Queen of Wild Cards novel Chapter 194

"Hello. A mutual friend sent me here to evaluate Mr. Shipley's condition." Since no one offered any introductions, she kept the greeting generalized.

Helen frowned immediately. "Mom... is this some kind of joke?"

Agnes was equally unsure. This girl looked like she had just crawled out of a swamp. If she didn't know what she was doing, what if she made her husband's condition even worse?

"Are you... actually trained in medicine?"

"I've studied under a master. I know a thing or two."

Agnes's daughter panicked. "Mom, absolutely not. We can't let her anywhere near Dad. Look at her—she doesn't look like any specialist I've ever seen!"

Agnes, too afraid to risk it, offered a polite dismissal. "Thank you for coming, but the top doctors in the city have already declared these complications permanent. There's nothing more to be done. We appreciate you making the trip out here."

Stella subtly rolled her eyes. As expected, they were entirely judging a book by its cover!

Whatever. She had done her due diligence for the Abbot. If they didn't believe in her skills, she wasn't going to force them.

She turned on her heel and prepared to leave.

Suddenly, Orville coughed from his wheelchair, his speech horribly slurred. "Wai..."

He was trying to say, "Wait a minute."

Agnes rushed over to gently rub his back. "Don't get worked up, dear. Do you want this young woman to stay?"

Orville weakly raised a trembling finger, pointing directly at Stella. "Treat."

"Okay, okay. I understand. We'll let her treat you."

Agnes then walked back over to Stella. "Please, miss, don't leave. We were out of line just now. Please take a look at my husband."

Since her husband was insisting on trusting this stranger, they had to at least give her a chance.

Stella turned back around. Seeing that the older woman's attitude had softened, she pulled up a chair and sat directly in front of Orville.

Orville slowly reached out and weakly tugged at Stella's sleeve. "Help."

"Alright, Mr. Shipley. I'm going to help you. Try to stay calm."

After soothing his anxiety, Stella reached into her ratty tote bag and pulled out a sterile acupuncture kit. Unrolling the fabric, she deftly extracted the silver needles and began inserting them into precise meridian points on his body.

The three Shipley women watched in agonizing suspense, terrified she was going to accidentally kill him, but none dared to voice their objections again.

Ignoring their staring, Stella focused entirely on her placement.

Once the needles were securely in, she didn't bother making small talk. Instead, she pulled out her phone and started casually scrolling.

She understood their skepticism, so she simply opted out of the conversation. She wasn't fond of making polite chatter with strangers anyway.

Fifteen minutes later, she systematically removed the needles.