Chapter 20 Chapter 0020
•CASSANDRA•
\[FIVE YEARS LATER\]
Five years had passed since I left Silvercrest, and my life had finally started to feel steady.
My daughter, Elena, was four now, full of energy and endless questions, and she knew Dante as Uncle D.
Things were exactly how I wanted them to be. She was far away from the people who hurt me. And I was even more determined to ensure she never met them.
Today was one of the good days. I had just finished a twelve-hour shift at Beverly Hills General Hospital, where I had spent the last four years as an attending physician in genetics and rare diseases.
This morning I diagnosed and started treatment of a young man with a rare genetic disorder that had eluded specialists for years.
The treatment protocol I developed had stabilized him within hours. His family had cried in the hallway when I told them he would walk out of the hospital in a week.
It was the kind of win that made the long nights worth it.
After rounds, I headed to the weekly department meeting. Dr. Amelia Hart stood at the front, as always, perfectly dressed and smiling.
She was the head of internal medicine and had never hidden her dislike of me.
But I learned not to pay much attention to her, even when she couldn't stop trying to talk down to me.
Before the meeting ended, she turned to the group. “One last thing. I want to congratulate Dr. Frost on her latest success. Saving Mr. Ramirez from a condition most of us only read about brings her total to two thousand patients successfully treated or stabilized. That’s impressive work.”
The room clapped, and I nodded politely.
Amelia approached and looked straight at me with a sharp smile. “Numbers like that are cute, Cassandra, but let’s be honest. They’re just a tally on a scoreboard. You’ll never have the kind of influence or recognition I do. Some of us are built to lead departments and win awards. Others are meant to stay in the background, quietly cleaning up the messes no one else wants. You’re good at that. I’ll give you credit.”
I kept my voice calm. “I’m not here for awards, Amelia. I’m here to help patients. But if that keeps me out of the spotlight, I’m fine with it.”
She laughed softly. “How sweet. Keep telling yourself that. But we both know you’re only here because Dante pulled strings. Without him, you’d still be scrubbing floors somewhere.”
"That's so sure of you to assume I was scrubbing floors somewhere before I came here," I scoffed, folding my arms across my chest. "Not all of us came from the gutter, Amelia."
"Oh, please," she laughed in a mocking tone. "You can fool anyone here, but certainly not me. I know girls like you. You thought coming here would get you the life you never grew up in. But you should know that Dr. Dante will chew your heart and spit it out just like he did with all the girls he dated before you joined the clinic."
I scoffed and held myself back from telling her I was a Luna before I joined the clinic, and that Dante was nothing more than a friend.
Dante walked in from the hallway just then. “Amelia, I heard you were giving Cassandra her due. She deserves it.”
Amelia’s face softened immediately. She turned to him with a warm smile. “Of course, Dante. I was just telling everyone how proud we are. Two thousand patients is remarkable. She’s done an amazing job.”
I almost rolled my eyes at the quick change, but Dante didn’t seem to notice.
He turned to me. “You ready? There’s a new place down the street I’ve been wanting to try for lunch.”
“Sounds good,” I answered, smiling.
We left the conference room together. I could feel Amelia's eyes burning holes behind us.
The restaurant was small and warm. We took a table near the window. Dante ordered wine, and we talked easily about the case, Elena’s love of dinosaurs, and weekend plans. For a while, everything felt normal.
Then Amelia appeared at our table, holding a glass of red wine. “Mind if I join you for a minute? I was just leaving and saw you two.”
Dante smiled. “Please sit.”
She sat and raised her glass. “To Cassandra’s two thousandth patient. May there be many more.”
I lifted my glass of water. She leaned forward to clink glasses, but her hand tilted deliberately. Red wine splashed across my white blouse, soaking the fabric and dripping into my lap.
“Oh, no!” Amelia gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth. “I’m so sorry. My hand slipped. Let me get napkins.”
She waved over a server and started dabbing at the stain with exaggerated movements. “I feel awful. Please let me pay for the cleaning. I know you probably can’t afford to replace it.”
Dante frowned. “Amelia, be careful. You almost knocked over the bottle.”
She laughed lightly. “I know, I’m so clumsy today. I’ll go ask the manager for a spare shirt or something. Don’t worry, Cassandra. I’m sure you’re used to getting messy at the clinic."
She hurried off. Dante looked at me. “You okay?”
“It’s just a shirt,” I replied. “I’ll survive.”
But I knew it wasn’t an accident. Amelia had never been clumsy. She had done it on purpose.
Before I could say more, a shout came from the front. A man at another table clutched his throat. His face turned red. His friend jumped up. “He’s having an allergic reaction! Somebody, help!"
I stood up right away. I reached for my purse and the EpiPen I always carried.
Amelia appeared out of nowhere and pushed past me. “I’m a doctor. Everyone stay calm.”
She pulled an EpiPen from her bag and administered it quickly. The man’s breathing eased. The restaurant burst into applause, and people thanked her, called her a hero, and patted her shoulder.
Amelia waved them off modestly. “Just doing my job. Someone call 911. He needs to go to the hospital.”
She turned to me with a small, triumphant smile. “Good thing I was here. Imagine if we had to wait for someone less prepared.”
I stared at her. The timing was perfect. She knew exactly how to play her cards well, and to make Dante see her as more competent than I was.
Dante walked over. “You alright, Cass?”
“I’m fine,” I answered. “Just glad the patient is okay.”
Amelia touched my arm lightly. “Don’t worry about your shirt. I’ll send you a new one. Same brand, right? Or maybe something more… affordable.”
She walked away, accepting more thanks from the crowd.
I sat back down. Dante looked concerned. “That was… very convenient.”
“Too convenient,” I agreed.
We finished lunch quietly. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Amelia had always seen me as a threat. She had risen fast without the usual connections, and she hated that. Today she crossed a line.
As we left the restaurant, Dante took my hand. “You saved two thousand patients. Don’t let her take that away from you.”
“She won’t,” I answered.