The Officer's Runaway Wife & Secret Son novel Chapter 593

In late June, Brighton City truly welcomed the heat of summer.

Rhys folded his last two pieces of clothing and tucked them into his duffel bag. The moment he zipped it shut, Clara exhaled softly beside him.

This past month had been an absolute torment.

Late one night at the beginning of the month, the monitor alarms blared.

It was a mild rejection episode after the transplant.

Mild or not, rejection was still rejection.

A sudden high fever spiked his temperature to a hundred and three degrees within two hours. His blood oxygen dropped below the red line, and the nurse's station lit up with alarms.

Rhys was half-conscious, his vision completely blurred.

Dr. Black was called in from home at two in the morning.

That night, Clara sprinted to the hospital the moment she got the call. Standing outside the isolation doors, she barely had the strength to stand upright. Her morning sickness had flared up so violently she threw up nothing but stomach acid, yet she absolutely refused to step away.

She shook her head when the nurses urged her to go to the family lounge.

Simon rushed over and tried to pull her by the arm, but she shook him off.

Fortunately, the specialists adjusted his immunosuppressants overnight. Once the steroid shock therapy took effect, his vitals began to climb back up before dawn.

The new lungs sporadically fought back for two days. Once their protests failed, they finally compromised with their new owner's will to live, reluctantly getting to work.

However, the discharge date was pushed back by more than half a month because of this episode.

During the day, Clara stayed with him in the room to do his rehab exercises.

As if that wasn't enough, the little one in her belly was also causing trouble.

Clara often patted her belly and complained, "Your big brother was much better behaved than you."

Rhys gave a soft hum of agreement.

Clara pushed him in a wheelchair out of the room. Dr. Black and two other specialists who assisted in the surgery were already waiting at the nurse's station.

Rhys was perfectly capable of walking now, but Dr. Black insisted he use a wheelchair from the room to the garage.

The rationale was that since his recent rejection episode had only just stabilized, his physical reserves weren't enough to handle a long walk. If he collapsed in front of a crowd, it would ruin the respiratory department's reputation.

Having gotten used to Clara bossing him around, getting bossed around by the doctors didn't trigger his rebellious streak anymore, so he simply sat in the chair like a good patient.

"Rhys, Clara, I wrote down all the discharge instructions on this sheet. Keep it safe."

Dr. Black handed over a stack of printouts. "Three main points. First, the anti-rejection meds are lifelong. Three times a day, no skipping, no adjusting the dosage on your own. The schedule and contraindications for this batch are highlighted on the first page. Keep an eye on him."

Clara took the papers and nodded.

"Second, he's survived the acute rejection hurdle, but the chronic rejection observation window is one year. Within this year, he must come back once a month for pulmonary function tests and blood work. If there are any abnormalities—including worsening coughs, persistent low fevers, or shortness of breath—don't wait, head straight to the ER."