He Begged Me to Let Him Go, Now He’s Begging to Come Back Chapter 05

The way Dr. Harrison said “Doctor,” not just “doctor,” stopped Greg cold.

Greg’s gaze darted between me and the director. He looked as if he’d just been slapped.

“Director… what did you call her?”

Dr. Harrison turned to face Greg, and his smile vanished. His expression became strictly business.

“Mr. Thornton, allow me to clarify something for you.” He gestured toward me.

“This is Dr. Emily Carter. She is the chief of emergency and critical care medicine recruited by this hospital

from Harvard Medical School.”

“She is not only our youngest attending surgeon, but also the lead researcher of a nationally funded lab.”

Greg went pale. The calm assurance on his face cracked, then crumbled.

“That’s not possible,” he said, more to himself than to anyone. He stared at me. “You’re just an attending…”

I looked at him, my voice perfectly flat. “Attending was last month’s title, Mr. Thornton. You haven’t heard?”

Linda’s voice cut through the room. “So what if she’s a professor? She still took our money! A doctor like that has no ethics! She shouldn’t be allowed to practice!”

Dr. Harrison gave Linda a cold look. He took a file from his assistant and placed it on the desk.

“Ms. Hayes, within hours of receiving that check, Dr. Carter reported it to both the hospital ethics committee and the United Way.”

“The full amount has been donated to the Local Children’s Aid Foundation in Mr. Thornton’s name.”

He slid a donation receipt across the desk, along with a notarized affidavit.

Black ink. Red stamps. Impossible to miss.

Linda’s face went white.

Greg stood frozen, swaying slightly, like someone had pulled the floor out from under him.

The money he had thrown at me to ease his own guilt. The strings he had tried to pull. In my hands, it had all

become a joke.

I walked over to Greg and looked into his eyes. He was panicked now. The way he used to make me panic.

“Mr. Thornton,” I said. “That pathetic superiority you’re so proud of? It doesn’t impress anyone but you.”

I didn’t look back at them. I walked out of the office and into the hallway.

Behind me, I heard Linda’s hysterical screaming and Greg’s muffled roar. “Enough! Shut up!”

A sharp crack cut through the air.

I didn’t even slow down. One word echoed in my mind: Good.