The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 1798

“Promise me you’ll come back safe,” Anthony said quietly.

“A week, tops.”

Charlotte held his gaze, her answer calm and certain. “I promise. I’ll be back.”

A week? Anthony’s brow furrowed for a moment. His voice was low, steady. “I’ll wait for you.”

Charlotte just nodded, slipping her hand into his without a word, her fingers weaving tight with his.

…

The next morning, just past six, Anthony drove Charlotte to the airport himself. Dr. David was going too, along with several top researchers from the institute.

Franco and Nora had known about the trip the whole time. They barely slept through the night, but neither dared to call their daughter. No one wanted to add to her pressure. So, they followed quietly from a distance, standing back as they watched her board the plane.

“Don’t worry,” Franco whispered, seeing how teary and anxious Nora looked. He wrapped his arms around her, trying to keep her steady. “She’s a doctor. She knows her duty. Lottie would never run from something like this. That’s never been her way.”

“I know,” Nora said softly, dabbing at the edge of her eye. Her voice trembled. “I’m just scared for her and the baby, that’s all.”

Sometimes she wondered if it was selfish to wish her daughter would walk away, to pray that nothing else mattered but her safe return.

“Lottie’s clever. She’s seen things like this plenty of times. She’ll know what to do,” Franco said, trying to comfort her.

“That was before,” Nora admitted, her eyes lingering on her daughter’s slender frame, her face drawn with worry. Being pregnant made everything so much more uncertain… She just hoped this time would be no different, that nothing would go wrong. She clutched Franco’s hand a little tighter.

…

By three in the morning, a private jet from Cabinda touched down in Apex. The medical team didn’t waste a second. They loaded up and headed straight into the hills.

On two beds pushed together lay a husband and wife. Both were barely hanging on, their monitors showing rapid changes — then nothing at all.

“Get the adrenaline—”

“It’s too late,” someone interrupted. From the first signs of trouble to total brain death, only two minutes had passed.

Charlotte stood frozen at the entrance, just in time to see the monitors go flat, her eyes landing on the bodies, their skin already turning a scary shade of blue and purple.

“Daddy… Mommy…” A small voice broke through the hush. On a nearby cot, a girl hooked up to an IV cried so hard she could barely breathe.

“She lived with her parents, so she was exposed to the sleeping sickness too,” someone explained softly beside Charlotte. “We’ve managed to hold it off, but if it gets worse, she’ll be gone even faster.”

Charlotte stood there, taking everything in, her breath caught in her throat. She glanced down, her hand unconsciously sliding over her own belly, wishing she could believe it would all be okay.