Chapter 7
The internet was flooded with coverage of the whole scandal.
Jake and Sarah, who were once hailed as heroes-the brilliant military doctor and America’s hottest female soldier-were now getting dragged through the mud by netizens.
Social media was absolutely roasting them with brutal takedowns.
Meanwhile, all the hate comments about me had vanished, replaced by nothing but praise.
But honestly? This online validation was never what I was after.
Soon enough, the military tribunal delivered their final verdict on Sarah and Jake.
Sarah got the death penalty.
Jake was dishonorably discharged and sentenced to ten years in federal prison.
I stood outside the courthouse that day, listening to their screams echo across the plaza.
Someone else was standing nearby.
It was the guy who’d ghosted Jake’s surgery that day-Ethan Rivers.
He went to the same medical school as me, but his poor background meant Jake had been exploiting him for years, keeping him from showing his real skills to the world.
Now that the threat was gone, he was finally free.
He was gorgeous, especially when he smiled-like sunshine breaking through clouds.
I asked him to join my research team.
I was going to perfect that robotic arm technology if it killed me. This time, it would actually help people.
As for my nerve toxin condition, domestic specialists finally found a treatment during a consultation.
Gradually, I recovered. I could hold a scalpel again.
After everything went down, I never went home. I moved into Grandma’s house full-time.
I filled the garden with tulips-I know Grandma would’ve loved seeing them from heaven.
But Grandma, I’ve decided to leave for a while.
My medical skills should be helping more people. I’m going back to the peacekeeping mission.
Maybe that’s where military doctors like me truly belong.
The day I left, my parents came to see me off. They pressed against the car window, begging me to say something-anything-to them.
But I only had eyes for the guy standing behind them, holding tulips and smiling that sweet smile.
Neither you nor my duty will I abandon…
