The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 241

When he was eight years old, he stood helplessly outside the emergency room, listening to his father on the phone down the hall. "I know, I'll be there later. She... shouldn't die from this, right?"

The tone had been dismissive, as if discussing something completely trivial.

When he was twelve, he ranked first in the city and excitedly brought his report card home. His father merely glanced at it and said, "Your brother ranked first in his entire grade this time. He's better than you."

He later found out that the "brother" his father mentioned was the bastard child born to his mistress.

When he was fifteen, his mother suffered her third severe heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. He stayed outside her room for three days and three nights, and his father never showed up once. Later, he went looking for his father, only to hear him telling his assistant outside his office, "Tell her to rest and stop making a fuss. I'll pay the medical bills."

It was as if his mother's very existence was nothing but a troublesome expense.

"Mr. Thorne..." Mrs. Cunningham's tearful voice sounded behind him. "Please... please go sit down for a while. Standing like this is too exhausting."

Sebastian shook his head.

He couldn't sit. He was terrified that if he sat down, he would remember all the vile things his father had said to him over the years—

"You and your mother are both burdens."

"If it weren't for your grandfather protecting you, do you really think you'd be where you are today?"

"Your sickly mother is going to die sooner or later. You'd better get used to it."

And the most venomous words of all: "Sebastian, you're a curse. Everyone who ever loves you will be ruined by you."

He hadn't believed it back then.

But now, his mother was lying inside, clinging to her last breaths.

Was... his father right?

Was he truly destined to bring ruin to everyone who loved him?

His phone buzzed again. This time, it was a text from Lance: [Mr. Thorne, the plane is landing in half an hour.]

Sebastian stared at the message, his fingers trembling slightly.

Half an hour.

This half an hour was likely going to be the longest wait of his entire life.

---

At 4:00 AM, the sky began to pale.

By the time the plane touched down at San Francisco International Airport, the eastern horizon was tinted with a faint grayish-blue. Evelyn walked down the steps to find Seth already waiting by the car.

"Dr. Sullivan!" Seth rushed forward. He looked nearly identical to Lance, though his demeanor was noticeably more grounded. "The car is ready, and everything has been prepared at the retreat."

Evelyn nodded and slid into the vehicle. The car sped toward the retreat as the sky outside gradually brightened.

At 4:30 AM, inside the retreat.

Sebastian was still standing outside the resuscitation room. His back was rigidly straight, but if one looked closely, they could see his hands trembling at his sides.

Hurried footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor.

Sebastian stared at her, opening his mouth, but not a single word would come out. He merely nodded, his eyes instantly turning red.

Evelyn didn't say another word to him. She turned to Dr. Wright. "What is the patient's current status? Give me the latest monitoring data."

"Right! Right away!" Dr. Wright hastily handed over a tablet.

Evelyn quickly scanned the numbers on the screen, her brows pulling together. "Her oxygen saturation is too low. Prep for ECMO, immediately."

"ECMO?" one of the doctors asked in shock. "But given Isabella's physical condition..."

"Do as I say," Evelyn cut him off, her tone perfectly calm but leaving no room for argument. "Prep the operating room. I will perform the procedure myself."

She turned back to Sebastian. "I need you to sign the surgical consent form."

Sebastian nodded. "Okay."

His voice was a bit hoarse, but resolute.

Evelyn looked at him and added one last thing. "I will do everything in my power."

Then she spun around, walking swiftly toward the prep room to change into sterile scrubs, readying herself for the OR. Her lab coat flared out behind her like a battle standard.

Sebastian stood in the hallway, watching her back disappear behind the surgical doors, and slowly closed his eyes.

Dawn was about to break.

And the true battle inside the operating room was only just beginning.