RISE OF THE LOST HEIR: ASHES TO EMPIRE

FOUR: CRUMBLING WALLS

HARBORLINE STREET

Later that day, Elsa balanced a warm pie dish in her hands, humming softly. She’d promised Martha she’d bake her favorite pie, and she always kept her promises.

Before heading straight to Levi’s place, in the same neighbourhood, she decided to stop at Tommy’s house just to say hi. Tommy’s parents loved her — she was practically family — so she walked in without knocking.

“Hello! Tommy, where’s your stupid head at?” she laughed, walking down the hallway like she owned the place.

No answer.

Then she heard noise coming from his room — loud, breathy, urgent.

Elsa rolled her eyes.

Probably video games again.

She pushed the door open without thinking.

“Did you not hear me—”

The pie nearly slipped from her hands.

She froze.

What she saw wasn’t Tommy with a headset.

It was Tommy on top of Clarie.

Naked bodies tangled together.

Clarie’s back arched.

Tommy’s hands gripping her waist.

Clarie’s soft moan breaking the air.

Tommy looking seconds from finishing.

Sweat. Heat.

A betrayal so sharp it punched the air out of Elsa’s lungs.

Turns out she wasn’t excited to meet Levi, but excited to screw with Tommy.

Clarie’s eyes snapped open—and met Elsa’s.

She screamed.

“Tommy!” she hissed, shoving him off her. She yanked a blanket over herself in a panic.

Tommy stumbled back, grabbing the nearest bedsheet to cover his bare lower half, eyes wide like a trapped animal. Elsa didn’t say a word—she only gave him a look so disappointed it burned.

Then she turned to leave.

“Els— Els! Wait!” Tommy scrambled after her.

Behind him, Clarie hissed, “Follow her! Levi can’t hear about this.”

That made Tommy grab a shirt and chase after Elsa, still half-dressed.

“Elsa—Els, hey!” He caught her by the arm just before she stepped onto the street.

“Don’t touch me!” she yelled, jerking away. Her furious voice cracked. “Are you insane, Tommy? That’s Clarie—Levi’s girlfriend!”

“I know! I know! Look—I swear I don’t know what came over me,” Tommy blurted, words tumbling over themselves. “She—the bitch seduced me. She’s been on me for weeks, Els. I refused, I swear! But she kept trying and—”

Elsa stared at him with utter disbelief.

“Tommy. Do you even hear yourself?” Her voice was low, shaking with anger. “Seduction or not, you’re disgusting. It was you and Levi before me or her. Levi trusted you. I trusted you.”

“Hey—alright—enough!” he snapped defensively. “I told you she came at me. And either way, you cannot tell Levi.”

“And why not?” Elsa demanded.

Tommy swallowed, eyes flicking nervously.

He stepped closer.

“For the same reason you said,” he murmured. “Because it’ll destroy him. And—Els—”

She raised a brow, furious but curious.

He sighed sharply.

“Els… it was me and you before I introduced you to Levi. You were my sister before you became he's.”

Her expression hardened.

“Tommy.”

“No—listen,” he pushed, desperation creeping into his voice. “If you tell him… I might as well tell him about your feelings for him. And you know it’s not only my friendship with Levi that’ll get ruined.”

Elsa looked at him in disbelief, she felt punched.

Her breath caught.

Her heart dropped.

Her stomach twisted.

He used it against her.

Her biggest secret.

Her quiet love.

Her loyalty.

“I’m not afraid, Tommy,” she said softly but firmly. “And I’ll decide for myself whether I tell him.”

She walked away.

Tommy dragged his hands down his face, cursing under his breath as he watched the one person who truly cared about both of them walk away from him.

LATER THAT AFTERNOON

That afternoon Levi had finished his second job, infact he finished earlier just to get home in time and take Martha to the hospital.

His thoughts were still spiraling about Clarie, when the bus dropped him home.

Reaching the front porch he realised, The front door was open.

“Grandma?” he called.

No answer.

He searched every room—nothing.

Her phone sat charging on the table.

Before panic could choke him, his phone rang.

Elsa.

“El—what’s—”

“Levi,” she breathed, “It’s your grandma.”

He didn’t hear anything else. He just ran.

At the St Louis hospital, Elsa jumped to her feet.

“Levi—wait—she’s inside getting treatment. She wasn’t conscious when I found her.”

Levi collapsed into the chair, hands over his face.

“If only I had come sooner…”

“Hey,” Elsa whispered, rubbing his back. “It’s okay. She’s in good hands.”

Elsa looked at him, how could she even mention Tommy and Clarie’s incident at a time like this.

A doctor stepped out. “Guardian of Martha Hale?”

“That’s me.” He jumped.

Inside the office, the doctor sighed heavily.

“Why didn’t you bring her sooner?”

“What do you mean?” Levi asked, dread curling in his stomach.

“Your grandmother has Hodgkin Lymphoma. Stage IV. She hasn’t received treatment in a long time.”

Levi stared blankly.

“Lymphoma?” he whispered.

“A type of blood cancer,” the doctor explained. “We need to start chemo or radiotherapy immediately. If her body responds, she may have about a year or more, but without that treatment right now, I'dsay she has weeks, a month highest.”

Levi swallowed hard. “How much?”

“Chemo alone is $9,000 monthly. Combined treatments, $18,000. We’ve stabilized her for now, but attacks will continue.”

Levi felt the floor tilt. But he forced himself to nod.

“Ahm! Okay… okay. I’ll try and get the money.”

Back in the waiting area, Elsa looked up with fear.

“What happened?”

“I need eighteen thousand dollars every month,” he whispered. “If she’s going to survive.”

Elsa’s jaw dropped. “Levi… you don’t have that kind of money.”

“I know.” His voice cracked. “I don’t.”

She grabbed his arm. “Let me help. My aunt—my dad—”

“No, Els.” He gently pulled away. “You brought her here. You’ve done enough.”

He walked into his grandmother’s room and wept quietly by her side.

NEXT DAY

The next days were chaos—

"I just need your assistance, just ten thousand dollars Mr Harris, you know me, I'll pay back, please!" Levi hit the streets begging neighbors.

"I'm sorry Levi, you know I don't have—"

"Yes you do–" He yelled frustrated "you do Harris, I help you load trucks worth more than that, for free, you got to help me this one time"

Harris looked around, people stared.

"Sorry boy!" He said and went into his house locking the door behind him.

Levi lost words, he could hardly breathe, he turned around, and everyone who watched, suddenly turned away, as if avoiding him.

Each day got worst, asking for an advance, taking loans, swallowing his pride, begging where he had never begged before. Even Elsa’s aunt, owner of Maple Lane Diner had to help.

Tommy guilty, said his parents couldn’t help and avoided him.

And Clarie… disappeared.

A week later, Martha woke.

“Grandma,” Levi whispered, rushing to her. “Doctor!”

She blinked tiredly. “How long was I asleep?”

“Elsa found you passed out.”

“Alright,” she breathed. “Now that I’m awake… let’s go home.”

“You can’t,” he said gently. “You have cancer. You need to continue treatment.”

“Cancer or not,” she insisted, “we can’t afford this.”

“Wait.” Levi’s voice shook. “You KNEW? You knew you had cancer?”

“Of course,” she said. “It’s my body.”

Levi slammed his fist on the table.

“You didn’t tell me? Why? We could’ve stopped it earlier!”

“Don’t shout at me,” she snapped. “I chose not to treat it. It’s my concern not yours.”

“NOT my concern?” Levi choked. “I’m the one paying, crying, working myself sick—Grandma, you’re stage FOUR.”

His voice broke. He cried softly.

She reached for his face, her hands trembling.

“I’ve always told you… I don’t want to be the reason you fall into debt forever. I’m ready, hijo. I won’t make it more than another month. But you—” her voice cracked, “—you’ll survive this. You must.”

Levi leaned into her trembling embrace and cried more.

Neither of them noticed Elsa and Eli standing quietly at the door, eyes stinging.

The weight in Levi’s chest grew heavier that day.

Friendships, love, duty, betrayal… everything was thinning, blurring.

And for the first time in his life, he wondered if the heavens had completely turned away from him.