First Love After Marriage by Flora Nancy
Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Chapter 26

The commotion outside grew ever more thunderous, and a man of age around 50 years old shouted, his voice resounding in the ward. “Let us in at once, or you will all suffer the consequences!”

“I regret to inform you, sir, that our patients within these walls require their family’s consent and must obtain the visiting pass before gaining entry.”

The head nurse pressed firmly against the door in a desperate attempt to explain.

“It’s so ridiculous! I’ve come to see my mother, and you demand her family’s consent? I am her family! If you don’t open this door immediately, don’t blame me for being rude.”

“Yes! Both of us are Iris’s sons, and this person beside us is Iris’s daughter,” added another impatient man in his forties.

“No more nonsense! Hey, everyone, look at these nurses, who dare to prevent us from visiting our own mother. Is there no justice?”

Their loud voices echoed throughout the entire floor, making Nadia hurriedly emerge from the ward.

Then, Nadia saw the three people at the doorway and a group of nurses facing them.

The keen–eyed Ed immediately spotted Nadia and pointed a finger at her, unleashing a string of curses.

“You wretched woman! Now that you see us coming, you come and let us in quickly!”

Juana, who was standing by his side, vigorously winked at Ed and whispered, “Ed, have you forgotten our purpose for coming here today?”

She turned to Nadia, wearing a smile on her face. “Nadia, we’ve come to see your grandmother. Please, speak to the nurse and allow us to enter.”

As Nadia gazed at the three individuals by the door, she suddenly had a bad feeling.

How did they replace out that Iris was in this hospital?

Before, whenever Nadia attempted to contact Ed, Andrew, or Juana, they either ignored her calls or simply hung up. Now, unexpectedly, they all came here to visit Iris together.

Ignoring Juana’s words, Nadia approached the head nurse. “Please issue visiting passes for all of them. Thank you!”

The head nurse glanced at the three people standing in the doorway. “This way, please!”

It didn’t take long before they obtained their visiting passes.

Ed cradled a bag of bananas in his hand. Juana clutched three apples, and Andrew carried nothing, entering Iris’s ward empty–handed.

Upon stepping into the ward, they were taken aback by its opulent decor, rendering them momentarily speechless.

Juana observed the area, looking left and right. She even sat on the leather couch, blew on the armrest of it, and touched it, marveling at its luxurious texture.

“Oh my, Ed, this couch is made of leather!”

She had never set foot in such an upscale ward before, and she reckoned that a single day’s stay here would cost over 1000. dollars.

“Indeed! Look at this TV. It must be at least 100 inches.”

It was much bigger than the one in his own home.

Nadia could no longer suppress her growing irritation. They were there to visit Iris, but in reality, the moment they entered the room, nor a single one of them asked about Iris’s well–being. Instead, they seemed fixated on the lavish decorations of the ward.

She didn’t think that they would come here just to visit Iris.

When Iris heard their voices outside, she called out, “Ed, is that you?”

With a bag of bananas in his hand, Ed discreetly signaled Juana to join him in entering Iris’s ward.

“Yeah, it’s me. We all came to visit you. Are you feeling better?”

“Mother, why didn’t you tell us that you were sick earlier?”

“Yeah, we had no idea you were sick. If you hadn’t called Ed, we’d still know nothing about that.”

Glancing at Iris, Andrew said with a hint of displeasure in his tone.

Nadia looked at Ed. Andrew, and Juana with deep disdain.

Chapter 26

She had called them first, but none of them answered. She then messaged each of them individually, only to receive no response. Now, they had the audacity to say that they knew nothing.

Yet, over the years, she had long come to understand the true nature of Ed, Andrew, and Juana.

Whenever money was involved, they would always play dumb.

But if there was something to gain, they sprinted ahead of everyone else.

While her mother was toiling at the construction site, a digger struck her in the back of the head one day, rendering her unconscious, and her mother passed away before reaching the hospital.

The site supervisor offered some solace by providing the compensation of 40 thousand dollars, which their father had intended to save for her and her sister’s education.

However, Ed came to know about this compensation and approached their father for a loan, saying that he needed to start a business with the money. At that time, her father thought that the interest rate of the bank was low, and Ed was his brother anyway, so he lent the money to Ed.

With the borrowed sum, Ed set up a supermarket in their hometown. Yet, whenever her father asked him to repay money, Ed would say that the supermarket struggled to make profits and remained in the red.

Tragically, her father met with an accident a year later, and Ed still didn’t repay the money.

Following her father’s demise, Ed conveniently forgot that he owed 40 thousand dollars.

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He even contemplated giving her and her sister away to someone else. If it were not for Iris, who came to their rescue, Nadia and her sister might be somewhere else that nobody knew.

Her father, who worked as a car repairman, received a call that there was a car accident at midnight, so he rode at motorcycle to the scene. However, his motorcycle collided with a garbage truck in a corner.

The main responsibility fell on her father due to an illegal turn, and the compensation received amounted to approximately over 20 thousand dollars.

The money was shared equally between Andrew and Juana in the end, and each of them got 10 thousand dollars. They promised to keep the money for Nadia and her sister.

However, it became apparent that Juana and Andrew had privately taken possession of the entire sum, leaving Nadia and her sister without a penny.

Even Iris couldn’t do anything with that.

Ed, devoid of any written agreement, borrowed her mother’s compensation, and with the passing of her father, any chance. of obtaining evidence or reimbursement dwindled. Ed continued to deny having taken the money.

Juana and Andrew noticed that Ed hadn’t returned the full 40 thousand dollars. They even felt aggrieved since they merely got 10 thousand dollars each. Therefore, they also refused to pay back the money.

Nadia learned all this from her sister because she was young at that time and the memories remained blurry in her mind. As Nadia thought of all this, a fiery hatred swelled within her for those elders.

She took out her cell phone and presented the earlier message she had sent to them.

“Ed, these are the messages I sent you, as well as those I sent to Juana and Andrew. Look, I can check them all here.

“Now, since you’re all here, let us divide the burden among us. Since Iris‘ surgery expenses and post–treatment costs sum up to a staggering 110 thousand dollars.”

“Nadia, it’s not that I’m unwilling to pay for that, but my supermarket has never turned a profit, and I’ve racked up around 100 thousand dollars in debt. I simply cannot afford it.”

Ed’s face contorted with bitterness as he responded.

“So do I. Driving a taxi every day barely keeps me afloat, let alone saving money. I really have no extra money!”

“I am a married daughter. The financial matters of this family are none of my concerns. Besides, as you know, the economic power lies with your uncle–in–law. I have no authority to intervene.

“I heard that the medical bills have been paid, and now, Mom could even live in such a luxurious hospital room. These are all thanks to you, Nadia.”

Juana held Nadia’s hand and said with a fake smile..

Then, she even took Nadia’s arm, her eyes glimmering with intent. “I heard you’ve married someone now. You must not blindly follow their lead. A girl in her in–laws‘ house must assert her position and not lower her head”

“That’s right. Look at your sister. Had she listened to us from the beginning and asked her husband for a substantial engagement gift worth 60 or 100 thousand dollars, she wouldn’t be suffering now.”

It suddenly dawned on Nadia the real reason why Ed and the others came today after hearing what they said.

14:27

Chapter 27