Chapter 2

Joseph froze. "What did you say?"

I closed the medical record and pushed it back to him. "I'm not taking this patient."

The consultation room fell silent.

Joseph stared at me, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

Grace, in the wheelchair, looked a bit pale, but it was clear she had decent energy.

Twenty years. They’d lived truly well.

Joseph had become the heir to the Sterling Group, and Grace was the apple of their eye, cherished by the entire family.

And they probably would never recognize that the woman sitting before them, the Head of Internal Medicine wearing glasses, was the real daughter they'd locked out of their home all those years ago.

"I know you're the most authoritative internist, and it's not easy to get an appointment with you."

"But don't worry, money isn't an issue. As long as you can cure Grace, name your price."

Joseph placed a black card on my desk, held between two fingers.

I glanced down, then looked up at him.

"The hospital has its rules. And I'm not taking her case because her condition falls outside my specialty."

"What do you mean?"

Joseph was stunned again.

"I've made inquiries. You've even brought back patients with late-stage heart failure."

"Grace only has a heart murmur and occasional angina. Are you telling me you can't treat her?"

Grace coughed twice, tugging on Joseph's sleeve.

"Joseph, it's fine... I don't want you to have to beg and grovel for me..."

This act was identical to how she looked in my previous life when she falsely accused me of pushing her down the stairs.

Joseph's heart ached for her. He squeezed her hand, then looked back at me, his gaze like daggers.

"Dr. Harper, is it not enough money? Fine, I'll propose something else."

"If you accept Grace as a patient today, tomorrow, the Sterling Group will donate thirty million to your Cardiology Department for new equipment."

"Is that condition good enough?"

A few intern doctors nearby gasped, but I didn't even bat an eye.

"Mr. Sterling, when I choose a patient, I look at the illness, not the money."

"I'm not treating your sister's condition. Take the card and leave."

Joseph scoffed, his eyes filled with extreme disdain.

"You just don't have the confidence to cure Grace, do you? 'Top expert'? I bet it's all hype!"

"Joseph, stop talking, my chest hurts..."

Grace clutched her chest, breathing heavily.

"Grace!" Joseph panicked, quickly motioning for the bodyguards to push the wheelchair.

As he reached the door, he turned back and glared at me.

After they left, I touched the cold sapphire necklace in my pocket.

The next morning, right after I finished my rounds, Director Davies, who was usually all smiles, walked into my office with a grim expression.

"Harper, you're fired."

I stopped writing and looked up at him. "Reason?"

"Reason?" The director snorted coldly.

"What kind of attitude did you have towards Mr. Sterling yesterday? As a doctor, do you have any ethics, any humanitarian spirit? To refuse a seriously ill patient!"

My gaze shifted downwards, catching sight of the brand-new watch on his wrist, which hadn't been there yesterday.

I understood. "How much did he pay you?" My tone was flat.

The director's face changed, then flushed with anger.

"What nonsense! This is the hospital board's decision! Pack your things and get out now!"