With fear.
Because he suddenly understood how close they had come to signing the wrong death certificate.
The staff rushed the newborn out.
Camila kept crying uncontrollably.
Alejandro stepped toward Mariana slowly.
She instinctively stepped backward.
Now that the adrenaline was fading, pain rushed into her body all at once.
Her hands burned.
Her knees trembled.
Her back ached.
And beneath everything else came the crushing realization of what she had done.
She had challenged doctors.
Interrupted procedures.
Broken every rule protecting people like him and punishing people like her.
Alejandro spoke carefully.
• “What’s your name?”
• “Mariana.”
• “Mariana… you…”
His voice broke.
He couldn’t finish.
Because some gratitude is too enormous for language.
She lowered her eyes.
• “He’s still fighting.”
Then the doors burst open.
Security arrived alongside the head nurse, whose face had gone pale with rage.
• “Remove her immediately.”
Alejandro turned sharply.
• “Don’t touch her.”
• “Mr. Vargas, this employee interfered with a critical procedure—”
• “That employee saved my son after all of you gave up on him.”
The hallway fell silent.
The head nurse stiffened.
• “We do not know that yet.”
The neonatologist emerged slowly from the NICU corridor.
Exhausted.
