Walking into my father’s hospital room brought me back to the first time Matty had come back from Iraq. He had only been there for a few months when he got a little too close to a roadside bomb. He lost two very close friends and almost lost his leg.

They brought him back to the states to do surgery. I flew out to see him and when I got there he looked horrible. I don’t remember a spot on his body that didn’t have bandages on them.

The good thing about Matty was that he was a really fast healer. He was back in action just six months later.

Standing here looking at my father, I have this sinking feeling things aren’t going to work out as well for him as it did for Matty back then.

I’ve never seen him so frail and so pale. I saw him not too long ago, but right now he looks boney and extremely sick.

I wish I would have known, maybe I could’ve done something.

Justin squeezes my hand in his and I realize we’ve been standing in the doorway just staring for a while, so I slowly walk into the room, dragging Justin behind me, stopping at the side of his bed.

I grab my father’s hand in mine and squeeze it. Tears drain out of my eyes at a rapid speed and there’s nothing I can do to stop them.

My father stirred, slowly opening his eyes looking at me in shock.

“My beautiful Madison.” he says breathlessly.

“Hi Daddy.” I say through my tears.

“I didn’t think you’d come.” He says slowly, obviously having a rough time breathing.

“Of course I’d come. I would have been here two years ago if you guys would have told me.” I let out a short sob, “Why didn’t you tell me, daddy?”

“I thought you knew.” He says, confusion written all over his face.

“Of course she didn’t know, Peter. She doesn’t care about us enough to call, why would she care you were dying?” Victoria says, announcing herself to the room.

I turn towards her quickly, “Get away from my Father you bitch. You don’t deserve to be here.”

She scoffs and my father brushes my hand with his, “Maddy Girl, Don’t talk to your mother like that.”

My heart softens and I slowly turn back towards him, “Daddy she doesn’t care about you.”

“Oh stop being so dramatic. He’s my husband, of course I care about him.”

“No, you care about his money.” I growl, still looking at my dad.

“Money makes the world go round.”

“You make me sick.” I say in disgust. “You are the poorest excuse for a woman and a mother I’ve ever seen.”

“Maddy Girl.” My father whispers again.

“I’m sorry daddy, but the only reason I know about you being sick is because your wife found out your leaving all the money to me and she couldn’t have that so she called me and tried being mother of the year so I’d feel sorry for her and give it back to her.” I take a deep breath, shaking my head, “What she doesn’t get is that I’d rather give all that money to a dog and have it shit, piss and tear it to shreds before I’d give her a dime.”

“She doesn’t love you daddy. She doesn’t love me and she never loved Matty.”

“That’s not true.” Victoria says squaring her shoulders.

“What’s not true?” I ask out of curiosity.

“I loved all of you.”

“Yeah, you loved Daddy when he bought you the four houses and all the diamonds you could possibly want. And you loved me right up until I was born along with Matty and then you just despised us from then on out.”

“I loved you!” She yells.

“You have a shitty way of showing it.”

“I don’t need to take this.” She says standing to walk out of the room, but stops turning towards Justin and I.

“Who is this,” She pauses, looking at Justin’s clothing, “Poor excuse of a man?”

Oh, no you don’t.

“Excuse me?” Justin says angrily.

“You deaf or just stupid? Oh wait, you must be the one from Tennessee. It’s all making sense now.”

“What’s that…” Justin starts but I cut him off.

“I’d be nice Victoria. He’s got money too. Maybe if you’re a good girl, he’ll add you to his will.”

She laughs as though I must be joking, “This…peasant can’t possibly be rich.”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I have more money than you’ll see in a lifetime.” Justin defends himself.

“Honey I’ve seen millions. My husband has given me millions. You can’t possibly…”

“Victoria, Shut up.” My father says, sitting up in bed.

“Daddy, lay down.” I say, trying to get him to lay down.

He swats me off him, sitting up straighter in the bed, “Victoria, I think it’s best you leave. I’d like to spend some time with my daughter and her friend.”

She scoffs, “I am not leaving.”

“I’m asking…” He coughs a few times before finishing, “I’m asking you to leave. You have done enough damage to this family.”

“I haven’t…”

“He asked you to leave.” Justin says sternly.

“And you are not a part of this family so you will not talk to me like that.”

“Victoria, I’ve dealt with…” He coughs, “ your shit for too many years.” He coughs again, “I will not spend my last days with a woman that I can’t stand.” He coughs a few times, “I’m dying Victoria so I will spare you the ordeal of going through a divorce, but you will not.” He coughs a few more times, “Will not, get anything of mine. Do you understand?”

“I am your wife!” She yells.

“No you are a dreadful woman that I was forced into marrying. I may have kept my promise, but I’ll be damned if I die without my family.” He coughs again, “and you are not my family. Get out.” He growls as loud as he could.

“I will not be treated…”

“He asked you to leave.” Justin growls towards her.

“Look you country piece of…”

“The man is dying and all you can think about is yourself. I don’t know if there’s even a heart in that body of yours, but I suggest you pretend there is and move on out of this room. And I suggest you stay out of this room or I’ll have you thrown out.”

“And how would you do that?” She asks, her hands on her hips.

“Security. Is there a problem here?” A very large, over muscular man asks from the doorway.

“No, she was just leaving.” I says, smiling to myself.

I don’t know how he did it, but I love him even more for it.

“We’ll walk you out ma’am.” He says, grabbing a hold of her arm.

“Get those sausages off me. I can walk myself.” She says, striding out the door and down the hallway.

“She wont be a problem anymore.” The other security officer says before shutting the door.

I stare up at Justin with a smile on my face, “How?”

He just winks at me, turning towards my father, “I’m sorry I butted into your family’s problem. I know it wasn’t my place and I’m sorry for that, but I couldn’t stand here and let her talk to you two like that.”

“No apologies needed for me son.” He says with a weak smile, “I’m Peter.”

Justin takes his hand in his to shake, “I’m Justin. It’s nice to finally meet you, sir.”

“Don’t call me sir. It makes me feel old.”

I laugh, “You are old Daddy.”

He tries to laugh, but fails miserably, “I owe you an apology, my beautiful Madison.”

I sit on the edge of his bed, raising one leg up so I could face him.

“You and your brother mean the world to me. I know I haven’t shown that,” He coughs and I start crying. Justin runs his hand up and down my back for support, “Half of my heart is missing. When Matthew died, I felt like I died with him. Your mother.”

“Don’t call her that.” I say through my tears.

He nods, coughing again, “I made a promise a long time ago to Victoria’s father. I vowed I’d keep her happy for the rest of our lives. I made some very bad decisions over the years, but,” He coughs a few times, taking a deep breath, “I never stopped loving either one of you. You two are my world. And sadly, your all that’s left of my world.”

I cry watching him fighting just to talk, “Maddy Girl, I know it’s nearly 29 years too late, but I love you and I have always been there even when you thought I wasn’t.”

He teared up, coughing, “I was there when you and Matthew graduated. I saw you cry all those times on that rock you love so much. I watched you go through heartache and I’ve seen you have some amazing times with Hadley.”

“Most importantly, I was there and I heard your incredible words to Matthew at his funeral.”

I lost it. I’m sobbing hysterically.

He was there. He actually came.

“I know how much you loved your brother, because I loved him just as much. No matter what your… Victoria has said or done, I’ve never stopped caring and I’ve tried my hardest to be there for both of you when I could.”

I sob into my hands, Justin still rubbing my back, when I hear my father coughing uncontrollably.

“Daddy?” I say, watching his cough and cough and cough.

“Daddy, what’s the matter.” I ask when he stops coughing, gasping for air.

Justin runs towards the door, yelling for a doctor as I sit there in shock.

Within seconds two doctors and a couple of nurses flock in, sweeping me away from him. The machine next to his bed stopped beeping and my knees go weak. Justin grabs me, pulling me against his chest, keeping me from falling.

“Daddy!” I sob over and over.

Then I saw the worst possible thing I could have ever imagined.

The nurse turning off all the machines around him and all of them stepping back from his bed.