Chapter 13 A Mother's Burden

As Maya walked along the hospital lobby, her mind and body were not together. She was walking aimlessly when she thought of the struggles her mother went through with her younger sister before being diagnosed with brain tumour.

Martha left their village after her parents-in-law were charged with illegal medical practice. The humiliation, shock and plenty of debt later led to her in-laws' death. Her husband had died three years earlier, so she left with her two daughters; Maya and her younger sister.

They moved to a more advanced village with little or no infrastructure. She did all the menial jobs, took multiple shifts so that they could make ends meet. They were living within their little earnings, contented until a tragedy struck. Her younger daughter developed a seizure as a result of the attack in their previous village. The occurrence became persistent, that it would take them several hours before she would be subdued.

The seizure became life threatening when she started biting herself, body covered in blood and her mental health affected. The only community hospital had limited staff with no equipment to attend to their patients. Many people died because of this, Maya's younger sister included.

After her sister's death, Maya persuaded her mother and they were able to move to the city. She vowed to become a medical doctor, so that she could help people like her sister. She wanted to prevent the death of teenagers and sufferings of the poor, so she studied hard to enter this city University Teaching Hospital as an intern.

"Watch where you are going," someone yelled at her. She had just collided with a stranger because she wasn't thinking straight.

With tears rolling down her eyes, she shouted, "I can't believe I find myself in this mess after everything I have done to make life better for us. Why is it difficult for the poor to live in peace?" she lamented.

Meanwhile, back at Chairman's Voss villa, Marcus was faced with a frustrated look from his supposed father and a tired look from his mother.

Earlier in the morning, as he was prepping for the farm tour with his bodyguard, his parents drove into their compound. They came to share the good news that the laboratory he requested would be ready soon and also reminded him to keep to the end of his bargain, but they were met with farm implements.

His mother, Sophia, let out a thrilling scream after recovering from her few minutes of shock. She couldn't believe her son had moved from bad to worse. Being a playboy was one thing, but a farmer? That was unacceptable.

"Why do you choose to disgrace your father and me?" she asked. She shot Theo a death glare, instructing him to go inside with the farm implements.

Marcus chuckled, "When has farming become a disgraceful thing? Rich people like exaggeration," he thought as he watched Sophia's dramatic display.

As a mature man, Victor simply studied his son. He noticed the change in his attitude, but he couldn't place his hands on the exact problem.

"What were you thinking? Have you chosen farming as a hobby now? Is that why you bought the house in the remote village?" he questioned.

"I was just planning to get some things there. It's better to change my hobby for better fresh air, Dad. Haven't you been complaining about my attitude lately? You should be happy I stopped causing troubles in the city," Marcus retorted. He knew his father wouldn't want him to go back to being a troublemaker.

Victor sighed heavily, "But... but... okay”, he was short of words.

"At least farming is better than beating and hurting innocent people," he murmured, then he switched in an instant.

"We came here to inform you that the person in charge of the laboratory setup will be here in the evening. You can discuss the layout with him. When are you coming with me to the National Medical Consortium meeting?" he asked.

Apart from listening to some of Ethan's past stories from Theo, Marcus in Ethan's body had also watched some of his videos to study his walking steps, postures and the way he responded to his father.

He moved closer to Victor with a cold stare.

"A deal is a deal. I will get involved only when the laboratory is fully set up," he replied.

He noticed that there wasn't any father-son bond between Victor and his son. He played the perfect father in public, but there was no emotional attachment between them in private. Their relationship was simply transactional and brief.

From what he had learnt from Theo and the videos, he also deduced that Sophia was the busy type too. She was the perfect wealthy mother who allowed nannies and household staff to raise her son. They only came running home whenever he embarrassed the family, but they were never there when he excelled in school.

He had earned numerous awards and completed several additional professional courses just to make his parents proud, but they were never satisfied. They wanted a perfectly programmed son, forgetting that children needed more than financial support. Ethan eventually grew tired of trying to be perfect, so he became everything they hated. At least every scandal guaranteed their attention.

"When the laboratory is ready, you know where to find me. Thanks for ruining my perfect adventure today," he announced rudely before turning around and walking back into the villa.

Both parents were left dumbfounded by their son's attitude. They had expected him to be excited after they fulfilled his request, but instead they were met with cold indifference.

"I thought he would invite us inside," Sophia said quietly. "I was looking forward to spending some mother-and-son time with him. How could he treat us like business associates negotiating contracts?"

Victor let out a frustrated sigh, "When have we ever truly spent time with him? We were both busy parents. I told you countless times to slow down and create time for our son, but you never listened. Can you see it now? My own son finds it difficult to share the same space with me"

After Ethan's near-death accident, Victor and Sophia had both blamed themselves for the reckless life he had chosen. They finally realized they needed to reduce their workload and spend more time with their son. They wanted to make up for the years they had lost, but it seemed Ethan had already closed his heart to them. He no longer expected affection from them, so he treated them like ordinary guests.

"Don't put this all on me, Victor!" Sophia snapped. "You weren't involved in our son's life either, so don't start emotionally blackmailing me. You wanted me to step back while you continued chasing other women, didn't you?"

"Not now, Sophia. We settled that years ago. Fine, I know we treated him like an outsider, but aren't we here to make amends?" Victor asked helplessly.

Sophia laughed bitterly, "Really? You came here to make amends with that commanding tone you used earlier? You should have allowed him to enjoy the news about the laboratory before reminding him about your own plans. Aren't you ashamed to call yourself a father? You're pushing our son further away with the way you speak to him. I'll never forgive you if my son ends up hating me", she broke down in tears.

Victor lowered his head in remorse. He knew he had pushed his son too hard over the years, believing it was the only way to prepare him for the harsh realities of life.

He gently held his wife's hand, "We'll find a way to fix this. We failed him once as parents, but we'll make things right with Ethan", he pulled her into a quiet embrace.

Just then, Maya entered the villa and found her employer's parents wrapped in each other's arms. They quickly stepped apart the moment they noticed her.

Sophia walked toward her with a smile,"Hi, Maya. We need your help”