Chapter 6
1170 Words
The moment the audio finished playing, an enraged scream erupted from the crowd.
"There she is! Maya almost killed my son!"
Every head snapped toward her instantly.
Cameras swung in her direction. The reporters rushed forward while furious family members lunged at her with bloodshot eyes.
"Murderer!"
"Give me back my child!"
"She doesn't deserve to be a doctor!"
"Strip her and make her pay for what she did!"
Eggs and water bottles slammed into Maya one after another. Her white coat was stained within seconds, and someone yanked hard enough on her hair to leave her scalp burning.
"It wasn't my surgery!" Maya struggled to explain while dodging the surrounding chaos. "I have proof I wasn't even there!"
But they had completely lost control. Nobody listened.
All she could do was shield herself and fight her way through the mob.
She didn't even know how she managed to escape into the restroom.
The second the door locked behind her, she finally dared to breathe.
Everything hurt. Her arms, her shoulders, her face.
And after holding it in for so long, tears finally slipped down her cheeks.
Maya pulled out her phone and called Evan and Lydia over and over again.
No answer.
Then she opened social media and saw the video Chloe had just posted.
The Cole family surrounded Evan beneath warm candlelight, celebrating his birthday together.
The caption read: Much quieter without a certain person around on my birthday.
In the video, Lydia leaned against Evan with a smile, urging him to make a wish.
Evan picked up his phone, glanced at Maya's incoming call, and rejected it without hesitation.
Maya wiped her tears away slowly, her eyes turning ice-cold.
She wouldn't admit defeat.
She needed to clear her name. And she needed to save that child.
After straightening her ruined clothes, she slipped out through the hospital's back exit and flagged down a cab straight home.
The birthday party in the living room was still going strong.
Slices of cake sat scattered across the table while laughter filled the air.
The moment Lydia saw Maya standing there in filthy clothes, she stood up in surprise.
"Maya? Why are you back? Come have some cake..."
Maya said nothing.
She walked straight to the dining table and flipped it over in one violent motion.
Crash.
Plates, silverware, and cake smashed across the floor.
Everyone stared at her in shock.
Slap.
Maya raised her hand and struck Lydia hard across the face.
"If you weren't capable of handling the surgery, what gave you the right to touch that child?"
Her eyes burned red with fury. "Come with me right now. Apologize to the family and hand over the surgical records!"
That three-year-old child was still unconscious.
She needed to save him as quickly as possible, and she needed to tear Lydia's mask off once and for all.
Lydia clutched her cheek as tears instantly rolled down her face.
"You weren't there that day," she sobbed softly. "The child was in critical condition. I only wanted to help...
"If you'd answered your phone, none of this would've happened.
"I'll apologize right now. I'll even kneel and beg if I have to."
She turned toward the door, looking heartbreakingly righteous.
Evan immediately stepped in front of her, his face dark.
"The family's unstable right now. If you go over there, you could get hurt. And you're leaving the country next week. Your record can't be stained by something like this."
Then he turned toward Maya, his voice firm and cold.
"This was the hospital board's decision. It's the solution that causes the least damage.
"As long as I'm here, I won't let your career be destroyed.
"You just need to apologize publicly and explain things at the press conference."
The sheer cruelty of those words chilled Maya to the bone.
"Why should I take the blame for something I never did?" she laughed bitterly. "So I'm just supposed to be Lydia's scapegoat?"
Evan stayed silent for a moment before his tone softened slightly.
"You're Vice President. You already have everything. But Lydia..." His eyes lowered. "She only has me."
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "The real problem is the hospital system. Bad procedures. Bad management. That's what caused this tragedy."
Maya went completely rigid.
Looking at the man she'd loved for ten years, she suddenly felt nothing but disgust.
"If I refuse..." Her voice shook faintly. "Would you rather destroy my father's hospital and give up your shares than stop protecting her?"
Evan said nothing.
But his silence already answered everything.
Before dying, her father had begged Evan to protect her.
Now, to protect someone else, he was personally shoving Maya into hell.
The room fell silent.
Maya stared at the ruined birthday cake scattered across the floor and thought about the hospital her father had spent his life protecting.
Then she thought about the unconscious child.
Finally, her voice came out rough and hoarse.
"Fine. I'll do it."
Relief visibly loosened Evan's expression.
"But the press conference has to wait a few days," Maya added calmly. "I need to operate on that child again first. Once he's stable, the damage to the hospital and to me will be minimized."
Evan nodded. "Alright. I'll arrange it."
Maya didn't spare any of them another glance. She turned and walked straight into the study.
The moment she opened the computer, she began reviewing the child's records and preparing a new surgical plan.
This was the only way left to prove her innocence.
And the only way left to save that child.
But she never expected the internet to explode the very next day, right after the surgery ended.
A video of her throwing a table and hitting Lydia popped up online, with the caption: Maya lashes out after medical malpractice accusation and assaults hospital staff.
Then things got worse.
Someone edited her words from the previous night and pieced together manipulated audio clips: "Only if that child dies will the impact on me and the hospital stay minimal."
Within hours, the entire internet turned against her.
Her personal information got leaked online. Threats and curses flooded every platform.
Just as Maya was about to respond, Lydia uploaded another video.
Standing outside the operating room with red-rimmed eyes, Lydia said softly,
"Thankfully, the surgery succeeded. The child's finally out of danger. Please stop attacking Dr. Moore online. Everyone deserves a chance to correct their mistakes."
In the video, Lydia deliberately revealed Maya's apartment building and unit number in the background.
Maya's entire body went cold watching it.
Lydia wanted to destroy her completely.
Maya grabbed her phone immediately and headed for the hospital to retrieve the operating room footage and clear her name.
But the moment she pulled open the car door, two men in masks and caps suddenly rushed toward her.
A knife flashed in the light and drove straight at her chest.
"You tried to kill my son? Then you can die too!"
Agonizing pain tore through her body.
Everything went black.
- Writer
