Chapter 598

Sophia Miller stayed by the stretcher, refusing to leave.

Grace Harper had wanted to come too.

But Sophia saw she was soaked through and looked dazed.

She was afraid Grace would be further traumatized.

She insisted the bodyguards take her home first.

The ambulance siren tore through the curtain of rain.

It raced toward the hospital.

Under the doctors' emergency care, Vivian Bennett's consciousness gradually returned.

Or rather, she was violently dragged awake by a heart-wrenching, searing pain.

The pain was too sharp.

It felt like a blunt knife twisting repeatedly in her abdomen.

It made her gasp sharply, jolting her from unconsciousness.

Sophia hurriedly used gauze to wipe the water from her face.

Vivian slowly opened her eyes.

The last faint light in their depths was completely extinguished.

She stared blankly at Sophia.

After a long time, her chapped lips parted slightly.

"So... it wasn't him."

Her voice was as light as a wisp of smoke.

Sophia's heart clenched painfully.

She knew Vivian understood everything now.

She could only offer clumsy comfort.

"Liam Sullivan is on his way. I've already notified him."

But Vivian seemed not to hear.

Her face showed no expression.

She just stared woodenly at the ambulance ceiling.

Her whole person was like a porcelain doll emptied of its soul.

Her complexion was deathly pale.

Her lips held not a trace of color.

Most terrifying were her eyes.

Empty.

Lifeless.

As if life had already drained completely from them.

The hospital arrived.

Medical staff pushed the mobile bed rushing into the surgical floor.

The attending doctor pulled out a document.

His expression grave, he handed it to Sophia.

"Are you family? The patient's condition is critical. The baby cannot be saved. She's lost too much blood. She's in life-threatening danger and needs immediate surgery. Sign here."

Seeing Sophia's tear-streaked face, he assumed she was a sister.

But Sophia shook her head frantically.

"I'm her friend. Her family isn't here yet. Can I sign for her?"

"No." The doctor was firm. "The surgery is high-risk. A D&C is also required. It must be signed by the patient herself or an immediate family member."

He turned to Vivian, speaking faster.

"You're conscious now. Sign it yourself. There's no time."

Vivian's eyes, which had been like stagnant water, trembled violently the instant she heard "D&C."

She struggled to push herself up on her elbows.

Ignoring the excruciating pain throughout her body, she shook her head, distraught.

"No... I won't let them take the baby... No one is allowed to touch my baby..."

Her voice was weak.

But it carried a stubborn, almost obsessive resolve.

Sophia grasped her icy hand.

Tears fell onto Vivian's hand.

"Vivian, don't be stubborn... There will be other babies. But if you don't have the surgery, you'll die. The baby can't be saved either! You're always so clear-headed. Why can't you see that now?"

But Vivian shook her head desperately.

As if thinking of something, her whole body trembled violently.

Her dry eyes welled up with scalding tears again.

"No... I'd rather die than sign."

She seemed trapped in a nightmare.

She resisted all persuasion.

"I will never sign... It's my baby... Mine alone..." She cried out hoarsely.

Every word was soaked in blood and tears.

She knew the baby was probably already gone.

But she couldn't bring herself to sign that consent form.

It would be like personally sentencing her child to death.

She had never been obsessive about anything in her life.

Only this time, she couldn't do it.

She would rather die with the child than agree.

"Vivian, please... sign it... I'm begging you..." Sophia knelt by the bed, crying until she could barely breathe.

Liam Sullivan, why aren't you here yet?

Do you know, the person you love... has lost even the will to live?

Vivian stared emptily at the ceiling.

Tears slid silently down her cheeks.

"I won't sign... Don't save me... If the baby dies, I die... If the baby lives, I live..."