Chapter 28: Unseen Battle
Author: Yourpsychodreams
last update Last Updated: 2024-11-23 14:45:27

Dr. Carter sat in his dimly lit office, the soft glow of the desk lamp barely piercing the darkness. The room was quiet, almost suffocatingly so, and for the first time in his long career, he felt utterly powerless. He had faced emergencies, made life-altering decisions, and delivered devastating news to countless families. But nothing had prepared him for the email now glowing on his computer screen.

The attached photograph was a violation, both personal and profound. Emma, stripped of her humanity, lay bound to a hospital bed, her wrists and ankles restrained by heavy straps. An IV line ran into her arm, its purpose ambiguous. The harsh, sterile light cast a cruel glare on her pale skin, making the scene feel detached and clinical, yet disturbingly intimate. Her eyes were barely open, a haunting hint of consciousness lingering in her expression.

Carter couldn’t look any longer. He closed the image with a shudder, as though it had burned him. He considered calling Emma’s parents
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