?Chapter 1162:


    Before Marc could react, she plunged the syringe into Ste’s arm.


    “Stop—!” A third of the liquid had already entered Ste’s veins when Marc lunged forward. His palm cracked across Nina’s face with a sharp smack. “You insane woman! What the hell are you doing?!”


    Nina onlyughed, wild and breathless, her eyes filled with manic triumph. “It’s toote! She’s finished! No one can save her now!”


    Marc ignored her. He dropped to his knees beside Ste, carefully lifting her limp body into his arms.


    At that moment, Luca and a squad of police officers stormed in, their weapons drawn.


    They surrounded Nina as Marc bolted toward the exit with Ste in his arms.


    Luca stepped forward, blocking Marc’s path, his hand instinctively reaching for his weapon. But when his eyes fell on Ste—limp in Marc’s arms—and then on the discarded syringe glinting on the cave floor, his jaw tightened.


    There was no sign of William.


    Luca waved Marc toward the exit.


    Marc didn’t hesitate. He sprinted past him, clutching Ste tightly as he disappeared into the mist outside.


    Luca loomed over Nina. “Where’s Mr. Briggs?” he demanded, his voice like thunder.


    Nina let out a bitterugh that quickly twisted into a pained wince. “How should I know?” she snapped, spitting blood onto the dirt. “I came for Ste. William wasn’t even here!”


    She hadn’t seen William at all.


    Luca saw she wasn’t lying, and his stomach knotted. “Search the entire mountain!” he barked. “Find Mr. Briggs—now!”


    Marc’s car raced down the winding mountain road, the engine screaming as he pushed it to its limit.


    In the passenger seat, Stey motionless, her skin growing paler by the second. Fear clenched Marc’s heart.


    “Ste… please, hang on,” he whispered hoarsely. “We’re almost there. Just a little longer, okay?”


    The car screeched to a halt in front of the hospital. Marc jumped out, shouting for help. Doctors and nurses rushed to meet him, sliding Ste onto a stretcher.


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    They kept firing questions at him about her condition.


    “Someone injected her with something—I don’t know what it was!” Marc’s voice cracked with panic. “Please… please save her!”


    They disappeared behind the operating room doors, leaving Marc alone in the corridor, staring at the red “Surgery in Progress” light. He clenched his fists, pacing back and forth like a man possessed.


    He had no idea how much of the poison had entered her veins. She hadn’t stirred once during the drive.


    There was no way for him to know how she was faring in the operating room.


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