By the time I made it downstairs, my mom was barely clinging to life.
With shaking hands, I pushed her gurney toward the operating room.
The red light above the door flicked on, and my heart seemed to hang suspended in the air with it.
I thought the nightmare might finally end there. But only three minutes later, a group of bodyguards stormed into the operating room and dragged the attending surgeon out.
I froze, my eyes wide in disbelief. “What the hell are you doing?!”
They looked at me coldly.
“Mr. Fowler has ordered all doctors to check on Ms. MacGill’s injury first. Once she’s confirmed stable, we’ll bring the attending physician back.”
Her wound was no fucking bigger than a fingernail, yet they were stealing my mom’s only chance to survive!
The thought shattered what little control I had left. My eyes burned as I lunged forward to stop them from taking the doctor away.
“Let him go! My mom’s still in surgery! Tell Jericho—if anything happens to her, I’ll never forgive any of you!”
But my words did nothing at all. One of the guards just gave a mocking smile.
“Ma'am, those were Mr. Fowler’s direct orders. If you have a problem, take it up with him.”
Without wasting any more time, they shoved me aside and dragged the doctor away.
The force of it slammed my head against the sharp edge of a metal chair. Warm blood streamed down my face in an instant, but I barely felt it.
At that moment, the red light above the operating room flickered and went out. Then, the machines inside began to beep in a chaotic rhythm.
Summoning every last ounce of strength, I pushed myself off the floor and stumbled after the guards.
I had to bring the doctor back.
If I didn’t… I would lose the only family I had left…
4
Venice’s POV
I stumbled forward, barely keeping my balance.
“Jericho! Bring back my mom’s attending doctor!”
My voice came out raw and strained from my parched throat.
When Jericho saw the cuts and bruises on my face, his brows knitted tightly together.
“How did you manage to get yourself into this state?”
He reached out, trying to touch the wound on my cheek, but I jerked back before his fingers could make contact.
Gripping his sleeve with all my strength, I said, my voice trembling with desperation, “Jericho! Mom’s still in surgery while Verona only has a minor injury! You can’t do this to my mom!”
By the end, my voice broke completely.