Chapter 153: Rhea (II)
A charming yet stern figure stepped out of the old Toyota Hilux, her eyes immediately fixed on the building before her.
She gave the building a long glance before closing the car, and then she walked in.
Straight up to the attendant, she was led to a room...
(Patient Room 117).
She heaved a soft sigh and walked in.
There, the patient she had come to visit was clearly awake and had noticed her the moment she walked in.
"Rhea..."
Rhea couldn't help but let out an emotional smile, one that held sorrow and fear, but she still happened to be strong.
She had to be, for her sister.
"Brea..."
Rhea approached her sister and sat right next to her on the ward bed.
"How are you feeling?" Rhea asked.
"Better," Brea responded with a smile, a clear smile that held a sense of uncertainty... fear... dismay.
"We both know it's the direct opposite, Brea," Rhea muttered as they both gave a tough chuckle.
"I'm gonna figure something out, okay? I'm not gonna let you die, Brea. I will do anything possible to make you be on your feet once again, even if it would cost me my life," Rhea voiced.
Just as they were conversing, the doctor, a female figure who appeared to be in her early forties, suddenly walked in.
"Miss Rhea, right? Thank goodness you are here," she said as she walked in.
"Doctor Ellyn, is there any problem?" Rhea asked, her eyes sharp as her heart began to race.
"Can you meet me in my office? We have a lot to talk about," Doctor Ellyn said.
Rhea gave her sister a glance and smiled. Brea forced a smile back, and with that, Rhea left the room with the doctor, with a body language message that told her sister that she'd be back.
Settling at the office, the doctor began to speak.
"It's getting worse than expected, Miss Rhea. The last scan we made gave us a clear idea that she might never live a week more before she dies... until the transplant is done," the doctor said.
Rhea's heart suddenly jerked, her jaw dropping.
"I'm sorry, Miss Rhea, but you have to find a way somehow. We should be conducting the transplant in three days, or else things might get ugly," Doctor Ellyn added.
Rhea sat there, tears covering her eyes.
For the first time in her life, she felt completely hopeless and helpless.
The last mission they went on wasn't successful, which had made the Boss not pay them.
That was the only hope Rhea had to raise the four hundred and sixty thousand dollars fee for the kidney transplant, and now, it was clear that it would be impossible to raise such an amount of money at this point.
Not when there was no greenlight on another operation.
Rhea felt down, and the best thing she could do at that point was to cry her eyes out in frustration, evacuating the hospital without going back to her sister.
What was the need?
She was completely hopeless.
Rhea went and bought herself a drink, went back to the apartment where she and her sister lived, and began to drink herself to a stupor.
Every drink, every mouthful, helped her picture how things would be when her sister, her only family, dies.
How life would be a complete mess, and how she wouldn't be able to survive without her.
Brea was the only family she had left.
Their parents died within a one-month gap after her mother died of an illness, and her father couldn't help but drink himself to death.
Well, their uncle did nothing but snatch the house from them, and they were left with nothing but to leave the house and find somewhere else to stay.
At just the age of 18, while Brea was just 14, Rhea had to work to make ends meet. From working as a saleswoman to working as a housemaid to make sure her sister had a strong roof to live under.
It was when Brea turned 19 that the kidney issues came up, and now she would die before turning 20.
The age she wanted to see, witness, and enjoy.
The age when she would finally call herself a woman, after being sick and tired of Rhea calling her a girl.
However...
Drastically, it was as if that day would never come.
Rhea continued to drink, until she even began to throw up, completely drained.
Despite the fact that the harsh whisky was doing her no good, she still didn't stop.
Perhaps she figured she might as well die before her sister does.
However, it happened not to go that way...
...
Waking up after hours of passing out, Rhea felt a tough headache, but miraculously, it didn't just go with the headache.
Some unbelievably peak idea suddenly flashed into her head, stunning her at once.
"Ohh-oh," she exclaimed, as a smile brushed her lips.
Rhea immediately stood up, as she dashed out of the house, entered the car and drove right off.
Her next destination was the base, where the rest of the gang met.
Rhea wasn't really part of them in the first place... she had to put herself in this mess just because of her sister.
The guy who had invited her?
It was the guy that Razer killed after questioning him.
Despite the fact that her referrer was dead, Rhea wasn't backing out. Not now, not until she got the money to save her sister's life.
But this time, she just happened to have figured another way, still with the same gang.
"Hey, boss," she greeted.
Thanks to the fact that Razer and the other guys were present in the base, it gave her more courage to bring on what she had in mind.
"Hey, bitch. What took you so long? Your hair's a mess... did you get drunk?" Razer asked as he laughed.
Rhea felt bullied, but that didn't make her back out.
She shook her head in response.
"Well then... I'm figuring maybe you want to ride us. I mean, the four of us?" Razer added, turning to the other guys who laughed back.
Their approach to her was nothing but complete bullying, knowing that she desperately needed the pay they would get after their missions.
At that point, they weren't expecting anything from her, thinking she came for the group's meetup, until she began.
"I have a job for us. One that can give us way more money than the Boss would," Rhea said.
They all flinched at once.
Razer stepped up to her with a stern face. "Stop joking, bitch. I like jokes, but not from a little ratty girl like you."
"I'm certain," she cut in.
Razer's eye glinted, seeing the sincerity on her face. He would swear that he expected nothing significant from her, but somehow, her eyes made him want to hear it...
Perhaps it could be legit, and of course better than the Boss's, as she had said.
"I'm listening..."
....
"So you want us to rob a bank?! Are you crazy?!"
One of the men shouted angrily at Rhea.
After revealing the job, the whole group went crazy.
"That's one of the disadvantages of having a bitch in the crew. They always bring stupid ideas!"
"I'm not a bitch. I'm a woman!" Rhea barked.
"Isn't it better than risking our lives to capture The Core members and the President? By robbing a bank, we would even get richer if everything goes as planned... it's the best thing to do," Rhea added.
"No, it's not. You are a..."
Another guy tried to attack her until a huge fist suddenly came landing on his face.
It was Razer.
Yes, the other guys must have been ranting after she told them the idea, but Razer really hadn't been one of them.
In fact, Rhea noticed his smile many times, and the tough punch on Tiger seemed to have made it clear.
He was in.
"I really never expected anything good from you, bitch, but I just figured these guys here were the real bitches," Razer said as he smiled at her.
"More info?" he asked.
"Sky Bank. I once had a thought to rob the bank when my sister's illness began, but I couldn't do it alone. Now that I've got a group, I figured it's possible. Because..."
Rhea paused, gave them all a glance and continued.
"Sky Bank is one of the least secured banks. I made several findings, and there are no police units really close around, just simple cop patrols. This is because of the town's record of being one of the most peaceful and safest places in the state."
"Hmm," Razer nodded.
The other guys began to feel her explanation as she spoke, clearly captivated.
They never expected something that casual, because robbing banks these days was no easy feat at all... but after Rhea's speech, they felt so, so part of this.
"Good one, lady. How about I call you Smarthead?" Razer said.
Rhea gave him a short look and chuckled.
"Sure," she replied.
They both smiled, as they went on with their plans.
The Boss's mission was clicking? Well, another one was.