"Are you deaf?" Juniper asked when no one moved after her instructions. Her expression turned cold. "Anesthesiologist in position. Final tool check. Disinfect the scalp..."


    The doctors all looked to Dr. Landon, waiting for hismand. After all, he was the top surgeon in the hospital.


    Dr. Landon nced at the patient, whose head was now shaved, and finally relented. This wasn''t the time to argue with a child. "Prepare for surgery," he sighed.


    Instantly, the operating room sprang to life.


    Juniper pulled on her gloves, her eyes fixed on the unconscious form of Saskia, and a familiar ache filled her chest. "I''m here now," she whispered. "There won''t be any idents."


    She wouldn''t let Saskia die like her grandfather had, fading away before she could reach him.


    "Supine position..."


    After confirming the local anesthetic had taken effect, Juniper picked up a scalpel to make the first incision. She made small hash marks every three to five centimeters to ensure perfect alignment during closure.


    As the de touched skin, every doctor in the room held their breath. Wait a minute... She actually knew what she''s doing. Her scalpel work was incredibly precise, even more so than that of surgeons with decades of clinical experience.


    Dr. Landon watched her technique with a deep frown. It was truly extraordinary. But she looked so young, how could she possibly...


    "Help me," Juniper said, putting down the scalpel and ncing at the mesmerized doctor. "ce your fingers on the incision."


    This step required an assistant to gently retract the scalp.


    "Right," Dr. Landon stepped forward, his movements now focused.


    Juniper then used scalp clips and sharp dissection to raise the skin p down to its base. To prevent vascr lusion, she quickly covered it with saline-soaked gauze and moved on to the second step: the craniotomy.


    The only sound in the OR was the steady beep of the heart monitor. Every doctor''s eyes were glued to Juniper''s hands. Her incisions were exact, her cement wless, her control unwavering. The patient''s vitals remained perfectly stable. This girl had more than just a few tricks up her sleeve.


    "Cotton pads..." After cutting the bone p, Juniper began the dural incision.


    Three hours had already passed. The other assisting doctors, unable to keep up, had already started taking breaks in shifts Only Juniper, remained standing firm, her focus absolute, her hands g with


    swift efficiency.


    "Hemostat."


    "Here," Dr. Landon responded instantly, handing her the instrument. He then turned


    to a nurse. "Wipe Ms. Payne''s brow."


    Juniper nced at him but said nothing.


    "Yes," a nurse quickly dabbed the sweat from Juniper''s forehead and stepped back, continuing to watch, afraid to miss a single detail.


    ...


    At eleven p.m., the surgery had been going on for six hours and still wasn''t over.


    Shanley, Jimmie, and Melvin were all waiting outside. J was crouched in a corner, her eyes red raw from crying.


    "Eat something," Melvin said, offering her some food he''d bought. "Your mom will need you to take care of her when she gets out."


    "I''m not hungry, thank you," J said, shaking her head.


    Melvin frowned, trying to think of another way to persuade her, when Shanley''s voice cut in. "Juniperdeft instructions for you to eat if you


    don''t, when shees out...


    "I''ll eat," J immediately took the rice ball and began to chew, forcing it down


    even though she had no appetite.


    Melvin raised an eyebrow. Dis his sister reallymand that much authority?


    ...


    Four a.m. Eleven hours into the surgery, they were finally approaching the end.


    "Do you see?" Juniper asked,


    exining theplex structure as


    she worked. "In future surgeries


    don in area for linger this


    three seconds."