By dawn, the hospital had become more than a hospital. It had become the heart of an entire nation.
The streets surrounding the National Medical Center were already overflowing before sunrise. People came carrying flowers. Candles. Bibles.Prayer mats. Flags.
Some came alone. Others arrived in families.
Many had traveled through the night from distant provinces. Nobody had asked them to come. Yet they kept arriving.
One by one. Street after street.
Until every road surrounding the hospital disappeared beneath an ocean of ordinary citizens.
Police officers quietly redirected traffic.
Military vehicles stood at every entrance.
Snipers watched rooftops.
Security had tripled after the assassination attempt. Still...the crowds continued growing.
Inside the hospital, Sebastian stood beside the window overlooking the main entrance.
He hadn't expected this. Thousands.
No... Tens of thousands.
Standing silently beneath the morning sun.
