Raisem's POV
Luck had never been on my side. Not once, not ever.
From the day I was born, people whispered that I was cursed. They said I swallowed my mother, that my birth was the reason she died. I never saw her face, never heard her voice, never felt her arms around me. Just stories, blame and silence that devoured me for years.
The next day after I was born, my father died in a car accident.
Just like that, I was alone. Except for my grandmother. She was the only one who stayed. The only one who looked at me and didn't see death trailing behind.
She raised me with trembling hands and a strong spine, teaching me how to survive when the world clearly didn't want me to.
She stood by me while I built my empire from nothing. Watched me turn pain into ambition, grief into fire. Now, I owned the biggest company in the world, Mavo Groups.
My name moved markets. My decisions shaped futures.Yet, the bad luck never left.
It clung to me like a shadow, like a shield I never asked for.
Last night, it struck again. I found out I had Cancer. Brain cancer. Nine months left.
That was all the doctor said. No surgery, no miracle treatment and no false hope. Chemotherapy wouldn't save me, so I didn't bother.
I didn't want my last months filled with hospital smells and needles. I chose acceptance.
But then I thought about my grandmother.
The image of her sitting alone in that quiet house crushed something in my chest. I wanted to stay. I wanted to protect her from another loss. Still, I refused treatment. It wouldn't work anyway. The doctor made that very clear. It was too late for me, Raisem Lothwood.
That night, I drank more than usual. The alcohol burned my throat, numbed my thoughts and blurred my judgment. I picked up my car keys—something I should never have done.
And then… everything happened too fast. I lost control, I didn't see the girl.
The impact was brutal. Metal screeched and glass shattered. At that moment, I felt suffocated, dizzy wave of fear engulfed me.
The sound haunted me even now. My hands were shaking as I sat in the hospital chair. I sucked in deep breaths trying to calm myself but the lingering terror clung to me. What made it worse, was the blood on my hands.
Not mine but the innocent girl I ran into.
My stomach twisted violently as the reality sank deeper, hitting me like a punch in thegut.
My breathing came out uneven, shallow. What have I done? The question echoed endlessly in my mind as guilt dragged me down like quicksand.
The doctor's voice suddenly cut through, his gentle voice rang out startling me as I looked over.
"Are you with the victim?"
I lifted my head slowly and nodded.
"Can we have a word?" Austin asked.
Another nod. I felt like a puppet, responding without thinking.
"What were you thinking drunk driving? what if someone saw you that would ruin your whole life and not forget the company you've spent all your life on."
He scolded me like a careless child. I could barely focus on his words. My jaw tightened. I hissed softly and nodded again, swallowing the anger and shame clawing at my throat.
"The patient was lucky to survive we were able to help but I'm afraid she sustained a huge injury in her brain and this could make her loose a few part of her memory especially the recent ones."
My chest tightened.
"Brain damage?" The words slipped out, stunned.
"Yeah, from the looks of it, it seems she was involved in an accident before you ran into her like a bulldozer."
I froze.
Everything around me went silent. The beeping machines, the footsteps in the hallway. Even my thoughts stalled.
"Is she going to die?" My voice came out calm, too calm for the chaos tearing through me.
"I can't say but the surgery was successful, we can only pray and hope. Then look for a way to reach out to her family." Austin placed his hands on my shoulders but nothing could stop the collapse happening inside.
I scoffed and dropped back into the chair. My head fell into my palms. It felt like my entire world was crumbling piece by piece.
Why did she have to get me into so much trouble and ran into my car I hissed bitterly, trying and failing to push the blame away from myself.
Austin slid into the seat beside me. "How about you, how are you?"
I let out a breathless laugh, empty and forced.
"Apart from the fact the doctor told me, I had nine months left to live I'm good I can't wait to die." I stretched my lips into something that resembled a smile.
"Dude!!!" He hit my shoulder playfully, trying to lighten the moment, but a nurse rushed toward us.
" Dr Austin, you're needed in the emergency ward" she said softly.
He ran his hand through my hair like he used to when things got heavy. I slapped it away gently, not in the mood. He rushed off without another word.
I sat there, lost, until some movements caught my eye. It was my grandmother.
She ran toward me, fear written plainly on her face. Her breath was uneven as she reached me, her hands trembling when she pulled me into a tight hug.
She grabbed my cheeks gently, inspecting my face like I might disappear.
She was shaking.
"Are you okay? what would I tell your mother if anything happened to you? " Her voice broke as she sobbed.
"I am fine grandma, I was the one who almost killed a freak who ran into my car" The words tasted bitter, but I said them anyway.
"Is she okay?" Her eyes searched mine desperately.
I nodded, choosing silence over truth.
"I am just happy you are okay." She pulled me into her chest again, holding me like I was still a child. She was always worried about everything. I never blamed her.
As she held my face between her palms and clasped my bloody hands, something shattered inside me. I wanted to tell her about the cancer. I wanted to tell her the truth.
But I couldn't.
It would destroy her. Everyone had already left her. Her husband, her child, her family. I was all she had left.
And she was all I had left.
"Once the girl wakes up we should compensate her." her voice barely above a whisper.
I nodded slowly, holding her hands tightly in mine.
I couldn't leave her. Not ever. And I couldn't tell her about the cancer either.
Then a thought crossed my mind—dark, desperate, and insane.
What if I impregnate someone and within the 9 months I have left, the child would be born, a replica of me so grandma would never be alone. She will have the child instead...?
The idea settled in my chest, heavy but strangely comforting.
It sounded crazy, but it sounded… possible.
The only question was,
Who would be qualified enough to carry the heir to Mavo Groups?