CHAPTER HUNDRED AND FORTY-SIX

RICHARD’S POV

I was in serious panic, my heart pounding like a freight train. My mother was sprawled on the floor, her face ashen. I could barely breathe as I scrambled for my phone, hands shaking. I dialed 911 with a sense of frantic urgency.

“Please, hurry!” I gasped into the phone, trying to stay calm. “My mother—she’s not breathing properly. I think she’s having a heart attack.”

The operator’s voice was calm and steady, a stark contrast to the storm raging inside me. “Help is on the way. Can you tell me her condition? Is she conscious?”

I knelt beside her, tears stinging my eyes. “No, she’s unconscious. I don’t know how long it’s been like this. Please, just hurry.”

“Stay with her,” the operator instructed. “Perform CPR if you know how.”

I wasn’t trained in CPR, but I followed the operator’s instructions as best I could, my hands trembling as I pressed down on her chest. It felt like hours before the sirens wailed outside. When the paramedics burst in, I practically threw my