Chapter 248 The Surgery Was a Success

Chapter 248 The Surgery Was a Success

A nurse nearby, intimidated by her commanding presence, instinctively handed over a sterilized cotton swab.

After thoroughly disinfecting the area, Audrey gripped the needle in her right hand. Positioning it at a 45-degree angle to the abdominal wall, she drove it into Amanda's skin without hesitation.

The attending physician watched from the side, breaking into a cold sweat.

A blind puncture! This was playing Russian roulette with someone's life! If the needle angle deviated even a millimeter, or if it went half an inch too deep, it would pierce straight through the right ventricle, causing irreversible massive hemorrhaging. The patient would die on the spot.

Yet Audrey's hand remained steady as precision machinery.

The needle advanced slowly as her fingers sensed the changing resistance transmitted through the tip.

Through the skin, subcutaneous tissue, muscle layer.

Suddenly, Audrey felt a subtle breakthrough sensation from the needle tip.

That distinctive feeling of penetrating the pericardial wall.

"Syringe."

Her left hand steadied the puncture needle while her right accepted the empty syringe Ethan passed her. She connected it to the needle hub and slowly pulled back.

Dark red fluid flowed through the needle tube.

"She got it!" a nurse exclaimed in a suppressed cry.

As the first 50-milliliter sample of fluid was extracted, the monitor's piercing red alarm fell silent.

The previously chaotic heart rate waveform gradually returned to a regular rhythm.

Amanda's bluish-purple complexion visibly improved before their eyes. That terrible rattling sound in her throat disappeared, replaced by steady breathing.

Audrey didn't pause, continuously extracting nearly two hundred milliliters of fluid until the pressure within the pericardium was completely relieved. Only then did she smoothly withdraw the puncture needle and press sterile gauze against the puncture site.

"Connect the drainage bag, observe for thirty minutes, and prepare the antiviral targeted medication." Audrey removed her gloves and tossed them into the medical waste bin, her tone as flat as if she'd just performed some trivial minor procedure.

The attending physician stood completely stunned.

He rushed to the monitor, staring at the stable readings on the screen, then lifted Amanda's eyelids to check. Disbelief washed over his face.

"My God..." he murmured, his gaze transforming from earlier anger and contempt into extreme fervor and admiration as he looked at Audrey.

"This is a medical miracle! Without ultrasound guidance, relying solely on blind puncture to so precisely avoid the coronary arteries and myocardium, achieving successful puncture on the first attempt!" The attending physician was so excited he could barely form coherent sentences. He even bowed slightly to Audrey. "Audrey, your technique is steadier than any top cardiothoracic surgeon I've ever seen. I apologize for my earlier arrogance."

Audrey's expression remained cold, not even sparing him a glance. "I've written the revised medication protocol in the chart. Follow that."

"Yes! I'll handle it personally right away!" The attending physician, like an intern receiving orders, respectfully grabbed the chart and hurried out.

Helen stood in the corner, her nails digging bloody crescents into her palms.

How could this happen? Amanda had been on death's door, how could Audrey possibly save her! That was a procedure even top specialists wouldn't dare attempt lightly! Not only did she survive, but Audrey had completely established her authority in the Collins family!

Intense jealousy and resentment flowed through Helen's veins like venom, burning away all reason.

"Audrey!" Lucienne rushed to the bedside. Seeing Amanda's finally stable breathing, the heart that had been lodged in her throat finally settled back into her chest.

She turned around and threw her arms tightly around Audrey, sobbing uncontrollably. "I was terrified... Audrey, you saved your grandmother's life!"

Julian's eyes also reddened. He stepped forward and patted Audrey's shoulder, his voice trembling. "Good girl, I had no idea you possessed such advanced medical skills. That technique just now, even the nursing home's attending physician admitted defeat. These past few years away, how did you learn all this?"

The family gathered around Audrey, their eyes filled with amazement and heartache.

Audrey let Lucienne hold her, the faintest ripple crossing her cool features.

She patted Lucienne's back, her tone as calm as if recounting someone else's story.

"It's nothing special." Audrey's voice was light.

Lucienne's entire body shook, tears instantly breaking through the dam.

She clutched Audrey tighter, crying her heart out.

Julian turned away, quietly wiping his eyes. Ethan stood to the side, fists clenched tight, veins bulging on the backs of his hands.

He only hated that he hadn't uncovered the truth sooner, allowing his sister to struggle for so many years in that soul-crushing place.

The hospital room filled with thick warmth and guilt.

Helen watched this harmonious scene of the family treasuring Audrey, jealousy nearly grinding her teeth to powder.

Why did Audrey get all the glory? Why did a few self-pitying words make Mom and Dad feel so sorry for her!

No, she absolutely couldn't let Audrey be this smug!

Helen roughly wiped her tears, then suddenly raised her voice, shattering the warm atmosphere in the room.

"Audrey, if your medical skills are so good, why didn't you act sooner?" Helen pointed at Audrey, her eyes red-rimmed, adopting a righteous questioning stance. "When Mom, Dad, and I left earlier, Grandma was still fine! How is it that the moment you and big brother stayed in the room, the second you touched her, Grandma suddenly went critical?"

She turned to Julian and Lucienne, her tone urgent and certain. "Dad, Mom! Think about it, Grandma only had a common flu. How could she suddenly become severe enough to need a puncture? It must be that Audrey used some wrong medication or stimulated Grandma somehow, causing her heart failure! Her saving Grandma now is just guilty conscience, trying to make up for what she did!"

Lucienne froze. Julian frowned as well.

Although they didn't believe Audrey would harm anyone, Helen's words seemed to logically catch onto some suspicious point.

Seeing her parents' hesitant expressions, Helen felt secretly triumphant.

As long as she could plant a seed of doubt in their hearts, Audrey would never have peace in the Collins family.

Crack!

A crisp slap suddenly rang out in the hospital room.

Helen screamed, her entire body jerking to the side from the force. Her cheek instantly swelled high, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.

She clutched her face, looking up in disbelief.

Ethan stood before her, looking down from his superior height, his gaze as cold as if viewing a corpse.

"Are you brainless?" Ethan's voice held not a trace of inflection, yet it carried bone-chilling killing intent. "When Mom and Dad left, I was standing right by the bed. Apart from reviewing the chart and observing Grandma, Audrey didn't even touch Grandma's oxygen mask once. You're spouting nonsense here, do you think I'm blind, or do you think I'd cover for a murderer?"

Helen's head buzzed from the blow. Hearing Ethan's words, her face turned deathly pale.