind was spiralling and my heart was grieving. I needed to know something. I checked the floor, the bin, under the fucking bed for it. I peeled the remaining covers off the bed. My eyes darted around everywhere, but they didn't find what I was looking for. “Where is it?” I asked, the two cheaters looked at each other like I was speaking a foreign language they couldn't understand. “Where the fuck is the condom wrapper? Please tell me you at least used one.” But the looks on their faces told me otherwise. “JESUS FUCKING CHRIS
MEREDITH'S POV Tired, stressed, hungry, and depressed. These were the emotions I was living with these days. Brenda, my best friend, pulled up to my building. “No, not the front. Take me around the back,” I told her. “Mer, don't tell me you owe Mr. Smith rent again.” “OK Bren, I don't owe Mr. Smith rent,” I snickered. Brenda pulled up around the back. “How much?” She asked. “Three thousand six hundred dollars,” I sighed. “That's three months!” Brenda exclaimed. “Why didn't you tell me sooner?” “Brenda, I can't keep taking money from you. You already helped me out with food and meds for my mother. I can't keep pressuring you like this.” “Are you fucking kidding me? I am your best friend, and you and your mom had been there for me since I was eight and going through shit with my step-father. I could never repay you guys for what you did for me,” she hugged me, then she opened her purse. “This is all the cash I have on me now. Give it to Mr. Smith and tell him you'll