Chapter 6

The elevator chimed softly. The digital display flashed 77.

The metal doors slid open, revealing the highest-security medical zone in the country. The air smelled sharply of antiseptic.

Standing immediately outside the doors was Vera Thorne, the hospital's top anesthesiologist, wearing her white coat. She was bouncing on the balls of her feet, her face pale with stress.

The second the doors parted, Vera lunged forward. She grabbed Elisa's wrist and yanked her out of the elevator.

Vera didn't even glance at the massive, imposing figure of Conrad standing inside the car.

Conrad stood frozen. He watched as a world-renowned doctor treated his ex-wife like a savior. His brow furrowed so deeply it hurt.

Before he could process what to do, the elevator doors slid shut, cutting off his view.

Vera dragged Elisa down the corridor, their rubber-soled shoes squeaking against the antibacterial flooring. They ducked into a secure breakroom.

Vera slammed the door and locked the deadbolt. She spun around and shoved a steaming paper cup of black coffee into Elisa's hands.

Under the harsh fluorescent lights, Vera studied Elisa's face. She saw the dark circles under her eyes, the pale, translucent quality of her skin.

Vera's face softened. "Did you finally sign the papers with that blind bastard?"

Elisa took a sip of the scalding coffee. It burned her throat, but she needed the caffeine. "Yes. NDA signed. Walked away with nothing."

Vera's eyes widened in fury. She gripped the heavy metal clipboard in her hand so hard her knuckles popped. "Nothing? I swear I'll kill him-"

"I drugged his wine," Elisa interrupted, her voice completely flat. "Left him unconscious on the floor with a one-dollar bill in his shirt and a sticky note calling his performance terrible."

Vera stared at her. One second passed. Two.

Then, Vera threw her head back and let out a loud, unhinged laugh. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms tightly around Elisa, crushing her in a fierce hug. "Welcome back to the land of the living."

The hug lasted three seconds. When they pulled apart, the warmth vanished from the room.

Vera handed over the heavy medical file.

Elisa set her coffee down. The moment her fingers touched the plastic binder, her eyes changed. The exhaustion bled away, replaced by the terrifying, laser-focused intensity of a predator.

She flipped through Hector Ruiz's charts. Her eyes scanned the numbers, her brain processing the data faster than a machine.

"Three-centimeter tear in the ventricular wall," Vera reported rapidly. "Standard suturing has a zero percent survival rate. He'll bleed out before you close."

Elisa tapped her finger against a dark smudge on the ultrasound printout. "They missed this. Secondary micro-tear behind the valve. If you open his chest normally, the pressure drop kills him in ten seconds."

Vera sucked in a sharp breath. Sweat beaded on her forehead.

Elisa grabbed a dry-erase marker from the table. She turned to the whiteboard and drew a viciously complex, unnatural surgical path.

"We use Deep Hypothermic Circulatory Arrest," Elisa commanded. "Drop his core temp, stop the blood flow entirely. I'll fix both tears blind."

Vera stared at the board. Her stomach dropped. "Elisa, that requires inhuman hand stability. One millimeter off, and you slice the aorta."

Elisa turned her head. Her eyes were chips of ice. "That is why I am here."

A red alarm light on the wall suddenly began to flash violently. The patient's blood pressure was crashing.

Elisa dropped the marker. She walked to the sterile changing area. She stripped off her coat and began pulling on the dark blue scrubs reserved for the chief surgeon.

Vera took a deep breath, steadying her nerves. She unlocked the door and ran toward the operating theater to prep the anesthesia.