The moment Charlotte answered the phone, she was met with the sound of her mother Rachel's heart-wrenching sobs. "Hiram… something's happened to him!"
Charlotte froze.
Her mind went completely blank, a wave of ringing filling her ears.
She raced to the emergency room at Metropolitan General Hospital. Rachel was sitting on a chair, utterly collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably. Beside her stood Xavier, his face drawn and grave.
It had only been a few days since she'd last seen Xavier, but now gray streaked his hair at the temples, and he looked a decade older.
Charlotte flagged down a nurse, her voice urgent. "What happened to the person inside the ER?"
"I heard he suffered a severe head injury from a beating, which caused massive bleeding and led to shock. Dr. Sinclair is performing surgery now."
A beating…
He was attacked at the police station?
How was that possible…
Charlotte's grip loosened, her whole body trembling as she stood rooted to the spot.
Suddenly, she pushed her way into the operating room.
The doctors inside started to protest, but when they saw who it was, one of them recognized her. "Dr. Sterling? What are you doing here?"
"He's my brother. I have to save him!" Charlotte was already reaching for a set of scrubs.
Dr. Sinclair's assistant quickly stepped forward, blocking her. "Dr. Sterling! You know the code—we're not allowed to operate on our own family! You have to trust Dr. Sinclair!"
Staring at the figure on the table, Charlotte's voice was dazed and hollow. "It's not that I don't trust Dr. Sinclair. I… I just want to help."
"You're in no condition to help right now, Dr. Sterling. Even you've said before, in critical situations a doctor has to keep a clear head. But look at yourself—do you see a doctor here?"
Charlotte froze, her panic slowly ebbing away.
She watched the steady line of the heart monitor, pressed her lips together, and finally said, "I'm sorry… I lost control."
"It's your family, it's understandable. But please, wait outside."
Charlotte glanced at the surgical team, then slowly backed out of the room.
Rachel shakily rose to her feet. "Lottie, is Hiram…"

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