Chapter 010

The crowd turned on Claire:

"Ms. Fairfax is Dr. Fairfax's daughter! She's been studying medicine since she was a child and she's in medical school. Her skills are incredible."

"You're just a vocational school student. Forget medical school—the fact that you're even in vocational school proves you're a slacker. If you'd studied properly for even a day, you wouldn't have ended up there."

Beck snapped out of his daze and turned to Amber. "Ms. Fairfax, please, I'm begging you—save Mr. Crane. The Crane family will reward you handsomely."

Amber looked triumphant. She shot Claire a contemptuous glance.

Anyone with half a brain would choose her right now.

Still, Claire had a point about one thing: Mr. Crane's condition was too unstable to move. Waiting for an ambulance wasn't realistic.

But this wasn't a sterile operating room. If she performed surgery here and he got infected, it could be fatal.

Amber wasn't entirely confident.

But with all these people watching—and Claire standing right there—walking away now would be humiliating.

She decided to gamble.

She'd assisted on several procedures for insufficient blood flow before. She'd seen it done enough times. All she had to do was stall until the ambulance arrived.

That thought steadied her. She looked at Claire with haughty disdain. "Are you going to move or not? If you delay treatment and something happens to this patient, you'll be responsible."

Beck waved Claire off impatiently. "Miss, please step aside. Don't waste any more of Mr. Crane's time."

Claire said nothing. She stood, stepped back against a pillar, pulled an apple from her bag, and bit into it slowly.

She watched Amber "save" the man.

She figured she wouldn't even finish the apple before this was over.

Poor Mr. Crane. He was about to suffer.

Amber unslung her emergency medical kit and opened it with practiced efficiency.

But when she pulled out the scalpel, her hand trembled.

She took a deep breath.

No turning back now. Not with all these people watching.

She steeled herself and made an incision directly over Mr. Crane's heart.

Bright red blood welled up.

Mr. Crane began coughing violently. At least it woke him up.

But he couldn't speak. His face contorted in agony, and his body convulsed even harder.

Beck panicked. "Mr. Crane! Mr. Crane!"

Amber's heart raced, but she barked orders to cover her fear. "He's awake—that's good. Hold him down. I'm almost done."

Beck obeyed immediately.

Amber continued the procedure.

The crowd couldn't see her panic. They only saw her forced composure and couldn't help but praise her. "Ms. Fairfax truly is Dr. Fairfax's most brilliant protégé. So young, yet so calm under pressure. What skill!"

"She's a miracle worker..."

Before they could finish, Mr. Crane let out a strangled moan. His legs jerked. His head lolled to the side.

He went limp.

No breath.

Beck completely lost it. "Mr. Crane! Mr. Crane!"

Amber froze, staring in shock. The scalpel shook violently in her hand.

How did this happen?

How?

Her diagnosis had been right.

Beck's eyes turned bloodshot. He roared, "What did you do? What the hell did you do to him?"

"I—I—I don't know..." Amber's voice trembled.

Beck lunged at her, hands around her throat. "You're a doctor! How can you not know? Give him back! Give Mr. Crane back!"

He squeezed like he wanted to kill her.

The crowd fell silent, staring in stunned disbelief.

Then Claire knelt beside Mr. Crane. In one swift motion, she drove a acupuncture needleinto the top of his head.

Beck's face went white. He released Amber and turned on Claire. "What are you doing now?"

He reached for her, ready to drag her away.

Claire didn't look up. Her voice was ice. "If you want Mr. Crane to live, shut your mouth."

Beck froze.

What did she mean?

Mr. Crane could still live?

He stammered, "But Mr. Crane... isn't he... already... gone?"

Claire's tone was flat. "Temporarily. Not completely dead yet."

Mr. Crane's will to live was stubborn. Even after Amber's butchery, he was clinging to a thread.

Beck opened his mouth again.

Claire cut him off without looking up. "Say one more word and he really will be gone."

Beck clamped his mouth shut. He watched, wide-eyed, as Claire inserted needles with swift, precise strikes into Mr. Crane's cerebral cortex.

Amber recovered enough to point at Claire and shriek, "You're trusting her? She's just some delinquent vocational student who doesn't know anything—"

"Shut the hell up!"

Beck slapped Amber across the face.

She couldn't withstand a grown man's strength. She fell to the ground, clutching her cheek.

Beck ignored her. He watched Claire work, her movements fast and sure.

Mr. Crane was barely hanging on anyway. He could die any second. Taking a chance was better than doing nothing.

And Claire's technique looked far more professional than Amber's.

Might as well bet on her.

Amber sat on the ground, humiliated and furious after being struck and screamed at by Beck.

But as she watched Claire insert the needles, she sneered coldly. Malice flickered in her eyes.

The pressure points in the human brain were extremely dangerous. Even the professors she knew wouldn't dare operate there carelessly. What could Claire possibly accomplish?

Let her show off. She didn't know anything. Mr. Crane was already beyond saving.

Once he died, Amber would pin it all on Claire. She'd say Claire had killed him.

Judging by his appearance, Mr. Crane was someone important.

Claire was finished.