Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 446

Robert was unconscious and couldn’t answer. The paramedics shut the doors, and Theodore climbed in with them. Mae was left standing on the sidewalk, murmuring, “Oh my God,” until the ambulance disappeared down the street.

They rushed him to the hospital, straight into the ICU. Theodore waited there all day.

By the time he returned to the house, it was dark. The doctor had told him the situation was grim and that the family should be prepared.

There was nothing for him to prepare. His father had already arranged everything. He’d probably only called him here to be a witness to the end of Raleigh Whitman, also known as Robert. A man who had lived and was now gone.

Theodore had once sworn he would live as if he had no father, but he had also promised he would be there to handle his final affairs, to put a definitive end to a father-son relationship he had always hated.

That evening, he gnawed on a piece of dry bread in his father’s house, forcing it down with a few gulps of water before giving up. The heat was on full blast, but the house felt unnervingly, terribly cold.

The next day, before visiting hours had even started, the hospital called. His father was gone.

Theodore didn’t feel sad. This was the day he had been waiting for, yet somehow, it still felt… fast.

The arrangements were simple. There was no funeral, just a direct cremation. The ashes were interred in a plot with a nameless headstone. As per his father’s wishes, it was engraved with a single line: *A man without a soul.*

The following day, his father’s lawyer came to see him. There was a will and a handwritten letter addressed to him.

*My son, Theo:*

*I know you hate it when I call you that, but you know your old man is a stubborn fool. Forgive me for being stubborn one last time.*

*My life has been a failure. At the end of it all, I am grateful that you were willing to spend these last few days with me, even if you only came to collect my body.*

*I wanted to leave you something, but as I write this, I realize I have nothing to give you but a bit of dirty money.*

*I just worry about what you will do now.*

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