Chapter 2

The security guards did not hesitate. They stepped forward and reached out to throw me out.

I shook them off and said coldly, “Don’t touch me. I’m the hospital’s specially appointed chief neurosurgeon, Brandon Messner.”

I had changed my name while studying abroad. Brandon Messner was my current name.

Karl cackled and said, “Dr. Messner is one of the top neurosurgeons in the world. His surgeries have never failed. People would pay a fortune just to get on his schedule. The only thing you have in common with him is your last name. You’re just a janitor pretending to be him. That’s honestly pathetic. But since we went to the same school, maybe one day, Elaine and I can hire you as a nanny for our kid.”

I shot back. “That depends on whether you can even have children. And what exactly do you do for a living other than living off a rich woman?”

That hit its mark. Karl’s expression twisted.

He had tried more than once to get Elaine pregnant, but every time, it had failed.

The truth was, Elaine had no intention of having a child at the moment, no matter how he tried to persuade her.

Karl spat on the floor. He continued to insult me. “Get on your knees and lick it clean.”

Elaine frowned slightly and cut in, “Karl, forget it. We have things to do. Don’t waste time on him.”

A dark look passed through Karl’s eyes. He was deeply displeased with Elaine for defending me.

I gave him a look of disdain. I could not be bothered to keep arguing with them. I stood up and started walking toward the door.

However, Karl lunged from behind and slammed me to the ground. He hissed, “Michael, you’re just a janitor. Don’t act like you’re above me. Why are you even hanging around here? Were you hoping to win Elaine back? Let me make this clear, that’s never going to happen. She already knows exactly what kind of person you are. If I see you anywhere near her again, I’ll slash that pretty boy face of yours open.”

I shoved him off me with all my strength and snapped, “Get off me. What’s wrong with you? I’ve been married for years. I love my wife. I have zero interest in anyone else.”

Elaine’s expression turned dark. She stared at me in disbelief and asked, “Michael, what did you just say? You’re married?”

I replied flatly, “Yes. So relax. Stay together, grow old together, do whatever you want.”

Elaine shook her head and repeated, “You married another woman? No, that’s impossible. I can’t believe you’d ever get over me.”

I was baffled by her reaction. “Why would that be so hard to believe? We broke up years ago.”

Elaine did not believe me. Her gaze suddenly stopped on my chest.

I followed her line of sight. In the scuffle just now, the chain around my neck had slipped into view.

Elaine wore a knowing expression. She smiled and said, “Michael, you’re still keeping up the act. I knew you couldn’t forget me. Why else would you still be wearing the matching couple’s necklace I gave you? If you apologize to me right now and beg for my forgiveness, I might just give you another chance.”

Her necklace?

Back then, she had pretended to be poor and sick. The necklace she gave me had been some cheap two-for-nine-ninety-nine shipping-included piece from an online store. It had rusted and fallen apart and disappeared years ago.

This necklace was a gift from my wife on our wedding day. It was a token of our love. A master craftsman had custom-made it by private order. I wore it every day without ever taking it off.

I stared at her, completely exasperated. “Take a good look at the diamond. Does that look like something you could’ve afforded? My wife gave this to me. It has nothing to do with you.”

The diamonds set into the pendant were exquisite and luxurious. Anyone could see they were worth a fortune.

Karl, however, reached out and ripped the necklace right off my neck. His eyes were malicious as he said, “Michael, how could someone like you ever afford such expensive jewelry? The people who come to this hospital are wealthy. You must’ve stolen this from one of them. If you’re so broke that you can’t even afford a meal, you could’ve just told me. I’d be happy to pack up the leftovers from my house every day.”

I snorted. “Keep your leftovers for yourself. As I recall, you’re not a picky eater. You’d eat anything.”

Karl knew that I was implying the way he had once clung to rich older women for money. His face flushed with rage and humiliation.

He turned and barked at the security guards who had hurried over. “Are you deaf? Why have you not thrown him out yet? Do I need to file a complaint against all of you?”

The guards did not give me a chance to explain myself. They grabbed my arms and began dragging me out by force.

Their grip hurt my arms. Worrying it might affect my ability to perform surgery tomorrow, I wrenched myself free.

“I’ll walk out on my own. Don’t touch me!”

Karl opened his mouth to hurl more insults at me.

Then, a nurse suddenly rushed over and handed them the results of their head scans.

Elaine and Karl stared at the diagnosis printed on the papers. It was malignant gliomas in both of their brains. They cried out in disbelief, “How could it be this serious? And malignant?”

The nurse offered them a kind reminder before hurrying off without stopping. She did not notice me standing behind them.

“Only our nation’s top neurosurgeon, Dr. Brandon Messner, has a perfect success rate with glioma operations. You’re in luck. He’s currently working at this hospital. Your conditions are very serious. If you want to live, you need to contact Dr. Messner as soon as possible and schedule your surgeries.”