Chapter 13
Outside the operating room, Joshua didn't spare Lucas another glance, instructing the head nurse directly. "Prepare surgical scrubs. I'm the lead surgeon."
The head nurse was part of the core team that had returned from abroad with Juliana, so naturally she recognized Joshua. She immediately nodded. "Yes, Professor Lynd."
In the medical world, Joshua's name was a gold standard—absolute authority.
Lucas watched as the operating room doors slowly closed in his face. A barely audible cold laugh escaped him.
He turned and strode away.
The Sharp Estate.
Bianca practically presented Matthew like a prized trophy as she pushed him into the living room.
"Mrs. Sharp! Look! I found Dami and brought him back!"
Ashley shot up from the sofa and pulled Matthew into her arms.
"My precious boy! Where did you run off to! You scared me to death!"
Matthew wrinkled his nose at the overpowering scent of her perfume.
After crying for a while, Ashley finally released him, pulling him this way and that to check him over. "Are you hurt anywhere? Did those awful kidnappers do anything to you?"
Matthew shook his head, silent.
Whatever guilt Ashley had felt toward her grandson instantly transformed into resentment toward Juliana.
"It's all that cursed woman's fault! If it wasn't for her, my precious grandson wouldn't have suffered like this!"
Just then, a servant rushed in from outside. "...I heard that Dr. Wells got shot trying to save the young master. She's being resuscitated at the hospital right now..."
Mommy got shot?
Matthew's head snapped up.
"I need to go to the hospital."
Ashley froze, then her expression turned ugly. "Go to the hospital? You just survived being kidnapped—what do you need to go to the hospital for?"
"She got hurt trying to save me."
Her grandson's certainty made Ashley uncomfortable. Why was Dami so attached to that woman?
"The police saved you—it has nothing to do with that woman! Someone, take Damian back to his room. Without my permission, no one is allowed to let him out."
"Let go of me!"
Matthew struggled for the first time, but his small strength was no match for two tall bodyguards.
The door slammed shut with a bang, followed by the sound of a lock clicking into place.
Ashley had put him under house arrest.
When Lucas returned home from the hospital, it was already late into the night.
The butler reported carefully. "Sir, Master Damian... has been locked up by Mrs. Sharp."
Lucas's steps faltered. "What happened this time?"
"Master Damian heard that Dr. Wells was injured and insisted on going to the hospital. Mrs. Sharp got angry and..."
Lucas didn't wait to hear the rest. He headed straight upstairs.
He stood outside 'Damian's' bedroom door and signaled for the bodyguard to open it.
The room was dark. A small figure sat on the carpet—no crying, no throwing things.
This was nothing like the son he remembered, who threw tantrums at the slightest displeasure.
Lucas walked over.
"Why did you want to go to the hospital?"
Matthew turned his head.
"How is she?"
Lucas was silent for a moment. "The surgery was successful. She's not in danger."
Hearing this, Matthew's tense body finally relaxed slightly.
Lucas looked at him, assuming the child had been traumatized by the kidnapping and had developed some kind of attachment to Juliana, who'd saved him.
He softened his voice. "She needs rest. So do you. Don't worry your grandmother anymore."
"I need to see her." Matthew looked up at his nominal father. "Now. Immediately."
Those eyes held nothing but uncompromising resolve.
Lucas's patience ran out.
He'd just had to deal with Joshua at the hospital, which had put him in a foul mood. Now he came home to face his son's unreasonable demands.
"You're not going anywhere." His voice turned cold. "Stay in this room."
With that, he turned and walked out. "Watch him. Don't let him leave this room."
The door closed again.
Just then, a panicked scream echoed from downstairs.
"Emergency! Mrs. Sharp has collapsed!"
Lucas rushed downstairs.
Ashley lay on the floor, her face ashen, breathing shallow.
The family doctor stood nearby, sweating profusely. "This won't work—Mrs. Sharp's condition has suddenly deteriorated. The equipment here isn't enough! We need to get her to a hospital immediately! She needs the best specialists for emergency consultation and surgery!"
The best specialists...
Two faces flashed through Lucas's mind.
One was Juliana, lying in a hospital bed, her fate uncertain.
The other was Joshua's face, full of mockery and hatred.
Central Hospital, outside the VIP ward.
Joshua had just been about to head to the break room for some water when a tall figure blocked his path.
Lucas's eyes were bloodshot. "My mother is dying. She needs surgery immediately."
Joshua removed his mask, his lips twisting into something resembling a smile.
"Your mother? Ashley Sharp, is it?"
"Yes."
Joshua let out a low laugh—one laced with ice and undisguised hatred. "Sorry. I save lives, but I don't save vipers."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean the Lynd family will never, under any circumstances, save anyone named Sharp. My father felt that way. So do I."
Lucas's patience reached its limit. His voice dropped. "I don't care what grudge the Lynd family has with the Sharp family! Today, you're going to operate whether you like it or not!"
Joshua didn't flinch even as Lucas grabbed him. He didn't even raise an eyebrow.
"Lucas, you're threatening me? On what grounds?"
"On the grounds that I'm Lucas Sharp!"
Joshua paused, then pried Lucas's fingers off one by one. "Wait until Julie wakes up. As long as she agrees and tells me to do it, I'll operate."
Lucas stared at him hard. For a long moment, he couldn't say a single word.
He released his grip, turned, and walked toward Juliana's hospital room.
The room was quiet except for the steady beeping of machines.
Juliana lay in bed, not a trace of color in her face.
Lucas stood by the bedside, quietly, carefully studying her.
This woman was both fire and ice.
What kind of person was she, really?
Lucas didn't know.
Slowly, he sat down in the chair beside the bed.
Lucas remained in that chair all night, never closing his eyes. Despite being the CEO of the Sharp family empire, he personally kept vigil over a woman who was practically a stranger, monitoring any sign she might wake.
After a long time, his body grew stiff. Lucas shifted slightly, and his arm accidentally knocked against Juliana's bag on the bedside table.
Crash.
The contents spilled onto the floor.
Phone, keys, some loose change, and a delicate silver necklace.
Lucas bent down to pick them up. His fingers brushed the necklace, and the clasp on the pendant—already loose—popped open with a soft click.
A carefully trimmed photograph slipped out.
The photo showed a boy with startlingly bright black eyes.
Lucas's breathing stopped abruptly.
This face...
It was unmistakably Damian!