One Night Stand With My Husband’s Brother

Mackenzie boarded a taxi and went straight home, ignored the untidiness of the house and picked up two simple outfits and shoved them in a bag. Then she bathed and shaved properly, barely bothering with skincare.

Mackenzie got into the hospital and went up to the secretary’s desk.

“Good day, Mrs. Axford. How are you feeling today?”

“Hello, Cecilia. I’m doing well, thank you. How about yourself?”

“I’m doing fine. How can I assist you today?”

“I have an appointment with Dr. Paul.”

“Of course, Mrs. Axford. Right this way.”

Guided as a priority patient, she soon found herself face-to-face with Dr. Paul, who appeared relieved at her arrival.

“Ah, Mrs. Axford,” he greeted warmly. “I’m pleased you made it. Your husband has given us the green light to begin your treatments. You’ve arrived at just the right moment.”

“Thank you, doctor.”

Just then, Mackenzie heard familiar voices calling out her name and when she looked, it was her husband and mother-in-law.

“Your husband is here,” Doctor Paul said,

Mackenzie noted the forceful smile on Jeffrey’s face and instantly knew what it was about.

His mother had forcefully brought him here to make a good impression on his father, hadn’t she?

Even with the situation at hand, they had time to be faking. It irritated Mackenzie.

As she settled in the room, she wondered to herself, was this the last scenery she would see?

Ring

Ring

Mackenzie’s awareness was brought back to her phone when she heard that it was ringing and the name flashing on her phone screen was ‘DAD’

Tears went up to Mackenzie’s eyes as she watched the phone ring. It had been too long since they last spoke and this was due to cowardice on her own part.

Mackenzie answered the call.

“Hello?”

A few moments passed before she heard a response.

“Hello dear, it’s been too long! How are you? I called you last night but you didn’t pick up the phone. I had a scary dream about you and when I woke up your message was the first I saw. Are you okay? Is something wrong?”

“Dad…” Mackenzie said, trying to keep herself from breaking into tears. But it was nearly impossible. Hearing her father’s voice like this was soothing and she wanted to bask in it for as long as she could.

As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she needed all the comfort she could get right now. And her father was one of the very few people that could give her that.

“My dear, why do you sound so sad? Have you been overworking yourself, hmm? I kept telling you repeatedly not to send me so much money but you didn’t listen!”

“Dad,” She whispered.

“You don’t have to work too hard, my daughter. If life in the city is too stressful for you, you can come and take a break here. I’ll feed you some sweet potatoes and fresh apples from the farm.”

“Dad, I’m fine really.”

Hearing her father talk like this was somehow very calming. It made her get out of her passive thinking. After all, she could survive this illness. It wasn’t even life-threatening, according to Doctor Paul.

“Are you sure, my dear?”

“Yes. And I’m glad I heard from you, dad.”

“Me too, sweetheart.”

Mackenzie smiled, he really did not know how much his words lifted her spirit.

***************

Eleanor and Jeffery were sitting in the waiting room, neither of them taking the initiative to speak first. Jeffrey was fiddling with his phone. Eleanor, on the other hand, was stealing glances at Jeffrey while clearing her throat.

After minutes of hinting, and not getting her son to pay attention to her, she said, “Mackenzie will be fine right?”

Without looking up from his phone he answered, “Of course, father even intervened.”

Eleanor played with her perfectly manicured fingers and briefly looked up, her mind drifting to the day that Mackenzie first spoke to her.

She had to admit, something about the way Mackenzie had looked at her terrified her.

“Those eyes…” She murmured, squeezing her fingers until they were in a clear fist. “I don’t like those eyes.”

“Eleanor?”

Eleanor followed the familiar voice and a smile instantly etched on her lips after seeing that it was her husband, Richard Axford that had just arrived.

She stylishly pinched her son before standing up to her feet to greet her husband. Jeffrey followed suit.

“Where’s Mackenzie? Has the surgery commenced?”

While Eleanor clung next to her husband, Jeffrey decided to answer the question.

“Mackenzie is already in the theater, father,”

Richard sighed, “So early? I had hoped to see her before.”

“Oh, I’m certain she’ll be in good hands,” Eleanor chimed in with a light chuckle, “She’s under the care of a top-notch medical team.”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

“You’re right,” Richard agreed.

“By the way,” Jeffrey interjected, “What about Selene… I mean, how about Chase and his wife?”

“I understand this is a lot to handle on your own, Jeffrey,” Eleanor sympathized, “Your brother can be headstrong, but I’m sure he deeply cares for you and will be here soon.”

“Are you certain he’s aware of the surgery? He wasn’t present when Mackenzie disclosed her-”

“-I assure you, Selene must have informed him. They’re a tightly-knit couple.”

Jeffrey’s expression turned into a frown.

“Rest assured, I even made a call to him and updated him. He should be on his way here shortly.”

**************

“Doctor, how is she?” Eleanor inquired urgently as a couple of doctors emerged from the theater. One of the faces among them was familiar.

Richard and Jeffrey followed closely, their anticipation palpable.

“Good news for the Axford family. The surgery was a success; the patient will be transferred to a VIP room for recovery.”

“Thank heavens,” Richard let out a breath of relief, while Eleanor managed a forced smile, saying, “I had a feeling she would pull through.”

“However, we’ll need to keep her under observation here for a few days, just to ensure there are no underlying complications.”

“That’s perfectly fine. Doctor, I’m immensely thankful,” Eleanor expressed her gratitude.

“I’m simply performing my duty. And one more thing to note, it’s advisable for the patient to avoid strenuous activities like pregnancy that could strain her body.”

Eleanor and Jeffrey gave each other a look.

After the exchange between the doctors and the Axford family, Mackenzie was moved into a VIP room but was still unconscious.

After taking a look at her, Richard left the hospital, leaving Eleanor and Jeffrey to watch her for a little while longer.

*********

Beep

Beep

Beep

Mackenzie could hear the sound of the machines near her. Although she didn’t have enough strength to open her eyes, she could hear what was going on around her.

She’d heard it.

Her father-in-law’s gratitude that she was alive and her husband’s robotic sound, acknowledging that the surgery was successful.

Mackenzie laid there in a pool of numbness, not feeling her body, although there was the awareness that it was there.

She didn’t know if she should be grateful for surviving the operation.

There were people in the room with her but it felt cold. Too cold.

But it was alright.

If she had told her father about her surgery, he would only be worried and she didn’t want that. She wanted her father to always be happy and worry-free.

“Ahh, Mackenzie certainly has a knack for drawing attention.”

Mackenzie immediately recognized the voice as Eleanor, her mother-in-law.

“The doctor mentioned she’s advised against conceiving at the moment,”

And her husband’s voice…

“Her falling ill did seem like a rather convenient way to gain your father’s sympathy and focus, I have to admit,”

“Mother-”

“-Relax, my dear, she’s in no position to overhear us.”

Mackenzie could detect the playful tone in her mother-in-law’s words.

“I must say, it’s quite vexing that the doctor advised her against attempting pregnancy. If she can’t fulfill even that role, what purpose does she serve?!”

“I allowed you to marry a woman of such low status solely for the sake of bearing you children, and yet she can’t even manage that! The first child she had, died because of her negligence,”

My negligence?

Mackenzie wanted to cry after hearing those hurtful words but she couldn’t even muster the energy to cry.

She remembered how long and painful the labor had been when she was pushing that child from her womb. She’d listen to all of the nurses’ instructions to ensure the child would be born safely. But when the child was finally out, he had no breath in him.

How was that her fault?!

She did everything she possibly could but it was futile!

Mackenzie wanted to scream.

And as the urge passed, she started to feel cold sensations on her skin, and judging from the smells and movements around her, she understood that nurses were in the room with her, and they had their hands on her body.

Aren’t you ashamed?!

Mackenzie wanted to shout at Jeffrey and her mother-in-law but her body wouldn’t listen to her.

“After the child died, we lost a great opportunity to secure the percentage of share your father promised. That’s all this wrecked bitch’s fault! She should have just died at that time instead of the baby!”

Mackenzie was fuming with rage but her body could not express her feelings.

“But since she didn’t die, the least she could do is give birth to one child but she didn’t! I’ve never seen a woman as lazy as this one. We changed her life by bringing her into our family, we even gave her money but she didn’t fulfill her end of the bargain by giving us a child.”

Mackenzie was screaming in her head but most importantly, she was deeply regretful.

She regretted her past decisions.

It was her fault.

She sold her dignity. And that was why her child died.

It was all her fault.

For being so reckless and inhumane.

By treating her child as a tool to getting Jeffrey’s affection back, she lost…

The very essence of her being her humanity!

She felt herself engulfed by strange sensations.

“Oh my God! Something is wrong with the patient.”

By hearing the alarm in the nurse’s voice, Mackenzie could finally feel her muscles moving as though struggling against the sensations but it was no good, she felt powerless with her arms and legs moving at a swift pace intrinsically.

“I think she’s having a seizure. Someone go get the doctor!”

Mackenzie felt the heat of the nurses’ body temperature above her as they tried to stabilize her.

“Oh my God, her heart rate is dropping!” One of the nurses yelled as the machines started making urgent beeping sounds.

She too could feel it…

Her breath slowed down, but she didn’t dislike the feeling. It was warm.

As the chaos spread, Mackenzie heard the nurses telling her mother-in-law and husband to leave.

Soon, a doctor arrived and she heard orders being given to pump her heart with medical tools she’d never heard of before.

While the medical personnel worked to save her life, Mackenzie decided that this was it. As she initially thought, she was not going to make it.

Her only regret was that she couldn’t see her father one last time.