Chapter 454

The operating room's red light glared ominously. Dr. Neil Harrison yanked off his bloodstained gloves with rough impatience.

"Dr. Harrison!" Scarlett Galatea clutched desperately at his sleeve. "My grandmother is still in there!"

"Hopeless case." He shook her off. "Make funeral arrangements."

Scarlett staggered back, colliding with the wall.

"What kind of doctor are you?" Her voice cracked with anguish.

Dr. Harrison whirled around, his white coat slicing through the air like a blade.

"Say that again?"

Evelyn Roland leaned against the wall, twirling a scalpel between her fingers. The cold steel reflected against her sharp jawline.

"She called you incompetent." A smirk played on Evelyn's lips. "Shall I document that in the medical records?"

Dr. Harrison's face darkened. For years he'd dominated the medical circles in this city. Never had anyone dared humiliate him publicly.

"Fine. Just fine." He ground his teeth. "Let's see how you handle this mess."

Evelyn was already pushing through the operating room doors. The nurses exchanged uneasy glances but followed instinctively.

"Miss Galatea." Evelyn glanced back. "Activate all recording devices."

Her gaze cut sharper than any scalpel. Scarlett found herself nodding before she realized it.

Dr. Harrison pulled out his phone with a sneer. "Shall I call the mortuary for you?"

Inside, heart monitors shrieked their shrill alarms.

The snap of Evelyn's latex gloves echoed through the tense silence.

"Hemostat."

Her quiet command made every spine straighten.

Under the surgical lights, the elderly woman's pallid face had taken on a deathly gray hue. Evelyn's blade made its first precise incision.

Outside, Dr. Harrison sighed loudly for effect. "There's still time to stop this farce."

Scarlett dug her nails into her palms.

Time congealed like clotting blood. Three hours passed. The operating light remained lit.

Margaret Lefèvre steadied the swaying Scarlett. "That girl's eyes... they're different."

Dr. Harrison scoffed, scrolling through his phone. "Amateur theatrics."

Suddenly—the light blinked out.

When the doors opened, Evelyn's mask bore flecks of blood. She removed her cap, dark hair cascading down like a waterfall.

"Alive." One word.

Dr. Harrison's phone clattered to the floor.