On the way back, Serena was silent for a long time before finally speaking. "Ellie, you can use me for your experiments. As long as you can find a cure for my mom, you can take as much of my blood as you need."


    Eleanor nced at her in the passenger seat. The emergency must have truly frightened her. "Medical research isn''t that simple. It''s not something that can be solved with just a few vials of blood."


    "But... but my mom doesn''t have time," Serena said, tears welling up in her eyes again.


    Eleanor didn''t say anything more, not wanting to crush her hope. In a situation like this, staying calm was the most important thing.


    Back at theb, Eleanor threw herself into her work. Gina''s condition was critical, and the theory she had developed still needed extensive testing. She would do her best.


    At the hospital, Gina was even weaker after the resuscitation. When she opened her eyes, she was painfully aware that her life was nearing its end. The recent rapid decline in her health wasrgely due to her own anxiety, which had led to severe depression, ack of appetite, and a troubled mind.


    The night before, after her daughter had fallen asleep, she had gone to cover her with a nket and had seen a patch of red spots on Serena''s exposed wrist. The shock had been so great that she hadin awake until morning, when her body finally gave out and she copsed.


    Now, awake and lucid, she understood. Her illness had been passed down to her daughter. At only twenty-six, Serena was already sick. The blow was more than she could bear.


    After regaining consciousness, withn by her side, Gina asked through her tears, "Ian, tell me, is my illness hereditary?"


    "Mom..."n said softly.


    "I know now. I passed it on to Serena. The symptoms on her skin are exactly like mine were ten years ago," Gina choked out, the pain in her heart far worse than any physical ailment.


    A new fear gripped Gina, and she tightened her hold on his hand. "And you...?" "I''m fine."


    "Then... then what about Evelyn? Could she have it too?" Gina''s tears flowed freely, her words dissolving into a fit of violent coughing.


    "Mom, please, don''t get agitated. You need to rest,"n tried to soothe her.


    "Just tell me!" she pleaded, her grip on his arm like a vice, her breathing growing more ragged with agitation. "Evelyn... does she...?"


    Looking at his mother,n could only give a slight, reluctant nod. "There''s a thirty percent chance Evelyn could inherit it, but it''s not a certainty."


    Gina whispered her granddaughter''s name, her eyes filled with terror and despair. Her daughter, and now possibly her little granddaughter, carrying this terrible gic burden.


    "How could this happen?" she whispered, slumping back against the pillows, tears streaming down


    her face


    What have


    What have done to.


    deserve this? The puni


    should have been mine alone Why


    did it have to fall on the children?"


    digit


    Overwhelmed by grief and self-me, she began to cough violently again. The


    monitor beside her bed red with an urgent rm.


    "Mom! Mom! Doctor!"n''s face paled. He mmed the call button.


    Medical staff rushed into the room, and it descended into a flurry of urgent activity. Ian was ushered out. He leaned against the cold wall, listening to the shoutedmands and the beeping of machines from inside. He mmed his fist against the wall, his knuckles instantly turning red.