“In the hospital.” Mark’s handsome brows were raised again, and his charming face darkened. “What happens?” “Charlotte… Charlotte met with an accident. She is in the emergency room right now.” Mark pursed his lips, his face crashing. A dark and gloomy cloud shrouded his eyes, with cold light flickering inside. His shapely hands clenched the phone in his hand. His usual calmness had left him. His heart was racing, as if someone was crushing it. “Which hospital?” “The General Hospital.” Mark ran out of the hotel in a whirlwind as the line went dead. The ladies at the reception were still in a daze. They had never seen Mark Valentine from such a close distance, his charm completely bewitching them. Summer’s lips were quivering after she hung up the phone. Mark was Charlotte’s biological father, and he had every right to know what happened. She just wanted Charlotte to stand in front of her, being naughty. She could not believe that a moment ago, Charlotte was still stand
The blood type of both of them was type-A. The nurse planned to draw 400ml, but Mark wanted the nurse to draw 1,000ml from him. The nurse refused, saying that the maximum permissible amount of blood a person could donate was 800 ml. Mark narrowed his eyes and said sternly, “Don’t make me repeat myself. If anything happens to them, I will hold you responsible.” The nurse trembled and was too afraid to say otherwise. She lowered her head and drew 1,000ml of blood from Mark. There was little change in Mark’s expression. He rolled down the sleeve of his black shirt and looked at the nurse. “Save Dean. Let me know if you need anything. Inform me if anything happens.” Mark never liked owing someone else’s favors. Especially when it was from Dean, who was injured from saving Charlotte. He would do his best to save him. When Mark came out, Summer stood up by using the seat as support. She appeared pale but calm. “Do they need another blood transfusion? I am type-A blood, too.”
A long time had passed before the doors of the operating theater finally swung open. Summer jumped out of Mark’s arms at once, ran up there and grabbed the doctor’s arm. Anxiety and fear filled her. She was afraid to hear the outcome she dreaded to hear. She was scared to hear the worst news. Mark watched and took her fears and hesitations all in. He stood up, strode forward, and put his arm around her and drew her into his embrace. Just when he was about to speak, Summer spoke with a somewhat trembling voice. “How is my daughter, doctor?” She looked calm on the outside, but the tremble coming from her body gave her emotion away. So he held her tightly and supported her silently. The warmth of his embrace calmed her. She was less anxious. At least her legs had stopped shaking. The doctor then looked at the man beside Summer. “Mr. Valentine—” “Just tell me.” Mark interrupted the doctor, his voice low and cold. His shapely hand involuntarily tightened the grip on Summer’s sh
Summer sat quietly at the bedside, waiting for Dean to come out of his coma. She sat there for over five hours, but Dean was still sleeping. There was no telling when he would wake up. It was at this moment that the attending doctor was doing his ward round. Summer asked with concern. “Doctor, why hasn’t the patient woken up yet?”“The cerebral hemorrhage has not pressed against the nerves of the brain. So don’t worry, the patient will probably wake up in a day or two.” The attending doctor said to Summer and asked the nurse behind him to take notes while observing the patient’s condition. She felt a great sense of relief upon hearing what the doctor said. Her cell phone vibrated. She went out of the ward before picking it up. “Hello?” “Has he regained consciousness?” Mark’s deep voice came through the phone. “Not yet.” “Then come back first. Charlotte is awake,” he said in a gentle voice. Summer briefly talked to the two nurses who took care of Dean in the room before
Mark turned around, walked back to the couch, and put her down, then took out a quilt and put it on her. Never had once Summer been awakened. She seemed to be really sleepy. Mark ran his shapely hand over her tear-stained face, his thin lips twitching. “This is really ugly.” As far as he could recall, he had never seen Summer cry. This was the only and first time she did. Charlotte was also sound asleep on the hospital bed. Just that the white gauze on his little head was hard to ignore. Mark, again, stroked her little face with his finger as he sat down at the bedside. The next morning. Summer opened her eyes and found herself on the couch. Her mind was drifting for a while before she snapped back. She then got up and saw two nurses in the ward, busying back and forth, but they made little noises. Whisking away the quilt, Summer walked to the bedside. “Is there anything wrong?” “No, Charlotte recovered fast. She didn’t hurt any important part of her body, so she will b
Dean was not cheerless. He listened to the jokes and laughed, though not as much as his mates. After all, he had just come out of a coma and his body was still weak.Just when everyone was about to leave, Dean said to Brandon Tyson, his second officer, “Can I have a moment with you, Brandon?"Brandon nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed. “What is it, Captain?”“I have a backlog of several cases to follow. Go back and tell the chief to assign the cases to someone else.”Brandon furrowed his brows, looking not too happy. “Why assign them away now? You have spent a great deal of time and effort on those cases. I am not going to do it.”“Don’t be emotional. How can I work on those cases with my current condition?”“You are only hospitalized temporarily. After you recover, you can continue to work on them.”“Brandon! Don’t you dare to say something like this to me again. Those are murder cases. How can you take them lightly?” Dean became dead serious.Brandon did not dare to s
Summer pulled back her thoughts and dashed towards the ward. She was now sure that Dean was hiding something from her, as far as his legs were concerned. The attending doctor had left. Dean was leaning against the headboard, drinking water. He broke into a smile when Summer returned. “I can almost smell the sandwich,” he said. Summer looked at him, and said calmly, “It’s tuna sandwich.” “Thank you. Just leave the things here. I can take care of myself. Go see Charlotte. She must have been frightened when this happened.” “There are nurses over there. You may first take your breakfast.” Her expression was calm as she handed him the sandwich. Dean said nothing more, but took the sandwich and tucked in while Summer was sitting beside him. He finished the sandwich after a while, but Summer still had no intention of leaving. So Dean urged her. “There might be nurses there, but Charlotte could feel scared when she wakes up without you. Besides, I am perfectly fine. Go now.” Summ
Summer’s face sank, her expression serious. “Sit down,” she said in an icy voice.Charlotte was startled. She was trembling as she shrank her shoulders and sat there, motionless.“Extend your hand.” Summer's voice was still cold.Charlotte stretched out her hand, and then she was smacked on her palm. Her cry reverberated in the ward.Summer raised her hand and then smacked Charlotte in her tender palm again. She hit her so hard that Charlotte’s palm reddened.Just then, Mark came in and the things that happened in front of his eyes.“Does it hurt?” Summer looked at Charlotte.Charlotte cried, tears flowing down her cheeks. “It hurts…”Summer looked indifferent. She smacked Charlotte’s hand again, and Charlotte cried even louder this time and pulled her hands back. Tears continued to stream down her face.But Summer caught her hand and asked again, “Does it hurt?”“It hurts… it hurts… Mommy, it hurts…” Charlotte cried, her eyes and nose red, looking pitiful.Summer raised her