After All the Hurt, She Chose Herself novel Chapter 295

Dr. Reaves reached over and patted Aria's head affectionately. "Why wouldn't it be possible? When you get to my age... who knows, maybe you'll end up with it too."

Aria choked back a sob. "I just don't think it's fair..."

He had never married or had children, dedicating every waking second of his life to scientific research. He had spent his early years as a legendary surgeon and his later years as an undisputed titan of medicine. To think that his brilliant mind would eventually degrade into confusion—Aria simply couldn't accept it.

"Now isn't the time for tears. We have a patient to stabilize," Dr. Reaves said gently, wiping a stray tear from her cheek with his thumb.

Aria nodded quickly, pulling herself together.

When they arrived at the hospital, Gideon had already been moved to a private room. Doctors were rushing in and out, the frantic energy signaling that his condition was critical. Eveline was sitting on a bench in the hallway, hyperventilating between violent sobs.

Aria marched straight up to her, pressing her fingers firmly into specific pressure points on Eveline's wrists. "Breathe!" she commanded sharply.

If she kept panicking like this, she would trigger respiratory alkalosis.

The firm pressure forced Eveline's brain to refocus, and she began pulling in deep, gasping breaths.

"Keep pressing right here for another thirty minutes," Aria instructed briskly before turning on her heel and following Dr. Reaves into the room.

Gideon's vitals were technically stable, but the sheets were soaked in blood—a terrifying sight. Aldous sat in his wheelchair by the bed, his gnarled hands tightly gripping Gideon's pale fingers.

Dr. Reaves took the lab reports from the attending physician, and Aria leaned in to review them. His platelet count had crashed to dangerous levels, yet all his other indicators were perfectly normal. Aria and Dr. Reaves exchanged a knowing look. It was the genetic anomaly flaring up again.

"We need to staunch the bleeding first. He's lost too much blood, and his platelets are shot. Since he's already been given diuretics, we need aggressive fluid resuscitation. In the meantime, pump topical thrombin directly into his stomach to see if we can halt the internal hemorrhaging."

Aria's rapid-fire assessment perfectly mirrored Dr. Reaves's own thoughts.

"Call the blood bank and prep two units of platelets immediately," Dr. Reaves ordered, then looked grimly at Aldous. "The rest is entirely up to him."

Aldous didn't waste a second, immediately barking at the staff to follow Aria's directions. When he looked back at Aria, his eyes were filled with a sudden, profound gratitude. He had fully expected her to leave Gideon to die after the divorce. He had clearly underestimated her character.

Aria wasted no time. She pulled out the specialized medical kit she always carried and sterilized her acupuncture needles. "Turn him onto his side," she instructed. "I need to hit the pressure points to slow the hemorrhaging."

The human genome held millions of variables, and current medicine barely understood a fraction of them. Aria sighed heavily. "With Gideon's condition, all we can do is take it one step at a time and react as symptoms present."

The platelet drop was just a symptom of a larger, invisible trigger. No one knew exactly what went wrong, and aggressively interfering could make it worse. They had to play defense. But regardless of the mystery, Gideon's life was no longer in immediate danger.

Hearing Aria's assessment, Eveline practically scrambled up from the bench and grabbed Aria's hands tightly.

"Aria! Aria, I know I was wrong! Please, won't you reconsider the divorce? I swear, from now on, I will treat you like my own daughter! I'll never give you a hard time again! Gideon needs you! He can't survive without you!"

In that desperate moment, Eveline finally understood why Aldous had been so fiercely adamant about binding Aria to the Evernight family. Gideon was her only child. She couldn't bear the thought of burying her son. If getting Aria back meant Gideon would live, Eveline was willing to sacrifice anything.

Aria had come to save him today, but what about next time? What if she was out of the country? What if she was unreachable? The only way to guarantee Gideon's survival was to have Aria permanently shackled to him.

Aria coldly wrenched her hands free. "So your way of thanking me is to try and trap me again?"

She knew it. The second she saved him, the Evernights would instantly revert to their manipulative tactics. Thank god she hadn't revealed her identity as Dawn yet, or Eveline's demands would have been even more unhinged.