Chapter 1 The Child on the Operating Table

As I helped my son into the car, he suddenly remembered that he had left his favorite stuffed toy on his hospital bed.

My parents told me to go get it while they took Leo safely to the other hospital.

I nodded and headed back to the ward. On the way, I ran into one of the nursing assistants from the room next door.

"Your son was just wheeled into surgery. What a tragedy. He's so young…"

My mind went blank.

My son? How was that possible? I had just watched my parents drive away with him, after all.

I grabbed the assistant's arm. "You saw my son go into the operating room?"

She looked confused. "Of course. A group of interns took him just now. They said it was emergency surgery. Your wife signed the consent forms."

A chill ran through me. They must have taken the wrong patient. If they operated on the wrong child, someone could die.

Thinking of the terrified parents who might be waiting somewhere, I immediately rushed toward the operating room.

Just then, my wife, Grace Harper, pushed through the doors, pulling off her gloves as she walked.

I hurried over. "Listen to me. The child in there isn't—"

She cut me off impatiently. "There's a patient in Building 3 with an aortic dissection. I need to get over there right now.

"Marvin is here. He's the most talented student I've ever trained. He's assisted in twenty-seven heart surgeries. Everything will be fine."

She was really leaving, exactly like she had in my previous life.

I grabbed her white coat, panic rising in my chest. "He can't be the lead surgeon. You need to go back in there now."

She yanked herself free.

"Stop this nonsense. The patient over there has an aortic dissection. Do you know how high the mortality rate is? Every minute wasted brings that patient one step closer to death. Can you stop being so selfish?"

Selfish?

My voice shot up. "What's wrong with wanting my wife to save her own son? If that kid is so talented, why don't you send your precious student to handle the other surgery?"

The moment the words left my mouth, she slapped me. "You're being ridiculous," she said coldly.

Then, she turned and strode away.

The surgery light glowed above the operating room doors. Only then did I snap back to my senses and try to get inside to stop Marvin. But three of Grace's other interns blocked the entrance.

A young woman with glasses spoke first. "Mr. Sterling, once surgery begins, it can't be interrupted. You should wait outside."

My voice trembled. "But he—"

The other two interns gently but firmly guided me toward a nearby bench.

"That's right, Mr. Sterling. Marvin may be young, but his fundamentals are excellent. Dr. Harper trained him personally. He's been first assistant on every major surgery for months, and he knows the entire procedure by heart. If Dr. Harper trusts him to lead, she must be confident in his abilities."

Their words sounded flawless. Every concern I raised was met with a calm, reasonable answer. I found myself surrounded with no way through.

Then, from inside the operating room, I heard a brief startled cry.

I jumped to my feet. "What happened inside? Did something go wrong?"

A buzz-cut intern immediately pressed a hand onto my shoulder.

"It's fine. During heart surgery, a surgeon can react instinctively if they touch a sensitive nerve or encounter an unexpected situation. It's completely normal. Marvin was probably just focused and got startled by one of the monitors."

"Exactly. It happens to us during training all the time."

Their explanations smothered every doubt and every struggle.

In the end, I could only sink back onto the bench.

Clasping my hands together, I silently prayed that both my son and the innocent child inside that operating room would make it through safely.

Time crawled by in unbearable agony.

Meanwhile, the interns casually pulled out their phones and started scrolling.

Then a message arrived from my mother. 'Leo's surgery was a success!'

The weight crushing my chest finally lifted. But at that exact moment, the light above the operating room went dark.

A gurney slowly rolled through the doors. A white sheet covered the small body lying on top.

My heart sank all over again. The worst had still happened, but who was this child?