Chapter 171

"Abigail, trust me, I'll handle this. You just wait and don't worry about it."

Meeting those deep, steady eyes and seeing the determination in them, Abigail finally nodded and said nothing more.

Still, she couldn't quite shake the unease in her heart.

Based on what Trent had told her about everything Serenity had done, Abigail was certain that Serenity wasn't someone who gave up easily.

She had no idea what Trent could possibly come up with to make Serenity walk away on her own.

Abigail couldn't figure it out.

But Trent had made it clear he didn't want her involved, so she didn't feel right going against his wishes.

"Alright, just let me know if you need anything."

Seeing that Abigail had nodded and dropped the subject, Trent quietly let out a breath of relief.

He really didn't want to drag Abigail into any of this.

"Just focus on your work. Don't worry about these little things."

Trent was being so gentle and domestic at that moment that Abigail found it almost funny.

"Then I'm leaving this important mission in your hands. Don't let me down."

Abigail said it with a fake serious face, and Trent immediately played along with an equally solemn expression. The mood between them was warm and easy.

While Trent was already forming a rough plan to get rid of Serenity, Serenity had already set her sights on Abigail.

Once she decided to go after Abigail, she sent people to dig up everything they could on her.

Now all of Abigail's information — her work history, background, and more — had been compiled into a printed file.

Serenity picked up the papers from the desk and read through them line by line, casually flipping through.

She had to admit, Abigail's resume was impressive.

Reaching department head at her age — she did have real talent.

But Serenity figured most of her success probably came from the Smith Family's backing.

Thinking about how an otherwise ordinary woman had made it to department head just because of the Smith Family's support, Serenity felt a familiar pull of desire.

If she had the Smith Family behind her, it would do wonders for Powell Construction.

But first, she had to win Trent over to her side.

Her eyes burned with ambition, a calculating gleam flickering in them that ruined whatever beauty she had and made her look, frankly, unpleasant.

She tapped her fingers lightly on the desk, thinking about how to deal with Abigail.

For now, Abigail went straight home after work every day, always picked up and dropped off by car, leaving no opening to make a move.

No opportunity? Then she'd create one.

A sharp light flashed in Serenity's eyes. She'd already made up her mind.

The corner of her lips curved up slightly, her eyes full of confidence.

If Abigail got caught up in a scandal — one that the media blew up and that damaged the Smith Group's reputation — would they still stand by her?

Even if Trent wanted to protect Abigail, would the rest of the family go along with it?

That way, Trent would have no choice but to turn to Serenity.

Confident in her plan, she picked up her phone and passed along her instructions.

The next day, while Abigail was working in her office, a nurse came and knocked on the door.

"Dr. Taylor, the deputy director would like to see you in his office."

With that, the nurse quietly slipped away.

Abigail finished writing up the last of her patient notes, then got up and walked over to the deputy director's office.

Standing at the door, she took a deep breath and knocked.

"Dr. Carter, is something the matter?"

Abigail asked, looking at Raymond.

But Raymond stared back at her with a serious expression, his face clearly not happy.

"Are you really telling me you don't know why I called you in today?"

Seeing how stern he looked, Abigail was genuinely confused.

She thought back carefully over her work these past few days and couldn't think of a single mistake she'd made.

Abigail shook her head slightly, looking puzzled. "Dr. Carter, just tell me what's going on."

Raymond gave her a long look before speaking.

"Do you have any idea that you prescribed the wrong medication yesterday? If the doctor on duty hadn't been careful enough to check the dosage with me, you'd be in serious trouble right now!"

By the end of it, Raymond was so angry he slammed his hand on the desk.

Abigail froze on the spot.

Wrong medication?

How was that possible?

Every prescription that went through her hands was checked multiple times. There was no way she could have made a mistake like that.

"Dr. Carter, could you have made a mistake?"

Seeing that Abigail still wasn't admitting to it, Raymond's face went dark with anger.

"How could I have made a mistake? The wrong medication was brought to me directly — it's still here in my office. If you don't believe me, see for yourself!"

With that, Raymond pulled out the medication the doctor had brought him the day before.

Abigail picked up the bottle from the desk and examined it carefully, reading the label and quietly calculating the dosage in her head.

As she worked through the numbers, she could see the dosage was clearly off.

But as far as she could remember, that wasn't the dosage she had prescribed yesterday.

"Dr. Carter, I didn't prepare this."

Abigail set the bottle back down and looked at Raymond directly. "I don't know who prepared this under my name, but this did not come from me."

"This is what you prepared. Are you really going to refuse to own up to it?"

Raymond looked at Abigail with clear disappointment. "Your name is right there as the responsible physician, plain as day. Are you saying that's not true? Or is there someone else out there who knows your personal account password?"

Seeing how furious he was, Abigail went quiet.

She didn't say anything more to push back. She just stood there, going over the whole medication process in her mind again and again.

But no matter how many times she replayed it, she couldn't remember making any mistake.

Abigail's silence gave Raymond room to keep going.

"Abigail, what's gotten into you lately? Why are you so careless? You've been doing this job for years — do you really not know how to handle dosages properly?"

Even as he kept pressing the issue, Abigail said nothing.

"As a long-time employee of this hospital, you should know better than anyone that this work demands your full attention. And as a department head, you need to understand that you're setting an example for everyone under you."

Raymond went on in a tone that suggested he was doing this for her own good.

"If the leader doesn't care about it, how can the subordinates be expected to take it seriously?"

Abigail listened to the lecture without saying a word.

"Your attitude toward work has to be right. Every single detail needs to be taken seriously. What we do here is a matter of life and death — there's absolutely no room for error. This time, I'll let it go without holding you accountable."

Raymond said it as if he were doing her a favor, but Abigail couldn't stop herself from pushing back.

"Dr. Carter, I did not prepare that medication. I didn't."

She had just walked herself through every step of choosing the medication yesterday, and the dosage was definitely not what was on that bottle.

Her tone, however, seemed to push Raymond over the edge.