I almost laughed until I cried.
He kept saying "avoid suspicion, avoid suspicion," told me to follow the process—but I was following the process. He still didn't believe me.
Because of that stupid principle, he was going to deny a patient legitimate medical care.
After five agonizing hours and three emergency resuscitations, Dominic and Victoria finally returned.
He was carrying a dog. She had her arm looped through his like they were on a date.
"Dominic, thank goodness you bandaged my puppy and took her out to play! If she'd been emotionally traumatized, I would've been devastated!"
He tapped her nose indulgently. "You little fool. You're just too kind."
The nurse exhaled in relief and immediately rushed him to prep for surgery.
Victoria pouted. "Dominic, I've never scrubbed in before. I want to learn!"
He smiled, hopelessly indulgent. "Fine, fine. You can assist."
Everything in the OR was ready. Anesthesia had already been administered.
Only then did Dominic stroll toward the operating room, Victoria in tow.
When he saw me, his face hardened.
"Sara. Disgusting."
"You bribed the hospital to cut the line and tricked me into coming back. That's a serious policy violation."
I froze, shaking my head frantically. "I didn't! I waited in line like everyone else!"
The nurse rushed to back me up. "Dr. Harding, this patient really did wait her turn. She didn't cut the line."
His expression darkened further. He rounded on the nurse.
"How much did she pay you to cover for her? This hospital has rules. Everyone who pulls strings thinks they have a special reason. What about the patients who follow the rules? Are their lives worthless?"
I was trembling with fury. "Dominic! I'll say it one more time—I didn't cut in line! I didn't bribe anyone!"
"And the person on that table waiting for you to save her? That's your mother."
His face remained stone cold. "Even if it's my mother, she waits in line. I won't let someone like you corrupt the system."
"Cancel the surgery. Immediately."
The nurse looked ready to cry. "Dr. Harding, the patient is already under anesthesia. If we don't operate now, it'll be too late!"
Only then, in a grand display of mercy, did he agree to proceed.
But to avoid any appearance of favoritism—to prove just how fair and selfless he was—he refused to operate himself.
Instead, he assigned Victoria as the primary surgeon. An intern who had never held a scalpel in an OR. The other doctors would assist.
"Dr. Harding, this... doesn't follow protocol."
His voice went ice cold. "What protocol? This patient used improper means to jump the line and harm other patients. If I operate myself, that would violate protocol."
No one dared to argue.
During the surgery, Victoria kept asking what each instrument was for. She accidentally severed a blood vessel, causing massive hemorrhage. The patient nearly went into cardiac arrest.
Then she nicked the wrong organ, slicing a gash into the lung.
"Oops! I'm so clumsy! I'm so nervous!"
"Oops! Wrong spot again!"
The rest of the team scrambled desperately to clean up her mistakes and keep the patient alive.
If they hadn't been mid-surgery, every single one of them would have dragged her out of that room.
