?Chapter 745:


    He fought against their grip, teeth clenched, muscles straining. “Let me go!”


    “Elissa!” Hadley dropped to her knees beside her friend, hands shaking as she lifted Elissa’s limp body. “Elissa, talk to me! Are you okay?”


    “Hadley…”


    Elissa’s voice was barely more than a breath. Her lips quivered as pain rippled through her battered frame. Swelling distorted her face, bruises blooming across her skin like cruel shadows. Her fingers clutched Hadley’s arm, weak yet desperate.


    “It… hurts,” she gasped. “It hurts so much…”


    “Elissa!” Hadley pulled her close, tears falling freely. Then, turning to the stunned onlookers, she called out, voice breaking with desperation, “Somebody call an ambnce! Please!”


    “I’m calling now!”


    “It’s already on the way!”


    At the hospital, paramedics rushed Elissa through the emergency entrance, and Hadley never left her side.


    “Hadley.”


    A familiar voice made her turn. Ernest stood nearby, cradling his son, Locke, in his arms. He hade for the child’s vination and was heading home—until he spotted Hadley. His gaze shifted from her to the gurney being wheeled inside, brows knitting together.


    Elissa—was she in trouble again?


    “Ernest, I don’t have time to exin,” Hadley said urgently. “Elissa needs the ER—now!”


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    Without waiting for questions, she turned and hurried inside, following the nurses.


    Ernest exhaled sharply, handing Locke over to Quentin. “Locke, I need you to go home with Quentin, all right? Daddy has something to take care of, but I’ll be back soon.”


    “Okay, Daddy! Bye-bye!” Locke clung to Quentin’s hand, waving his chubby fingers with a bright, trusting smile.


    “Bye, Locke. Be a good boy, okay?”


    Elissa had already been taken into the ER. Hadley stood outside, hands sped tightly over her chest, anxiety gripping her like a vice.


    “Hadley, how is she?”


    She turned at the sound of Ernest’s voice. “Ernest?” She hadn’t expected him to follow her.


    Ernest gave a small nod, his gaze steady. “I came to see if there’s anything I can do to help.”


    Hadley sighed softly. “Not right now. They just took her in… We don’t know anything yet.”


    Ernest nodded in understanding. “I’ll stay with you. If something happens, you shouldn’t have to handle it alone.”


    Hadley pressed her lips together, emotions tightening in her chest. She wasn’t used to epting help, but right now… she was grateful. “Thank you, Ernest,” she said quietly. For the first time that night, she felt a little less alone. Whether he knew her well or not, Ernest always stepped in to help.


    Finally, the emergency room doors swung open.


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