Ste asked, "Joshua didn''t give you a hard time yesterday, did he?"


    "No," Laurel replied. "He was in such a rush to find you that he didn''t even spare me a second nce."


    Ste let out a soft sigh. "It was the tracking ring on my finger. That''s how he knew exactly where I was."


    Laurel hesitated for a second before asking, "Ms. Cameron, have you made your decision?"


    Ste fell silent.


    Laurel immediately understood that Ste was still torn.


    Choosing not to press the issue, Laurel changed the subject. "Are you nning to ask Mr. Burton for help, Ms. Cameron?"


    "Yes," Ste confirmed. "Old Mr. Wyatt, who treated my hand, is there too. Even if he doesn''t specialize in this kind of illness, he must have an extensive medicalwork.


    Any doctor rmended by them would be much more trustworthy and reliable.


    Thank god Sellers isn''t dead. If he had died, even if I had the nerve to beg Mr. Burton for a favor, he would have held a grudge and definitely wouldn''t have gone out of his way to help us."


    "You''ve thought of everything, Ms. Cameron," Laurel said.


    Ste''s tone turned somber. "I''m giving myself three months. If... if I still can''t find a cure for Joshua by then...


    Then we''ll go ahead with the hypnosis."


    Laurel knew exactly how agonizing that decision must have been.


    It had been incredibly difficult for Laurel back then, so she could only imagine the hell Ste was going through.


    "Ms. Cameron," Laurel said softly, "thank you. And... I''m so sorry."


    Human nature was inherently selfish.


    She knew this entire situation was deeply unfair to Ste.


    But to Laurel, Joshua''s survival and sanity were the only things that mattered.


    Just as Ste was about to hang up, Laurel called out to stop her.


    Laurel wasn''t great atforting people, but she offered Ste a sliver of hope anyway.


    "In a few years, when Joshua''s condition ispletely stable...


    Maybe you coulde back into his life, Ms. Cameron..."


    Ste replied firmly, "If Joshua has to be hypnotized, I will never appear in front of him again.


    Him living a healthy, normal life is more important than anything else. I refuse to gamble with his life."


    Laurel was stunned.


    She hadn''t expected Ste to be so resolute.


    Ever since Joshua''s episodes had started, Laurel had been constantly reminding Ste of the stakes.


    But Ste had always avoided giving a direct answer.


    It wasn''t hard to understand why she couldn''t bear to let go of a man like Joshua.


    Even now, Ste was still desperately fighting against the inevitable.


    But Laurel realized that once Ste finally made a choice, she


    tiespletely, with wouldnt


    trace


    Thesitation.


    In that moment, a profound sense of respect for Ste blossomed in Laurel''s chest.


    ned


    Joshua had certainly helped Ste a great deal, but if Ste had been weak or use! all the support in the world wouldn''t have propelled


    her to where she was today.


    Ste knew how to weigh her options, acted decisively, and never let messy emotions cloud her judgment once a choice was made. She was a woman destined for greatness.


    ...


    After ending the call with Laurel, Ste opened her medical journals on gic diseases and dove back into her research.


    However, staring at the dense paragraphs, she found it impossible to focus.


    Her mood was terrible, shadowed by an unspeakable, suffocating anxiety.


    Now that Sellers had been released, she nned to visit Mr. Burton again the following day.


    As for whatever torture Sellers might have endured, that was simply beyond her capacity to care about right now.


    She had already suspended all her recent work projects to prioritize Joshua''s treatment.


    Ste was mentally organizing her next steps.


    Just then, a knock echoed on the study door.


    Ste got up and opened it.


    A beautifully wrapped bouquet of baby''s breath was instantly thrust into her line of


    sight.