Elizabeth''s body jerked in a series of violent convulsions, her face furning a dusky blite as though the very breath of life were slipping away.
Agony etched itself across her features, and her ragged scream ripped through the air, sending nurses and doctors scrambling to respond.
rms red from both sides of her bed, the machines'' frantic beeping echoing off the stark white walls, amplifying the sense of impending disaster.
“What on earth is happening?” Dr. Yorick''splexion went pale his eyes brimming with shock.
Jasmine''s expression hardened. "Exin this, Dr. Yorick!" she demanded, her voiceced with desperation.
"That can''t be right... She was stable just a few hours ago," he muttered, unease creeping into his tone.
"Doctor, her heartbeat''s crashing!" a nurse shouted, voice high with urgency.
"Get the defibritor-now!" the head doctor barked.
The medical team mobilized, hands flying as they fought to stabilize Elizabeth.
But no matter what they did, the numbers on the monitor kept freefalling. Elizabeth''s chest stopped moving.
The monitor''s steady tone cut through the chaos, the cold, continuous beep of a tline.
"Cardiac arrest!" someone cried. "We''re losing her!"
Jasmine''s breath caught, and tears gathered in her eyes as she clung to the bed''s railing. "No, please..."
Charles''s eyes narrowed.
Beneath his outwardposure, he clenched his hand into a fist-something like triumph gleamed there.
"You son of a-!" Jasmine whirled on Dr. Yorick, fury shaking her voice.
She grabbed the doctor by his cor, nails digging in. “I told you not to pull out those needles! Now look at her-dying-and all you can do is babble? If you can''t save her, I''ll make sure you end up in the ground with her!"
песа
Dr. Yorick''s face went a sickly white. "I... This isn''t on me!" he stammered. "It was that so-called healer! His needles did this!".
Jasmine''s hand shed across his face with a sharp crack, jerking his head to the side. A red imprint bloomed on his cheek.
"Own your mistakes," she spat, trembling with rage. "Start drafting your will, because if she dies, so do you,"
Dr. Yorick swallowed hard. He knew full well how powerful the Kingston family was-and that people could vanish without a
trace.
Just then, the door flew open and Alex strode in
His gaze swept across the chaos before settling on Elizabeth''s lifeless form.
"What happened?" he asked, his voice chilled by anger. "Didn''t I warn you not to take out those needles? Why didn''t you listen?"
Before Jasmine could answer, Dr. Yorick lunged at Alex, seizing him by the cor.
"You''re the one who stuck those damn things in her!" he roared, voice cracking with desperation. "You killed her!"
Alex''s eyes were as cold as steel. "You removed them?"
Chapter II
Dr. Yorick''s sneer deepened. "I did. So what?"
Alex''s jaw tightened. "That was her death sentence-and yours."
"Is that a threat?"
"It''s a statement of fact," Alex replied calmly. "Taking a poisoned needle out with your bare hands means the toxin is already in your system. You''ve got about twenty-four hours."
Dr. Yorick looked stunned, fear shing across his face.
"Alex!" Jasmine shouted, shoving Yorick aside. Her voice shook. We don''t have time for this. Please-save my grandmother!"
Dr. Yorick stumbled backward, trying to salvage what remained of his authority.
"Ms. Kingston, don''t be fooled! He''s a quack! Look at my hands-o you see any poison? There''s nothing there! He''s ying you. He can''t save anyone."
Jasmine''s eyes zed. "If you''re so capable, why haven''t you saved her yourself, ''best doctor in the country''?"
"I..." Dr. Yorick faltered, sweat beading on his forehead.
Alex shot him a sharp look. "Best doctor, huh?" He gave a coldugh. "You look more like a hack."
Just as he was about to begin the treatment.
Charles, hovering nearby, pushed Dr. Yorick forward as if urging him to do something, anything, to stop Alex.
Yorick''s voice quivered. "You have no idea what you''re doing, kid! If this goes wrong, the fallout will be beyond your control."
Alex took a slow breath. "You sure seem eager to bury her. Keep it up, and I''ll walk out that door right now."
"Shut your mouth!" Jasmine snapped, her patience gone.
She waved at her bodyguards, and in the blink of an eye, they lunged and struck
Dr. Yorick, sending him sprawling to the floor.
"Mr. Charles!" Yorick pleaded, wild-eyed and panicking. "This isn''t what we agreed on!"
Charles''s face was a mask of anger and fear. “Enough! Does everyone think I''m irrelevant here? That man is under my protection-how dare youy hands on him!"
Alex fixed Charles with a cool, prating stare. "So you''re the one who brought in a fraud to undermine the real treatment. Hoping to snag your grandmother''s inheritance, are you?"
"How dare you!" Charles roared, his cheeks flushing with rage. "I love her more than anyone. Don''t you dare use me, you know nothing!"
Alex''s smirk was icy. "The only thing I know is that you won''t be inheriting anything tonight."
Charles fell silent, his face twitching with tension.
Alex turned back to Elizabeth. "Since I''m here," he said quietly, "she''ll live at least another two decades."
From inside his coat, Alex retrieved a set of shining gold needles.
He moved swiftly, cing them at critical points along Elizabeth''s body, each needle glinting under the fluorescent lights. Finally, he pressed his palm gently over her still Heart, where the doctors had failed to revive it.
For a moment, the room was filled only with the relentless drone of the tline.
Then it twitched-once, twice-gradually falling into a steady thump.
A collective gasp swept through the onlookers as the monitors picked up a faint heartbeat. The sound grew stronger, each beat
Chapter III
bringing Elizabeth back from the edge.
Shey there, no longer convulsing, her breathing now calm and even.
"This can''t be real," murmured one doctor, eyes wide in disbelief
II
"It''s a miracle," a nurse said, her voice trembling with awe.
They all watched in stunned silence as Elizabeth, moments ago at death''s door, drew one peaceful breath after another, her heart monitor beeping a reassuring
rhythm.,
In the corner, someone whispered about an old legend-a mysterious physician
with hands like a gift from God. "The God''s hand."
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