Chapter 2

Watching the two of them standing there without a care in the world, I couldn’t help but laugh.

I was the one who brought Cedric into the hospital as an intern in the first place. I had high hopes for him, impressed by his overseas education. I thought he’d introduce fresh perspectives and cutting-edge techniques from abroad.

Instead, he spent most of his time goofing off. At some point—God knows when—he got closer to my wife.

There were several incidents where his careless mistakes should’ve been formally reported and dealt with, per hospital policy. However, every single time, Sydney covered for him.

She even had the nerve to lecture me about it.

“Can’t you just give him a chance to make mistakes and grow? Do you always have to be so rigid?” she’d say

That was when I started sensing something slipping out of my control, and today, I finally saw the truth for what it was.

I nodded calmly and said, “In that case, why don’t you follow up on the patient’s recovery? You can be the attending physician.”

Cedric immediately waved his hands. “I’m just an intern. I’m not allowed to be the attending.”

“Why not?” I shrugged. “Rules are dead. You pulled off a successful surgery today, and the director saw it with his own eyes. Your future’s looking bright.”

Sydney didn’t even try to hide her support. She patted Cedric’s shoulder with a proud smile.

“You’re the rising star of our hospital. I believe in you.”

I took the attending physician badge off my chest and shoved it into Cedric’s hand.

His mouth said no, but his hand clutched that badge like his life depended on it—like he was afraid I might change my mind.

“You must be exhausted after a high-stakes surgery like that,” Sydney said as she pushed him toward the hallway. “Go home and rest.”

She didn’t spare me a single glance, but watching the two of them walk away side by side left a strange, hollow feeling in my chest.

After a few steps, Cedric looked back at me, challenging me.

I saw it, but I didn’t say a word. Just because a surgery looked successful on the surface didn’t mean anything.

I had thoroughly studied the patient’s medical history. She had a rare form of hypertrophic heart valve disease. While that condition wasn’t unusual in elderly patients, her individual case made it far more dangerous and prone to complex complications.

In fact, it had morphed into a rare and extremely tricky heart condition. Early on, the symptoms resemble those of ordinary heart disease. If the attending physician isn’t experienced in this specific area, it’s incredibly easy to misdiagnose.

In our country, research into that condition was still limited, but it happened to be my specialty. I could say with certainty that I was the only one in the nation who could perform it with confidence.

As for Cedric’s “successful” surgery, it was just smoke and mirrors. The moment her symptoms flare up again, she wouldn’t survive. He was desperate to shine in front of Mr. Burr, but he didn’t realize what it meant to play god with someone’s life.

After sending Cedric off, Sydney finally came back to me. She looked irritated—a completely different person from the one who used the gentle tone with him moments ago.

“I told you this would happen. But no, you just had to play the hero. Now that you’ve embarrassed yourself in front of the director, you can forget any chance of promotion.

“Not that it matters, I guess. You’re getting older. Just stick to your little job and try not to make waves.”

That was always how she talked.

She thought I was useless, that I aimed too high and delivered too little. She had no idea that I simply never cared for showing off.

Later, when I returned to my office, Cedric was already waiting there.

“Dr. Hamilton,” he said casually, “can you hand over all the patient’s files? It’ll help me prepare for the follow-up treatment.”

Across the office, the other doctors couldn’t help but glance our way.

It was not every day that an intern was made attending physician, especially with the hospital director’s silent approval.

The looks they gave me were full of sympathy. I could almost hear them thinking, ‘He crossed the wrong person. What future does he have now?’

I picked up the thick stack of medical files from my desk. However, just as Cedric reached for them, I let go.

The entire pile dropped to the floor, and Cedric’s face darkened instantly.