Chapter 2

"Naomi, Buddy's dying, and you're still protecting the person who's hurting him?"

Naomi's eyes turned red. She lowered her head, unable to meet my gaze. "I... I'm not protecting anyone. Dr. Warren already said it's neurological damage. I'll pay the compensation..."

Across from us, Dr. Alex Warren adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. He rose to his feet, his tone dripping with condescension.

"Miss Moreno, please don't use your laughable amount of knowledge to challenge my professional expertise."

He picked up Buddy's lab report and gave it a shake. "I have a doctorate in veterinary medicine and ten years of clinical experience.

"Every one of this dog's test results points to irreversible neurological damage. And you're telling me it was caused by peppermint oil? That's absolutely absurd."

The moment Dr. Warren finished speaking, the livestream comments swung completely in his favor.

[Exactly. Dr. Warren's a renowned expert. Who does this assistant think she is?]

[She's so desperate for attention she'd use a dying dog to go viral.]

[Fire this intern already. She's annoying.]

I clenched my jaw.

Buddy's weak voice echoed in my mind once again. "It hurts... My skin feels like it's on fire... Please help me... Matty really does have a green bottle in his pocket…"

I took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"Dr. Warren, if you're so certain, why not give Buddy a bath? If we wash the residue off his body, the seizures will ease immediately."

Dr. Warren let out a cold laugh. "Ridiculous. He's already extremely weak. Bathing him would only speed up his death. That would be animal cruelty."

The moment Dolores heard the words "animal cruelty", she scrambled to her feet and rounded on Naomi.

"So that's it, Naomi! I was wondering why this little witch kept defending herself and targeting my grandson. You actually hired her to help you! You tried to kill my dog, and now you don't even want to pay!"

Naomi frantically waved her hands, tears streaming down her face. "Mom, I didn't! I really don't know her!"

Just then, the producer Flint Cameron's furious roar crackled through my earpiece. "Paige! Have you lost your mind? Who told you to go off script? Get off that set right now. Say one more word, and don't bother coming back to work tomorrow."

I tightened my fists as I looked at Buddy lying weakly on the examination table. His eyes were half-open, filled with despair.

Ignoring Flint's warning, I walked straight toward Matty. "If I'm lying, all we have to do is check his pockets."

Seeing that I was serious, Dolores lunged at me like an enraged lioness. "Security! Where the hell is security? Get this crazy woman out of here!"

Two burly security guards immediately rushed into the studio. One grabbed each of my arms, their grip so tight it felt like my bones were about to snap.

"Let me go! That dog is burning alive!"

I struggled with everything I had, but it was useless.

Flint's icy voice came through my earpiece again. "Cut her microphone."

My voice instantly disappeared from the livestream.

Once she saw I was under control, Dolores smoothed her messy hair and slipped right back into her smug act. She walked over to Naomi, pulled a wrinkled sheet of paper from her pocket, and slapped it onto the table.

"Sign it. Half a million dollars for emotional distress. If you're short by even one cent, you're not leaving here today."

Naomi stared at the handwritten IOU, her entire body trembling.