She looked me in the eyes. "Thomas, you're brilliant. You can do it with one hand. Right?"

Slap!

My left hand cracked across her face, leaving a bloody handprint on her cheek.

My entire body was shaking.

"You actually believe what Chad told you? That surgery can be done one-handed?"

Nellie mumbled, half to herself:

"No... Chad said one hand was enough..."

She grabbed my severed hand. I bared my teeth against the blinding pain, but she didn't care.

"It'll be fine, Thomas. Just try. What if it works? If you don't step in, Chad takes the fall!"

Bang! The door flew open, kicked clean off its hinges.

A tall woman stood in the doorway, her face carved from pure fury.

"What have you people done to my brother?"

Edna Henson's voice dripped with murder.

Behind her, Chad was pinned in place by two bodyguards, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

I looked past Edna.

"Dean!"

"Dr. Delgado..."

The dean's gaze landed on my ruined hand. His eyes went wide with disbelief.

Edna's hand came down on the dean's shoulder.

"Either you tell me the truth yourselves, or I dig it up personally."

The dean flinched.

If Edna uncovered the truth on her own, the consequences would be far worse than a voluntary confession.

I raised my left hand and pointed straight at Chad.

"It was him! He insisted on cracking the chest single-handed! That's what nicked the aorta and caused the massive hemorrhage—"

"You're lying!"

Dean Edwards's voice cut through the room like a whip.

"You wanted to one-up Dr. Armstrong, so you showed off by operating single-handed. And when things went wrong, you severed your own right hand to fake evidence that you weren't the one performing the surgery!"

I stared at her in disbelief.

"Dean Edwards, what are you talking about? The records clearly show Chad Armstrong was the operating surgeon!"

"He's a newcomer. Pinning the blame on him would've been the easiest thing in the world for you."

She had moved closer to me.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

Her voice dropped to a whisper only the two of us could hear.

"I'm sorry, but your right hand is destroyed. You're useless now. Chad may be green, but he still has the potential to become a great surgeon someday. That agreement we had before? Forget it."

The smile on Edna's lips faded, degree by degree.