"No, that''s impossible! You''re lying!" Serena cried, her face pale as she


    desperately tried to deny it. "I''m fine, and so is Mom! She just has some chest pain, it''s an old issue." She just wanted to be normal. But despite her words, her body began to tremble.


    Dr. Smith spoke gently. "Miss Goodwin, have you been feeling unusually tiredtely? A loss of appetite? Perhaps some unexined bruises on your body?"


    Serena gasped for air. She had experienced all of those symptoms. Just yesterday, she had found a dark bruise on her calf and assumed she had bumped into something.


    "I thought that was just from staying upte and being stressed," she argued, still grasping for any other exnation.


    "I''m very sorry, Miss Goodwin," Dr. Smith said, his voice filled with empathy. "You are exhibiting the initial symptoms of your mother''s condition."


    His words hit her with the force of an official verdict. Overwhelming terror seized her, and tears streamed down her face. She looked at her brother, her voice breaking. "Ian, how can this be happening? Am I really sick? Am I going to die? How long do I have?"


    "No," Ian said, his voice firm and unwavering. "You are not going to die. Not if you cooperate. We have a treatment n, but I need you to participate."


    Serena was still shaking uncontrobly. Ian softened his tone, exining as clearly as he could, "Dr. Smith''s team is developing a new gene therapy. It has a very high chance of curing this diseasepletely, but it requires your cooperation as a test subject. This is the only way to be free of it for good."


    Tears continued to fall silently down her cheeks. The sheer volume of information was too much to process. All she could cling to were her brother''s words: *cure* and *free*.


    "If I can be cured... can Mom be saved too?" she asked, her voice thick with sobs.


    Serena copsed into his arms, crying uncontrobly. After several minutes, she pulled back, her face


    tear streaked but with a newe


    12


    desperate resolve in her eyes. don''t have a choice, do I? I have to do the experiment."


    "Don''t worry,"n reassured her. "You''re in the hands of the best team in the world."


    Just then, Smith''s assistant entered the room, holding out a ringing phone. "Doctor, it''s Ms. Sutton."


    Serena''s head snapped up. She looked at her brother. "Is she... is she going to be part of this?"


    Serena''s face grew even paler. A memory surfaced, flooding her with shame Eleanor''s warning just a few days ago, urging her to get a


    check-up. The dismissive, c


    things she had said in response now


    made her want to disappear.


    who told me to bring


    "It was Eleanor w


    you here,"n said with a heavy sigh. He had been so consumed with worktely that he hadn''t noticed what was happening at home. He was grateful to Eleanor for the warning.


    Serena bit her lip, hard. So her brother had been alerted by Eleanor too. And she had treated Eleanor...


    "Serena, you are not to tell anyone about your condition. This experiment must be keptpletely confidential," Ian ordered, his gaze intense.


    "Not even Grandma or Mom?" Serena asked, her voice small. They were her family.


    "I mean anyone. Do you understand?"n''s stare was unwavering, leaving no room for argument.