In the operating room, my surgeon husband and his mistress nurse abandoned a patient for forty minutes, leading to the patient’s death. Afterward, my husband demanded I sign a medical malpractice waiver. That’s when I realized he thought my own mother was on the operating table. I silently pushed the waiver back to him. “It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to sign this. The deceased’s son should sign it.” “Sign this.” Dr. Victor Thorne slammed the document onto my desk. His face showed no remorse, only impatience. I glanced at the paper. “Medical Malpractice Waiver” read the title. I was confused. Then Tiffany Davis, standing next to Victor, spoke up, her voice dripping with sickly sweetness. “Dr. Hayes, my condolences. Victor did his best, but your mother just didn’t make it…” She pretended to look sad, lowering her head, but her hand clutched Victor’s arm tightly. I froze, instinctively looking at Victor. “What happened? It was just a thyroidectomy, right?” Victor scoffed. Tiffany immediately chimed in, her tone falsely understanding. “Dr. Hayes, you’re a doctor too. How can you say something so unprofessional? There are always complications during surgery. Your mother was old, in poor health… You can’t blame Victor. He’s probably more heartbroken than you are.” He’s more heartbroken than *me*? I frowned, staring at Victor. —And why wouldn’t he be? My gaze seemed to offend him. Victor roughly shoved the waiver back in front of me. “Cut the crap, Amelia! Sign this now and hand it to Director Miller yourself! Also, tomorrow morning at eight, the moment our cooling-off period is over, we’re going straight to the courthouse to get divorced!” He paused, then pulled Tiffany closer, flaunting her. “And, Tiffany and I are getting married tomorrow. Your mom’s funeral is just too much of a downer, so I won’t be going.” With that, Victor didn’t even spare me another glance. He walked away, arm around a smug-looking Tiffany. My mom’s funeral? My eyes fell back to the “Medical Malpractice Waiver.” The patient’s name seemed to be a printer error, with some ink bleed, making it barely legible. I could just make out “M. Thorne.” “Due to insufficient care by the family, the patient died from postoperative complications. The hospital and lead surgeon, Dr. Victor Thorne, bear no responsibility…” I read each line, feeling nothing but a sickening sense of absurdity. Victor only had one surgery scheduled today. The patient was his own mother, Martha Thorne.
The unsettling feeling inside me grew stronger. I went straight to the monitoring room to review the surveillance footage of that surgery. The recording showed Victor and Tiffany arriving late. The patient was already anesthetized, her face covered with a sterile drape, when they strolled into the operating room as if nothing were wrong, taking their sweet time. Victor was the lead surgeon, and Tiffany was the instrument nurse. But those two had no focus on the surgery at all. Their flirtatious glances never stopped. Nurse Jenkins cleared her throat, beginning to verify the patient’s information. “October 17th, OR 1, first surgery, patient verification. Patient Martha—” “Alright, alright, don’t waste time. What does the patient’s name have to do with the surgery? It’s just one thyroidectomy today, can’t get it wrong.” Victor cut Nurse Jenkins off and immediately started the surgery. Tiffany gave Nurse Jenkins a slight, smug bump, signaling her to move away from Victor’s side. Nurse Jenkins, already annoyed with Victor, just stepped aside. Soon after the surgery began, Tiffany absentmindedly handed over the wrong size clamp when passing a vascular forceps. Nurse Jenkins immediately spoke up. “Tiffany, that’s the wrong one.” But instead of admitting her mistake, Tiffany rolled her eyes at the experienced nurse. “Oh, who cares if it’s wrong? Why are you so loud? You startled me!” “This is an operating room! It’s a matter of life and death! You’re wrong, and you’re still arguing?” Tiffany was so flustered, her eyes welled up. Victor instantly bristled. He slammed his scalpel down into the tray with a loud *clank*, pointing at Nurse Jenkins’s nose and yelling, “I’m the surgeon, and I didn’t say anything! Who are you to boss anyone around here?!” After yelling, Victor grabbed Tiffany’s arm. The two of them stomped out of the operating room, leaving the patient mid-surgery, abandoned on the operating table! Chaos erupted in the operating room. A young nurse quickly ran after them. Nurse Jenkins, meanwhile, directed the others to continue the surgery while making a call to report the situation to a superior. I fast-forwarded the recording. It took a full forty minutes for Victor and Tiffany, the two culprits, to reappear on screen. Their faces showed no urgency at all. Instead, they had an arrogant, exasperated expression, as if we had to beg them to return. It was at that moment that the heart monitor’s waveform grew weaker and weaker, finally emitting a piercing “beep—” and flattening into a straight line. The shrill alarm echoed throughout the operating room. Victor shuffled over to the operating table, pretending to press the patient’s chest a few times, just going through the motions. “Alright, can’t save her.” From start to finish, he didn’t even bother to lift the drape covering the patient’s face to take a look! There wasn’t a single shred of guilt in his eyes! Even if he didn’t know it was his own mother lying there, such disregard for life and utter irresponsibility made my blood boil, and my stomach churned with disgust! As I unlocked the monitoring room door and stepped out, I bumped into Sarah Olsen, a new nurse from our department, in the hallway. The moment she saw me, she rushed over, her face a mix of cautiousness and eagerness to show concern. “Dr… Dr. Hayes… about your aunt… my condolences…” “It was my mother-in-law who passed away,” I calmly corrected her. “Not my mom. But thank you anyway.” “Oh?!” Sarah’s eyes widened, her face flushing with embarrassment. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Dr. Hayes! I misunderstood. When your aunt came to see you that day, she said she was your mother, so I just assumed…” Of course, I knew my mother-in-law, Martha Thorne, had made a scene when she came to the hospital last time. I wasn’t surprised she’d become gossip fodder for the younger nurses. I shook my head, indicating I didn’t mind. Sarah still looked regretful. “Yesterday, when I was scheduling surgeries, I even specifically told Dr. Thorne that today’s patient was Dr. Hayes’s mom. He heard me and agreed readily… Sigh, how could an accident happen?” “What did you say?!” I cut her off. “You told Victor that my mom was on the operating table?!” Sarah jumped, stammering, “Y-yes…” Sarah was new and had no idea Victor and I were married, nor did she know that my mother-in-law was Victor’s actual mother. She looked at me with confusion. I took a deep breath, utterly flabbergasted. No wonder! No wonder that scum, Victor, was forcing me to sign a waiver for *his own mother*! No wonder he could cruelly say my mom’s funeral was “a downer”! Because he always thought it was my mom lying on that operating table! Suddenly, my heart lurched. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Victor, before entering the operating room, already “knew” my mom was inside! So, those forty minutes he and Tiffany were gone… was it truly a spur of the moment fit of pique, or was it deliberate? Medical accident, and intentional killing, are two entirely different things.
The next morning, I went to the courthouse and finalized my divorce with Victor. Victor clung to Tiffany the whole time, openly affectionate. As soon as the divorce certificate was issued, he loudly declared they were going to get their marriage license. I didn’t waste another word on him. I drove straight back to the hospital; patients were waiting. After two surgeries, I stepped out of the operating room, only to be cornered by Victor. “Amelia! What the hell do you want?! Why didn’t you sign that damn waiver?! You got me reamed out by Director Miller! All my bonuses are gone! Are you happy now?!” “Victor,” I said, looking at his pathetic display, my heart calm. “It wasn’t appropriate for me to sign that waiver.” “Not appropriate for you?! I think you did it on purpose! You just want to screw me over! Surgery always has risks! If you’re so filial, why didn’t you operate on your own mom yourself?!” “Surgical risks?” I scoffed. “Was it a surgical risk, or was it the lead surgeon leaving with his little nurse for a full forty minutes in the middle of the surgery? Victor, should I pull up the surveillance footage and post it online, so everyone can learn about your ‘surgical risks’?” “You—you really did it on purpose!” He jumped. “Just because your mom died on my operating table, you had to get revenge! You just want to ruin me!” “I’m telling you, Amelia! You owe me this month’s bonus! And that waiver! You need to go right now! Immediately! Sign it for me! Do you hear me?! Director Miller is waiting!” “First, Victor, we’re divorced. You have no right to lay your hands on me. Second, only the deceased’s direct next of kin can sign a waiver like that. We’re divorced, so I can’t sign it.” “Are you out of your mind, Amelia?!” He couldn’t believe his ears. “What does our divorce have to do with your mom?” “You’re the one who’s out of their mind.” I stared into his stupid, angry eyes, pushing the waiver back to him. “We’re divorced, so your mother has absolutely nothing to do with me. That waiver? The deceased’s son should sign it.” I paused, looking at his bewildered face, enunciating each word with a touch of malicious satisfaction: “Victor, do you still not know the name of the patient who died on your operating table yesterday?” “Her name was Martha Thorne.” “Your own mother.”
Victor froze for a moment, then, like a lit firecracker, his voice suddenly shot up in volume. “Amelia! You actually dare to curse my mom to death?!” Victor, this man, was vain, arrogant, disloyal, and unfaithful—his flaws were countless. His only redeeming quality was his filial piety towards his mother. He was genuinely filial. Out of his twelve thousand dollar monthly salary, he’d send eleven thousand to his mom, give me one thousand, then eat and live off me, claiming he was supporting me. Then, as if to prove his accusation, he shoved his phone in front of my face. “See for yourself! This is the death registry list!” he roared. “Open your damn eyes and see who’s on it!” On that list, a name was crudely circled in red marker, standing out like a sore thumb—Eleanor Hayes. Eleanor Hayes… that was my mother’s name. Even the ID number after it was indeed my mother’s information. How was that possible? This morning, just a few hours ago, when I left for work, my mom had just made me my favorite pan-fried buns. They were hot, with thin skin, generous filling, and delicious soup. She even watched me eat, congratulating me on finally escaping the hellhole that was Victor. She was so happy she wanted to go downstairs and light some fireworks to celebrate my new beginning. I knew my face must have turned incredibly pale and stiff right then. Victor clearly noticed my distraught appearance and misinterpreted my reaction. “Nothing to say now, huh?! Amelia, to spite me, you’re actually neglecting your own mother’s funeral arrangements? The person is dead, and you’re still calmly working here? Do you have no conscience?! If your patients knew, who would dare to put their lives in the hands of someone as cold-blooded as you?!” Even though I knew there was a high chance of a mistake, I nervously pulled out my phone and dialed my mom’s number. The phone rang with a “Doo—doo—” but there was no answer for a long time. Victor stood across from me, a smirk on his face, enjoying the show. “Still putting on an act?” he said coldly, his voice full of schadenfreude. “Hurry up and sign that waiver, then go to the morgue to find your mom’s body, hahahaha!” Victor laughed and walked away. I ignored him, continuing to dial my mom’s number over and over. Just as I was about to give up and rush out of my office to drive home and check, the call finally connected. “Hello?” A voice I knew better than my own filled my ear. It was my mom’s voice! It really was my mom! In that instant, my nerves, stretched to their breaking point, suddenly relaxed. I almost cried out, “Mom! Why did it take you so long to answer?! You scared me half to death, do you know that?! I called so many times! Where were you?!” “I was looking for my insurance card!” my mom complained on the other end. “I was rummaging through everything. My phone was charging in the living room, so I didn’t hear it. I remember having it when I went to your hospital last time, how could it just disappear? It’s so strange…” I let out a long sigh of relief, leaning back in my chair, feeling all the strength drain from my body. Listening to my mom’s rambling, I suddenly remembered the scene half a month ago when my mother-in-law, Martha Thorne, came to see me. Half a month ago, I’d been working non-stop at the hospital for over a week. Going home was out of the question; even getting a decent sleep in the on-call room felt like a luxury.
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “296982”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic
Leave a Reply