A TRUTH NO ONE EXPECTED
The emergency room doors slammed shut.
Tomás stood frozen.
His arms… suddenly empty.
As if something had been ripped out of him.
“Sir, please sit down,” a nurse said gently.
But he couldn’t.
He wouldn’t.
“How is she? Tell me what’s happening!”
“They’re doing everything they can.”
Everything they can.
That phrase meant nothing.
Minutes felt like hours.
Santiago sat beside him, silent now.
Too silent.
Not crying.
Not speaking.
Just staring at the floor.
That scared Tomás even more.
A doctor finally walked out.
Serious face.
Tired eyes.
“Are you the father?”
“Yes. How is she?”
The doctor paused.
And that pause…
was terrifying.
“She is severely dehydrated… malnourished… and has a very high infection.”
Tomás felt his chest tighten.
“She hasn’t eaten properly in days?”
Tomás shook his head slowly.
“I… I didn’t know…”
The doctor looked at him sharply.
“You didn’t know your children were alone for three days?”
The words hit like a slap.
“I—”
But there was no excuse.
None.
“She’s critical,” the doctor continued.
“We are stabilizing her now, but the next 24 hours are… very important.”
Very important.
That meant danger.
That meant—
she might not survive.
Santiago tugged his sleeve.
“Daddy… I’m hungry…”
Tomás broke.
Completely.
He dropped to his knees, hugging his son tightly.
“I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry…”
That night—
He didn’t leave the hospital.
Not for a second.
Hours later, another nurse approached quietly.
“Sir… there’s something else.”
Tomás looked up.
“What?”
She hesitated.
Then said softly—
“Your daughter… she didn’t just collapse from hunger.”
Tomás frowned.
“What do you mean?”
The nurse glanced around, lowering her voice.
“There are signs… that she may have been given something.”
Silence.
Cold.
Heavy.
“What are you saying?” Tomás whispered.
The nurse met his eyes.
“We suspect… poisoning.”
Tomás stood up slowly.
His mind racing.
“No… that’s impossible…”
But deep down—
Something didn’t feel impossible anymore.
And suddenly…
One person came to mind.
Leticia.
To be continued in Part 04
Click Here : [Part 4] DADDY, MY LITTLE SISTER WON’T WAKE UP, WE HAVEN’T EATEN IN THREE DAYS!
