“You forgot?” I hissed. “Five years ago, you were the ones who damaged it!”
Mariam’s face went ashen.
Charlton’s pupils tightened, his breath coming fast and shallow. He stared at me as though he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Your hand… Is it damaged? That can’t be! Why didn’t anyone tell me?l
He looked frantic, as though he were hearing this for the first time. The pain in his eyes made my skin crawl.
Mariam snapped. She threw herself at me and screamed, “No! No! You can’t run away from this! You have to save my child!”
She signaled to the bodyguards to pin me down. They tightened their grip, forcing me to the spot, while she shrieked like a woman possessed. “Teach us! You must teach the procedure! Whoever can perform it will do. Just save Luca!”
Grinding my teeth, I answered coldly, “I will teach. But only if you give me the surveillance footage from that operation five years ago.”
Her expression shifted like a storm. Her fists clenched, her eyes burned with hatred so sharp it seemed almost crimson.
Then, in a sudden, calculated move, she turned to Charlton and wrapped her arms around his neck.
In front of me, she kissed him hard, lips pressing like both accusation and bargain.
Her voice dropped into his ear. “Charlton… if Luca survives, the whole hospital will be yours. Help me. Please…”
I watched Charlton change. First came a flicker of uncertainty, then a settling quiet, and finally a cold, absolute hardness.
He reached out and pressed his hand onto my shoulder with ugly decisiveness. “I know what to do,” he said flatly.
Before I could gather myself, they dragged me… to my son’s grave.
The night wind tore through the cemetery. Stones gleamed cold and merciless.
Before I could fall to my knees at the graveside, hands forced me down until they struck the hard earth.
Mariam took out a tablet from her bag with deliberate slowness and held it in front of my face, a smile curving at the corner of her mouth. “You wanted the footage from five years ago? Then, watch.”
At the same time, Charlton gave an order. Men hefted tools and began to dig at the tombstone.
His voice was brittle with indifference. “Arizona, I’ll give you one more chance. Teach us a doctor who can operate, and I won’t disturb your son’s ashes.”
Blood ran cold through me. My body trembled.