1 Accident 01 (1/2)

~ Seattle ~

May 13, 2019

9:38 AM

”Our system detected a collision…”, robotic female voice filled up the interior of the Porsche Panamera. ”Stay calm and don't panic. 911 is called. Help is on the way… Our system detected a collision. Stay calm and…”

Maximilian (aka Max) grunted and pressed a button in front of the steering wheel to get that voice to shut up.

Now the only sound he can hear is from the persistent rain which is slamming on the car. But Max can ignore that. He is Seattleite, and rain is something he is used to.

He checked himself… his hands are shaky, and he has a splitting headache.

What happened?

Yeah, a car came behind a curve and it was going in his lane… he swerved and ended up in a ditch. Max scowled. That other car didn't even stop to check on him.

But he can't deny that he was speeding. He does that when he is upset and needs to steam out. Why was he upset? Ah, yes… he remembers. This Monday morning started by his father lecturing him (again) how he needs to stop partying, and settle down, and buckle up, and get his own family, take over CEO position form his father in their company, and… blah, blah, blah.

”You are 31 years old! How long do you plan to play around?! Do you want to be my assistant forever?!”, Max can still hear his father shouting at him.

Who cares about all those serious things?

Many years ago, Max figured it all out. Life is too short to be spent on non-fun things. He was serious about everything, excelling in sports and school and anything else he touched… and what did that get him? A heartbreak and a ridicule by… everyone! Not anymore. That old boring Max is gone. This current Max knows that as long as he is having fun, he is doing the right thing.

He checked time. How long does it take for the ambulance to arrive? His head is killing him…

…

Nearby, few minutes ago…

Elizabeth (aka Liz) is in the cab, heading for a job interview at Franciscan Medical Center.

She is looking through the window. Ugh, rain. She is in Seattle for five days now and the rain is not stopping! As a New Yorker, born and raised, this is too much rain. And she heard that it can go on for months! If she knew that Seattle is this wet, she would pick Los Angeles.

Why is she here?

Oh, yes… Liz's father is the chairman of Williams Medical corp. which consists of three large hospitals and numerous smaller medical facilities which cover from specialized treatments, urgent care to research in the field of medicine.

Liz graduated as a Valedictorian and at the age of 26 earned herself a degree in neurosurgery.

She was ecstatic to start working next to her father who is a renown surgeon. Liz's enthusiasm dampened only few weeks after she started working, when she overheard number of doctors and nurses gossip how she would not get what she has if Isaac Williams, MD is not her father. After that incident, her happy-veil fell, and she noticed strange looks, smirks and condescending tone her older coworkers are giving her.

Eventually, she got sick of it. Those people will not acknowledge her until she proves herself, but no matter what she does, they always pin her achievements to the glory that comes by having a famous father. Liz decided: she will go to the West coast and prove herself.

Her father was not happy about that. After his wife passed away, more than ten years ago, he only has Liz. But as any dotting father, he relented.

”You have one year to make a name for yourself. If you don't succeed, you will come back and work here, no matter what others say.”, Isaac was firm on this.

Liz accepted. ”What happens if I succeed?”

”Then... you will get a chance to decide what you want to do.”, he reluctantly said.

They agreed that success is proven if she gets an invitation to the next Symposium of Neurosurgeons which will be held in June 2020 in Las Vegas. And she needs to be invited as a speaker.

That is a tough challenge, but she would not anticipate anything less from her father. He always set a high bar for her, and she always exceeded his expectations.

Back to present…

”Stop the car!”, Liz exclaimed when she noticed a metallic Porsche in the ditch on the side of the road.