Chapter 2

"What? That's not possible!"

I grabbed my coworker by the arm, disbelief hitting me all at once.

"We all checked him yesterday. Every one of us signed off before we ended the shift. How does he just die overnight?"

He looked just as pale, swallowing hard before answering.

"Looks like a sudden infection. When Dr. Spencer got there, the old man was barely breathing. The funeral home showed up around four in the morning. He's probably already been cremated by now."

My grip loosened.

All the strength drained out of me.

How… How did he still die?

Astrid's voice cut in from the side, light and mocking. "Dr. Johnson, you said I'd never make a good doctor. Turns out you were dead wrong."

I felt irritation spike in my chest. I pulled out my phone and called Colin.

"What happened to that patient last night? Why did everything move so fast? Dr. Brooks and I didn't even get a chance to take a look!"

Colin sounded calm, almost detached. "Don't get worked up, Ruth. You haven't seen what Astrid can do, but I believe her. If she says someone won't make it, then… Well, you see the result."

My anger flared, sharp and immediate. "You actually believe all that occult nonsense she's spouting? Colin, you graduated from North Valley Med! What about all those papers you wrote?"

Before I could finish, shouting erupted outside.

"You'd better give us an explanation today! My dad was fine yesterday, and now he's gone?

"What kind of hospital is this? Don't tell me you're responsible for his death!"

The patient's family was here.

My body reacted before my mind caught up. I took a step back, the memory of blades flashing from my last life hitting me hard.

When I looked back at my phone, the call had already ended.

This time, things didn't spiral out of control.

The family didn't go wild. They just argued loudly, venting their anger. No one threw punches, or pulled a knife. They all stuck to the same demand: compensation.

In the end, it was settled without bloodshed.

It was a close call, but still, something felt off.

No one in the department blamed me. The surgery had been clean; everyone saw that. The man's death was written off as a rare complication.

The family just wanted an explanation.

Once it was over, even Melanie seemed to relax. She clapped her hands lightly, trying to lift the mood.

"We've been slammed with major cases for two straight months. Everyone's been working hard. I'll talk to the admin and get us a day off. Let's have a team picnic."

That got people talking again.

"I found a couple of charter buses we can book. We can pick whichever one looks better."

Melanie pulled out her phone and showed us the options.

I leaned in and saw two buses; one blue, one green. It was exactly the same as last time.

I glanced at Astrid. She looked completely normal.

My thoughts shifted fast. This time, I spoke first.

"Let's take the green one. Looks like it's got a little more space."

Most people had been leaning toward the blue one with the bigger windows, but no one cared enough to argue.

"Green it is."

Melanie made the call.

The second she did, Astrid suddenly jerked her head up, fear flashing across her face.

"Don't get on the green bus! If we do, we're all dead!"

Her sharp, panicked voice made everyone jump.