Chapter 6

By the fourth day after the charity gala, I was practically living at the hospital.

Dad's surgical evaluation moved forward step by step, and the rehab hospital in Maine tentatively agreed to take him. All that was left was for the doctors to confirm whether his heart could handle the long transfer.

"You can't drop your work and your family just to take care of me." Dad sat on the edge of the bed, trying to button his coat himself. It took him two tries to get one button done. "When couples fight, hurtful things are bound to get said."

I hung his coat back over the chair.

"Dad, this isn't just an ordinary fight anymore."

He stared at my splint and didn't try to talk me out of it. I finally told him about the guards injuring me, having my name removed from the foundation's project, and Noah accusing me of kidnapping Claire without cause.

After he heard it all, Dad was quiet for a long time. Then he asked softly, "Does he think that when I helped him start his business, I was looking down on where he came from?"

I didn't know how to answer.

"I just couldn't bear to watch you struggle for his sake back then." Dad sighed. "But that kindness shouldn't have become his excuse to hurt you later. As soon as the doctors say it's okay, we're leaving."

I told Emily about Dad's decision and reminded her to schedule the medical team.

That afternoon, I went to another building to sign some papers. A nurse called and said a woman claiming to be Noah's sister had come to visit Dad.

"She has a visitor sticker from the foundation and says she's here to apologize on behalf of Mr. Reed. I told her to wait in the visitor lounge, and she was there just a minute ago."

My heart dropped.

"Don't let her into his room, no matter what. I'm coming right back."

I knew it had to be Claire. The scars on my future self's face seemed to tighten.

"Evelyn, hurry."

I ran all the way up to the ward and pushed the door open. Dad was lying on his back, gasping for air. The call button that should have been by his hand was tucked behind his pillow. The nasal oxygen tube was still on his face, but the oxygen flow had been turned far below the prescribed level.

Claire was standing at the foot of the bed.

"He kept complaining that the tube was uncomfortable, so I adjusted it for him."

I immediately turned the oxygen back to the prescribed setting on his care chart, hit the emergency call button by the bed, and called for the nurses to come right away.

"Who said you could touch the medical equipment?" I stepped forward and stood in front of the bed.

Claire glanced at the door, and the fake smile vanished from her face.

"You really do care a lot about your father." She leaned in close to my ear, her voice cold. "No wonder. As long as I use him as leverage, you'll put up with anything."

I shoved her away.

"Get out. Get out now."

She dropped onto the edge of a chair, and in an instant, tears came pouring out. "I was only trying to help. Why did you push me?"

A nurse rushed in and checked Dad's oxygen saturation right away. His lips were slowly turning gray, and the nurse shouted for a doctor. I gripped the bed rail and begged her to help him.

Just then, Noah showed up.

Claire threw herself into his arms. "I came to apologize for you, and Evelyn decided I was trying to hurt her father."

Noah saw me gripping Claire's sleeve. He saw the fury on my face.

"Stop this nonsense." He turned to the bodyguards behind him. "Take her out first. Don't let her keep threatening Claire."

Two bodyguards stepped up and grabbed me by the arms.

"Noah, she changed the oxygen settings! The doctor isn't here yet. Don't stop me!"

"Can you stop blaming Claire for everything?" he said, raising his voice.

The monitor in the room suddenly let out a shrill alarm.

A nurse shoved the door open and rushed out. "His oxygen level is dropping fast! Everyone who doesn't need to be here, out! We need room!"

She pushed right between us, and several doctors poured into the room with emergency equipment. Only then did Noah see that the oxygen setup by the bed had been tampered with and notice the nurse's notes. He quickly ordered the bodyguards to let me go.

I stumbled toward the door, but a doctor kept me from going in.

"We need room to work. Are you the healthcare proxy?"

"Yes."

"Please wait outside. We'll update you soon."

The door slammed shut. I could see Dad's left hand hanging over the edge of the bed. That hand used to hold my bike steady when I wobbled. Now it didn't move at all.

I slid slowly down the wall to the floor. The pain in my wrist was so intense I nearly passed out.

Noah stood a short distance away. For the first time, there was a trace of panic on his face.

"I didn't think it would get this serious."

"You didn't think? Then you should have listened to the doctors and to his family." I looked up at him. "But you chose to have your bodyguards silence me."

Claire was still sobbing quietly nearby. I found the ward supervisor right away, showed my healthcare proxy papers, and asked them to revoke Claire's and Noah's visiting privileges. I had them preserve the door access footage, the equipment logs, and the nursing shift records. Then I called the police and reported that someone had barged into the room and tampered with the oxygen equipment.

When the police arrived, Noah didn't try to stop them again.

Dad was moved to the ICU. The doctor said he couldn't be transferred as planned for now. Whether he'd need emergency surgery would depend on how his vital signs changed over the next few hours.

My future self was huddled beside Dad's empty wheelchair, shaking all over.

"Last time, I just kept begging him to hear me out," she murmured. "By the time I came to my senses, it was too late to call the police."

"But not this time." My voice was shaking too. "I saw it, and I called the doctor right away."

She slowly lifted her face. The dark scars that had covered her knees faded away completely in that moment.

But she didn't look relieved at all.

"Evelyn, Dad's still in there fighting for his life."