Chapter 6 - THE ENVELOPE THAT KNEW SHE WOULD CALL
The hospital smelled of disinfectant and burnt coffee. Nurses moved quickly through the lobby, their shoes squeaking faintly against the polished floor. I had spent so much time there that the building felt less like a place of healing than a second home I never wanted.
Dr. Bennett met us outside his office.
His gaze moved from me to Lucian, then to Elena.
“Amelia, I didn’t realize you were bringing company.”
“I didn’t either,” I said.
Lucian extended his hand. “Lucian Moretti.”
The doctor’s expression changed.
Not fear. Recognition.
They shook hands.
“Dr. Bennett,” Lucian said.
“You know each other?”
“No,” Lucian replied.
Dr. Bennett released his hand. “I’ve heard the name.”
“Most people have.”
The doctor looked uncomfortable.
I noticed.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Nothing,” Dr. Bennett said.
Lucian’s eyes flicked toward him, then back to me.
I suddenly felt caught between two men who knew more than they were willing to say.
“Let’s go inside,” Dr. Bennett said.
The consultation lasted nearly an hour.
There were tests I hadn’t understood, figures I couldn’t remember, and choices presented in careful language. Dr. Bennett explained that the original estimate remained uncertain. Seven days was not a fixed deadline, only the most likely course based on the rate of decline.
I could have less time.
I could have more.
The difference might be hours. It might be several weeks.
The certainty I had carried home the previous day dissolved into something more frightening.
Uncertainty.
When we left the office, I stood in the hallway, gripping the strap of my bag.
“So I’m not necessarily going to die in seven days,” I said.
“No,” Dr. Bennett replied gently. “But you are very ill, Amelia. I don’t want to give you false hope.”
“I understand.”
I didn’t.
I had spent one night saying goodbye to everything. Now the future had opened a narrow door, and I didn’t know whether to walk through it or distrust it.
Lucian stood a short distance away, speaking quietly with Elena.
Dr. Bennett lowered his voice. “Are you sure you’re comfortable with him being involved?”
I looked toward Lucian.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
The doctor hesitated.
“Dr. Bennett.”
He sighed. “Your mother came to see me once.”
The hallway seemed to grow still.
“When?”
“Years ago. Before you became my patient.”
“What did she want?”
“She asked whether I knew anyone who could help with certain financial arrangements.”
“Financial arrangements?”
“She was worried about what would happen to you if your father didn’t return.”
My fingers went cold.
“What did you tell her?”
“That I wasn’t a financial adviser.”
“Did she mention Lucian?”
The doctor looked toward him.
“No,” he said. “But she mentioned the Moretti family.”
I struggled to breathe normally.
“What kind of arrangements?”
“She wanted to establish a trust for you.”
“Did she?”
“I don’t know. She never came back.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I didn’t think it was relevant to your medical care, and because your mother asked me to keep the conversation private.”
I glanced at Lucian again.
He was no longer speaking with Elena. He was watching me.
“Did she say what she was afraid of?”
Dr. Bennett’s face softened.
“She said she had made mistakes. She wanted to make sure you would have choices even if she could no longer provide them.”
My throat tightened.
“My mother died eight years ago. Why didn’t she leave me anything?”
“I can’t answer that.”
Behind us, a door opened.
A nurse stepped into the hallway holding a thin file.
“Dr. Bennett, this was left at reception for Amelia Carter.”
The doctor took the file.
“There’s no name,” the nurse said. “Only her apartment address.”
I stared at the plain brown envelope attached to its cover.
My address had been handwritten across the front in familiar looping letters.
My mother’s handwriting.
Lucian came toward us.
“What is it?” he asked.
I couldn’t answer.
Dr. Bennett handed me the envelope.
My hands trembled as I turned it over.
There was no seal. No return address.
May you like
Only a single line written beneath my name:
For the day you finally call Lucian Moretti.
