A group of tough men who wouldn''t flinch at bloodshed now stood with red-rimmed eyes.


    Yvonne recognized a couple of them, besides Simon, from the military-themed reality show she had participated in at Bet''s base.


    But no one was in the mood for pleasantries.


    "Where... where is he hurt?" she asked, her voice raspy.


    "Mostly superficial wounds..." Simon began evasively, but he couldn''t bring himself to continue as he looked into Yvonne''s eyes.


    A soldier in camouge suddenly squatted down, his sobs suppressed. "It''s all my fault. Mr. Thompson was injured trying to save me.”


    The atmosphere outside the operating room was suffocating, broken only by the soldier''s quiet weeping.


    "Shut up! Yourmander isn''t dead yet, so stop your damn crying!" a man in his forties, Colonel Andrew Lee, Bet''s superior, barked, kicking the soldier lightly.


    Instantly, even the sound of crying vanished, leaving a silence so profound it was almost unbearable.


    Yvonne clutched her chest, struggling to breathe.


    Then, she heard hurried footstepsing down the hallway. Frank and Emma had arrived.


    As was procedure, Bet''s parents had been notified.


    Frank and Emma''s estate was far from the airport, so they had missed the earlier flight Yvonne had taken.


    But the Thompson family had a private jet and could arrange their own flight path, so they arrived in Chano not long after Yvonne.


    "Bet? Where''s Bet?" Emma cried out as she approached.


    Emma had been the picture of elegance and dignity her entire life, always poised and noble. This was the first time Yvonne had ever seen her so disheveled. Her face, bare of makeup, was deathly pale, and her eyes were swollen from crying.


    Over the years, Bet had suffered numerous injuries in the line of duty, but Emma and Frank were always told after the fact.


    He never wanted them to worry.


    This was the first time the military had notified them directly, which meant Bet''s injuries were truly severe, possibly life-threatening.


    As Bet''s aide, Simon immediately went to report to Frank and Emma.


    There was no way to hide the truth now.


    “Mr. Thompson has mostly superficial wounds, but the critical injury is to his chest. A bullet went through his left side, we don''t know, if it hit his heart," Simon said his voice trembling.


    After speaking, he instinctively nced at Yvonne.


    Before losing consciousness, Bet had told him not to notify Yvonne, afraid of scaring her, afraid of making her worry.


    But after a great deal of internal struggle, Simon had called her anyway.


    He was afraid that if Bet never woke up, Yvonne would not even get to see him onest time.


    "Bet! My son!" Emma screamed upon hearing the news, her body going limp as she fainted.


    Frank was not in good shape either, but with his wife copsed, he had to hold himself together.


    He caught Emma in his arms and immediately had a doctor attend to her and admit her to the hospital.


    Emma''s health had always been delicate, and now she had suffered such a severe shock. If both his wit and son were lost, their family would be shattered.


    Bet remained in the operating room. Hours passed, but the surgery showed no signs of ending.


    Yvonne sat on a bench outside, waiting quietly.


    "Ms. Jones, you should get some rest. We''ll stay here and let you know as soon as the surgery is over," Simon said.


    Yvonne didn''t speak, just shook her head, her neck feeling stiff.


    Her gaze was fixed on the window at the end of the hall. A sliver of dawn was breaking outside. The sky was turning a pale white. It was morning.