Chapter 1

"Max! Where the hell do you think you're going? My leg is broken. Can't you see that?" Quentin Lowe screamed.

I kept walking, even picking up my pace. I just wanted to get away from this mess as fast as possible.

Suddenly, something grabbed my ankle and nearly sent me stumbling.

I looked down. Quentin had somehow crawled over and was clinging tightly to my foot.

"Max, please. I'm begging you."

He looked up at me, his eyes bloodshot.

"We're roommates! We've lived together for four years. We've shared meals and a room. Aren't we buddies? You can't just leave me here to die!"

That's right. He was one of the few friends I had made in college, and he had always treated me better than anyone else.

During freshman orientation, I suffered a heat stroke, and he carried me to the campus clinic.

In my sophomore year, I had an appendicitis attack in the middle of the night. He stayed with me in the ER until morning.

In my junior year, he bought me drinks after my breakup.

Quentin saw me hesitate. "Max, please just set my bone. I can't take this pain anymore!"

He immediately raised his right hand and held three fingers together.

"I swear, Max. No matter how things turn out, I won't hold you responsible. Even if my bone heals wrong or I end up crippled, I won't blame you.

"If I ever turn around and blame you, may I die a horrible death!"

That was one hell of a serious oath.

His face had gone deathly pale, and I began to waver.

My professor always told us that a doctor's first duty was to care for others. Saving lives and helping the injured should be second nature to me.

I thought that maybe I could just use a splint to stabilize his leg, then call for rescue right away. Surely, that wouldn't cause any trouble.

Just as I was about to crouch down and open my first aid kit again, the voice in my head began to scream.

"You can't trust him!"

My whole body went rigid.

"There's a tiny camera hidden in his jacket. He's recording everything!" the voice said. "The moment you touch his leg, the video will upload to the cloud in real time.

"It'll be solid proof he can use to sue you for practicing medicine without a license!"

I stared at Quentin's chest. His jacket was zipped all the way up, but it had come slightly undone during our struggle.

Inside it, I could see a faint red light blinking. It was the camera's recording light.

I immediately felt a chill run through me.

We'd been roommates for four years, and he had always acted like he cared about me.

Yet while he called me his buddy, he secretly plotted against me.

So his desperate act of clinging to my ankle had only been a way to get a better camera angle.

Wow. What a buddy he was.

"Max! Hurry up, please. I can't stand the pain!" Quentin kept urging me on, even tugging at my pant leg.

I pulled my foot free from his grasp without hesitation and stepped back.

"Quentin, I'm not going to treat you. I'm just a student, and I don't have a medical license. Practicing medicine without one is a crime. I can't take that risk."

Quentin stared at me in disbelief.

A moment later, his attitude changed. "That's fair. You've always been careful. Then at least call my family for me. You can do that, right?"

I hesitated, then nodded.

I took my phone out to call his sister, but he stopped me.

"Use my phone to call my parents. They don't like answering calls from unknown numbers," he said.

"I've called your sister before. She should have my number saved."

"She's on a plane. You won't be able to reach her."

While he was talking, I had already placed the call.

Just as he'd said, his sister's phone had no signal, and the call disconnected automatically.

The voice in my head rang out again. "Don't trust him! His phone is in his pants pocket. You'll have to touch his leg to get it. Go! Leave him behind!"

I looked at Quentin and asked where he had put his phone.

"It's on me," he replied.

I frowned. "Is it in your jacket or your pants pocket?"

His voice grew weaker. "It's in my pants pocket. Don't worry. I won't force you to help me if you don't want to. I just need you to make a call."

As soon as he confirmed where his phone was, I turned and got ready to leave.

Almost at the same moment, I heard hurried footsteps coming from the bushes ahead.

Someone rushed out.

It was Hugo Judd, our class president.

He was a rich kid who always loved showing off.

Hugo spotted Quentin lying on the ground in pain. He spun around and pointed right at my face.

"Max Carter! Quentin's your roommate, and he's injured. You're just going to stand there and watch?"