Chapter 916: Chapter 915
Then his phone rang. Martin glanced at the screen, and saw it was Louisa calling.
"Mrs. Collins," he answered, his voice laced with fatigue but nonetheless respectful.
"Martin, after all the trust the Collins family has placed in you, how could you do something like this?
Did you ever intend to deliver Erik to us alive?"
"What are you talking about?" Martin’s gaze darkened with surprise and gravity. "How did Erik die? When?"
Before he had handed Erik over, the man had been perfectly fine.
"Don’t play dumb with me. Now, I want his daughter back—alive or dead, I need proof!"
"Ma’am, could there be some misunderstanding?" Martin quickly tried to clarify. "When we captured Erik, we indeed used a sedative, but it was only meant to knock him out for a few hours. My team just knocked him out, nothing more. How he died, I implore you to enlighten me."
He had thought that if Erik ended up in the Collinses’ hands, his fate would be rough, but at least he’d still have a breath in him.
But he hadn’t expected to lose the man overnight.
If Serena ever woke up and asked about her father, how would he ever explain.
"Are you sure you didn’t have a hand in this?" Louisa clearly didn’t believe him.
"If I had meddled in this, then I, Martin, swear I shall never be with Serena in this life or the next!" He believed it was the most binding oath he could make.
Louisa, hearing this, started to waver in her suspicion. "If it was not you, then who had done this?"
Who would want Erik dead?
"Mrs. Collins, I don’t have all the details. Erik is Serena’s biological father; I would never harm him behind her back. I therefore request your clear judgment. I would stake my life, even the lives of my
entire family, to swear that I have no involvement in this matter."
He was innocent!
Louisa knew how much he valued his family. But if it wasn’t Martin, who else could be responsible?
Louisa hung up. The sound of the call disconnecting echoed in Martin’s ear.
He just couldn’t fathom how Erik had died so suddenly.
At that moment, the doors to the emergency room swung open, and a group of doctors emerged.
Martin quickly pocketed his phone and marched towards them. "How is she?"
"The patient’s wound has become severely infected. Bacteria have entered the bloodstream and caused a systemic infection. Her organs are showing signs of failure. You need to be prepared, Mr. Cooper. There’s a very high possibility that she might..."
"NO!" Martin was struck as if by thunder. "Please, there must be something you can do! Aren’t you some of the best doctors in the world? Why can’t you save a single person? I’ll pay whatever it takes—just save her!"
"The patient’s condition is critical—her vital functions and organs have all been seriously affected.We’re truly sorry, we have done all we can."
The doctors lowered their heads in helpless guilt.
"No." Martin couldn’t accept this reality, "She mustn’t die. There’s got to be a way, please!"
Even though he’d braced for the worst when he’d taken Serena from the Collins’ clutches the previous night.
Facing the grim outcome now, he simply couldn’t bear it.
His Serena couldn’t die.
If she died, what would he do?
"How can she be saved? Just tell me how." Martin said, nearly losing his control.
"Maybe there’s one person who can save her," The leading doctor uttered the name with a trembling voice, "Dr. Bell."
"Yes, Dr. Bell’s almost a miracle, accurate and effective with treatments. If only Dr. Bell gets involved, there isn’t a problem that can’t be solved."
The other doctors nodded in agreement, "I heard that Phillip was practically on the verge of death until Dr. Bell brought him back."
"They say Dr. Bell can even cure people in a vegetative state.!"
All the renowned doctors had heard of Dr. Bell’s incredible skills. But none of them knew who he really was, his age, or what kind of history he had with Serena.
Martin’s gaze dimmed at the mention of Dr. Bell. Wasn’t that the Collins family’s real daughter, Rosemary?
How could she possibly want to save Serena.
"But Dr. Bell’s whereabouts are a mystery, nobody knows where he is, even if he’s alive or not."
"True, any information on his location is scarce."
"Serena’s running out of time, Mr. Cooper. You should spend as much time with her as you can."
"They say Phillip was saved mostly because Dr. Bell just happened to be passing by his room."
It was pure luck for Phillip; otherwise, finding Dr. Bell would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
After speaking their piece, the doctors bowed their heads regretfully and left.
Martin watched with wide eyes as the nurses wheeled out the gurney with the frail girl whose breath was fading.
Seeing his beloved being taken to the ICU, Martin’s hand shook while he unlocked the phone that Erik had entrusted to him before being captured.
This was the phone Erik used daily. When Martin had caught him, Erik discovered himself fallen in a trap but didn’t blame him; he only asked Martin to do two things: to take care of Serena, ensuring her safety and happiness, and to give the phone to Serena when she woke up.
Now, without Serena’s consent, he opened Erik’s contacts to find Rosemary’s number.
He punched Rosemary’s number into his own phone and dialed it immediately.
Rosemary didn’t pick up; she was in the middle of an autopsy, and unexpectedly uncovered some clues.
Sean couldn’t find his sister anywhere. It seemed odd to him that Hunter hadn’t stayed with her but spent a long time talking with their parents in the master bedroom instead. So, Sean knocked on the bedroom door.
Hunter, just about to leave, opened the door to find Sean looking for their sister.
"Where’s sis?" Sean’s first question was about his sister’s whereabouts as he glanced inside, "What have you been talking about for so long?"
"Come with me." Hunter led him to a secluded spot before revealing the news of Erik’s death.
Sean’s eyes widened in shock, "You mean sis is performing an autopsy on him?"
The thought of his sister doing something as gruesome and terrifying as an autopsy stuck him—and without an assistant?
"Her skills even surpass those of someone as skilled as Clark."
Hearing Hunter’s words, Sean was stunned. What kind of prodigy was his sister, capable of everything!
"I’m going to check on her, keep this under wraps, don’t let word get out."
No sooner had Hunter left; Sean hurriedly followed, "Wait for me."
He, too, wanted to see how his sister managed an autopsy.