?Chapter 281:


    Freddie gave a slow nod, mulling it over. “I’ll have to give it some thought.”


    Meanwhile, Christina had already gotten Calvin on the line. Her voice was clipped and direct when he picked up. “Dr. Emmett, it’s Christina.”


    The seriousness in her tone instantly put Calvin on alert. “What happened? Tell me everything.”


    “I need you to head to the hospital and wait for Miss Hubbard. Once she arrives, I want you to personally stitch up her wound,” Christina said, her words brisk and to the point.


    “That’s easy enough,” Calvin agreed, though a flicker of confusion crossed his face. Why was she acting like this was some life-or-death situation?


    Her voice grew a shade gentler. “And… If it’s not too much trouble, could you use some of your special scar ointment on her afterward?”


    Calvin almost asked why she was being so polite with the ointment—she was the one who gave it to him, after all. The realization dawned a split second before he spoke. She would never forget something like that. If she was phrasing it this way, someone must be listening in. So that was the reason behind her stilted, overly polite request.


    Rolling with her act, Calvin heaved a dramatic sigh. “Christina, you know how rare that ointment is—I barely let myself use it. You’re really making things difficult for me.”


    Christina smothered augh, lips twitching as she scowled with mock annoyance. Her dramatic disy sent a current of anxiety rippling through the group. Every eye fixed on her, the air charged with suspense as everyone strained to catch any clue from the muted phone call. Was Calvin denying the precious ointment? Or had he outright refused to help at all?


    Since Christina hadn’t put the call on speaker, only scattered fragments reached the anxious onlookers, and none could piece together the full exchange. The uncertainty gnawed at them. Calvin’s name alonemanded a gravity few could ignore. He was no ordinary doctor, but a world-ss specialist who routinely turned away requests from the city’s most influential families. Even people with immense power and connections couldn’t secure his help. How could Christina possibly pull it off? Yet, here she was, calmly insisting Calvin not only assist but actually wait at the hospital like he was just another doctor on call. The thought was almostughable. With someone of Calvin’s stature, a little resistance was only natural.


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    Vanessa, convinced Christina’s request had already failed, fidgeted with her hands, twisting her fingers so tightly that her knuckles went white. But she bit her tongue, terrified that if she blurted out a single word and offended Calvin, the Hubbard family would lose their one shot at saving Eloise—maybe for good.


    “Dr. Emmett, I’m begging you—please help Miss Hubbard! The Hubbard family has always stood for integrity. They truly deserve your assistance.” Christina’s brow remained furrowed in a wless disy of desperation, her lips pressed together as if she were barely holding back tears. In truth, she was dying tough—stifling her amusement so fiercely that it almost hurt.


    Calvin, meanwhile, drew things out with a deliberate pause, acting as though he was genuinely weighing the decision.


    On Christina’s side, the tension in the air was almost tangible. Every eye was fixed on her seemingly strained expression, searching for any hint of hope. The heavy silence on the other end of the line only ratcheted up their anxiety, turning their anticipation into agony. Would Christina really be able to convince Calvin to help? The uncertainty pressed down on the room, thick and suffocating, daring anyone to even breathe.


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