"Let her go," Liam’s voice pierced the air.
"She has caused trouble in the hospital," one guard retorted. "She tried to harm a patient. We are taking her to the station. If you want to discuss it, do it there."
But Liam didn’t budge. He stood firmly in their path. "Let her go now, or I’ll make sure this hospital shuts down."
The guards exchanged glances before bursting into laughter.
"Stop acting tough," the second guard scoffed. "Move, or you’ll regret it."
"Fine. You asked for it." Liam imdiately pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
The guards kept watching him with mocking smiles until they heard Liam’s next words.
"Good morning, Mr. Morris. Your guards just harassed my friend. If you don’t want to take legal action against this hospital, fire them imdiately."
The laughter died at once. Their faces drained of color. They had never thought that the man would call Mr. Morris, the founder of the hospital.
Liam ended the call and fixed the guards with a cold glare. "Let her go."
They instantly stepped back.
"But she tried to harm a coma patient," one of them mumbled weakly. "We were only following orders."
"And now you can deal with the fallout," Liam replied sharply.
Just then, a hospital administrator rushed out, bowing deeply to Liam. "My apologies, Mr. Lawson. These fools have caused you trouble. The director inford —your friend is free to leave. I’ll handle them."
He shot the guards a threatening look. "Co with ."
The guards, now pale and trembling, followed him without a word.
Zara stared after the guards and the administrator until they were gone, still shaken, then turned to Liam. "You actually know the owner of this hospital?"
Liam gave a small, confident smile. "Of course. He is a close friend of my father. And the Lawsons have been major investors here for years. He won’t dare cross us. Co on—I’ll take you ho."
He reached out to guide her, but Zara stepped back, shaking her head.
"I’m not leaving," she insisted. "Mom’s life is at risk. I have to protect her."
"Zara, wait." Liam moved to block her before she could head inside again. "Trust —things are already being handled. You need to stay calm."
Nathaniel had already made arrangents to secure his mother, and he had instructed Liam to keep an eye on Zara while he was away. The mont Liam heard she was at the hospital, he rushed over, but he was still late.
Riya and the nurse had already spun the narrative and turned everyone against her.
"If you go back in now, they’ll stir up another scene," he warned. "It’ll only make things worse. Let deal with it."
But Zara couldn’t leave without ensuring Gracie was safe. "You don’t understand how bad it’s gotten," she said urgently. "If it weren’t serious, I wouldn’t have co here at dawn, knowing I wasn’t even allowed to see her."
Liam frowned, his expression turning serious. "What did you find out?"
Zara quickly recounted the call she had received from the runaway nurse. "I even recorded it," she finished anxiously. "But Claire, that head nurse, smashed my phone. Now I have no idea how to expose them."
Liam listened to her intently and sensed her desperation to save Gracie.
"Now you see why I rushed here," she insisted. "We are running out of ti. We have to stop them."
She moved toward the hospital entrance, but Liam caught her arm again.
"You can’t go back inside," he said firmly.
Zara shot him an irritated look, baffled by his insistence. "Why are you stopping ? I told you everything."
Liam looked troubled. He couldn’t explain how Zachary had warned him the night before to keep Zara as far away from Riya as possible, not here.
"Look," he tried to persuade her, "right now, you don’t have anything against them. The phone is broken already. Without the proof, you can’t confront them."
Zara hated that he was right, yet the dread in her chest only grew. "But Mom is in danger," she pressed. "I don’t know where Nathaniel is. With no one around, Riya will easily hurt her. We need to stop her."
She broke free from his grip, ready to storm into the hospital.
"Wait, Zara...Please." His hands landed on her shoulders, putting her in her place. "If you walk in there now, things will spiral further out of control. Let talk to Mr. Morris. I’ll find a way to keep her safe. I promise—Riya won’t get near her."
At his words, Zara’s restless mind cald a little. She had just witnessed how one call from Liam had made the guards back off instantly. She believed, with his connections, Liam would protect Gracie.
She nodded, finally relenting. "Fine, I’ll leave with you."
Together, they left without delaying another mont.
While they were engrossed in their discussion, Riya seethed silently. "She just won’t stop interfering," she muttered under her breath. "Why can’t she mind her own business?"
She couldn’t fathom why Zara had shown up at the hospital despite Nathaniel explicitly forbidding her from going near Gracie. Riya was certain Zara would never forgive Nathaniel for his actions and would abandon any thought of helping the old woman. Yet Zara appeared, still trying to save Gracie, who had never treated her kindly and had only ever criticized her.
"I’ve had enough of her," Riya hissed. She had already managed to deflect Zara’s accusations twice, but she knew she wouldn’t be lucky every ti.
What if Zara succeeded in exposing her next ti? The thought made her stomach twist with fear.
Zara had soone collecting evidence against her. If Claire hadn’t destroyed that phone, all their secrets would have been laid bare.
"I need to deal with her before she ruins everything for ."
She would have already taken action if Zachary hadn’t stopped her. Her jaw tightened as his warning from the night before echoed in her mind.
"I’m done listening to you."
She was just about to make a call when she overheard the head nurse speaking. "What are we going to do about her? She’ll wake up soon."
Riya’s gaze shifted to Gracie, lying unmoving on the bed, showing no sign of consciousness. "She is a threat to . And obstacles need to be removed."
Claire hesitated. "You an... you want her gone?"
Gracie heard every word. Her body tensed, her heart pounding with terror. She wished she could flee, but she didn’t dare move. If they realized she was regaining consciousness, she feared they would finish her off right away.
"But we could get caught," the nurse cautioned. "Mr. Grant assigned a new team to watch her. They are monitoring her around the clock. Even the slightest change in her condition will raise suspicion. It’s too risky."
Riya wasn’t worried about it. With Zachary preparing to crush Nathaniel, even Gracie’s death wouldn’t have any consequences.
"You should only think about the money you are getting," she said sternly. "Understood? Rember what happened to the last nurse who went against ."
Claire instantly lowered her head, fearing Riya would hurt her and her family as well.
"Do what I say," Riya ordered. "Once it’s over, you can quit this job and disappear wherever you like."
Claire nodded. Her hands trembled as she picked up a syringe from the tray. She reached into her pocket for the drug, but the door suddenly opened. A senior doctor walked in with two interns behind him.
"What are you doing here?" he demanded, glaring at her.
Gracie stiffened further. ’Who is this man?’ she wondered, terrified. ’Is he also going to hurt ? Where are Nathaniel and Vincent? Why aren’t they here yet? Why is it only Riya here?’
"Dr. Ross." Claire bowed, her palms clammy, her fingers shaking as she shoved the syringe in her pocket. "I was just checking her vitals."
"You are not assigned to her anymore," Dr. Ross said firmly. "We’ll take over from here. You may leave."
Claire sneaked a frightened look at Riya before quickly slipping out.
Dr. Ross gestured to the interns. "Move the patient."
"Where are you taking her?" Riya stepped forward, stopping them.
"We need to run so tests," Dr. Ross replied. "Please step back. You are obstructing us."
The interns brushed past her, effectively pushing her aside as they wheeled the bed out of the room, with Dr. Ross close behind.
Riya clenched her fists as she watched them leave. For the first ti, real uneasiness crept into her. They had failed to administer the second dose, aning Gracie might wake up soon.
But Riya forced herself to remain composed. Even if Gracie regained consciousness, her paralysis wouldn’t disappear so quickly. She wouldn’t be able to talk, let alone reveal anything.
’Yes,’ she thought, easing her nerves. ’She can’t speak.’ A vile smile twisted her lips. ’My secret is still safe.’
A sudden shrill ringtone snapped her out of her thoughts. She glanced at the screen—it was her manager.
"Hello?"
"Miss Riya, there is an update about Jaxon."
"Jaxon?" Riya’s brows rose. She had nearly forgotten him. Only when his na was ntioned did she recall. "Oh, our forr associate. Isn’t he in prison? Why ntion him now?"
"Jaxon has escaped."
"What?" Riya gasped, stunned for a mont.
"He broke out last night and disappeared. The police are searching everywhere. I thought you should know. Since he used to work under you, he might approach you and create problems."
But Riya saw it differently. While others worried Jaxon might cause her trouble, she was already plotting how to use him to end Zara’s story once and for all. Jaxon held a deep grudge against both Zara and Nathaniel.
She could use his hatred for them as a weapon. And when Zara died, no one would question it. Everyone would assu Jaxon had murdered her out of revenge.
A sinister smile curved on Riya’s lips. At last, she could get rid of her long-standing enemy.
"Since he is out, he’ll definitely try to target Zara. Find him before anyone else does. And keep it quiet. Zachary must not know."
"Understood. I’ll keep you inford," her manager replied before ending the call.
Riya scoffed, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Zara, you failed again. No matter how hard you try, you’ll never defeat . You should’ve stayed out of my way. Now you’ll face the consequences."
The thought of Jaxon hunting Zara down sent a thrill through her. "I can’t wait to see what he does to you."
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