Dr. Robert Henderson, Susan's attending physician, turned to me with a stern expression, his gaze sharp and accusatory.
"Dr. Eddie, you're the only doctor in this hospital with experience treating amniotic fluid embolism."
He took a step closer, his voice rising with each word.
"For the sake of your wife and child, is keeping your job really worth more than their lives?!"
"It's a doctor's duty to treat patients and save lives—and that's your wife in there!"
"The mortality rate for amniotic fluid embolism is 90%. Are you truly willing to sacrifice your wife and child for the sake of your career?!"
The stark statistic hung heavily in the air.
Margareth and Anthony went pale, their faces ashen with fear. Without hesitation, they dropped to their knees again, trembling as they knelt before me, begging desperately.
I didn’t so much as glance at them. My eyes remained glued to my phone screen, where the game continued to play out.
“DEFEAT!”
The game's failure tone blared from the speakers.
I stared at the shattering crystals on the screen, my face darkening. With a swift motion, I smashed my phone onto the floor in frustration.
"This is all your fault!" I snapped, my voice cutting through the corridor like a blade.
"I was in the middle of a promotion match and you wouldn’t stop yelling in my ear like a swarm of flies! So damn annoying."
Anthony knelt closer, trembling as he looked up at me, his eyes filled with pleading desperation.
"Eddie, we’ll give you anything you want. Just save Susan, please…"
The gathered crowd, silent until now, began murmuring amongst themselves. Their eyes bore into me, their expressions shifting from confusion to disdain.
A few older women in the crowd frowned deeply, their faces showing nothing but disappointment.
Before anyone could say more, a piercing scream tore through the hallway, coming from the delivery room.
A nurse bolted out moments later, her face drained of all color. She was visibly shaken, her voice trembling as she cried out.
"Robert! The mother's blood pressure has plummeted! She’s fading fast—we might lose her!"
Robert’s eyes flickered with anxiety, but his tone was icy as he turned back to me.
" Eddie Murph," he said, his voice low but heavy with tension.
"This is my last time asking you: are you really not going in to help her?"
The corridor fell silent.
I didn’t respond immediately. Instead, I raised my injured right hand, blood seeping through the bandages, bright and vivid against the sterile hospital light.
With Robert’s gaze practically drilling into me, I slowly nodded, firm and resolute.
"How can you be so heartless?!"
Margareth’s anguished cry broke the silence. She stumbled toward me, her face contorted with raw pain, her voice trembling as she spoke.
"Our Susan has been with you for seven years! Seven years, Eddie! Not once did she complain about your family’s poverty!"
"She’s beautiful and well-educated. Do you know how many young men chased after her? Yet she chose you. She believed in you!"
"When you two got married, you had no house, no car—you couldn’t even afford a wedding ring! But she still said she was happy!"
"Even your graduate and doctoral tuition fees—do you think you paid those yourself? They came from Susan! And now, when her life hangs in the balance, you—"
Her voice cracked and she broke down completely, sobbing uncontrollably.
The hallway filled with whispers of judgment. The onlookers who had been silently observing finally stepped forward, their voices rising with indignation.
"Young man, is your job really worth more than your wife and child?!"
"Jobs can be replaced, but losing your family is forever! How can you live with yourself if something happens to them?"
"That poor woman has stood by you through everything! Don’t you have any sense of gratitude?"
"She’s your wife! Saving her shouldn’t even be a question—what’s wrong with you?"
The accusations came from all sides, sharp and relentless.
But I stood there, unmoved, the faintest hint of a sneer curling my lips.
