Chapter 187

Chapter 187 She Went After Him Anna was lightheaded from the slap. When she finally came back around, she lifted her head and revealed a bright red handprint on her right cheek.

With trembling hands, she cradled her face and glared at Courtney in disbelief.

“How dare you hit me?”

“That was a slap on behalf of Dad. Dad is still fighting for his life in the operating room, but what did you say? When he wakes up later, you better kneel in front of him and repeat every single word you just said.”

Anna felt her heart thump in her chest as she bit down on her lower lip.

In the heat of the moment, she remembered saying that her father was going to die soon.

More importantly, Courtney had caught that and was not letting go.

“This is a hospital, and we’re outside the operating room. If you want to cry and make a fuss, please do it somewhere else. You can go anywhere you want. Don’t disgrace yourselves here. If you want to stay, then keep your mouths shut.”

Courtney did not speak loudly, but every word she uttered left no room for interference.

Discontented, Anna wanted to break free from Susan’s arms and continue arguing, but she heard Cameron’s quiet voice from the side.

“What’s wrong? Was that slap not hard enough, Miss Hunter? Before security gets here, in order to prevent any disturbances to the ongoing surgery, I think that even the police wouldn’t have anything to say if I were to take matters into my own hands.”

“You...”

“Anna.”

A sharp-witted Susan pulled her daughter back to her side. Despite having an ashen look on her face, she swallowed her pride and apologized, “Anna made a mistake in the heat of the moment earlier. Of course, we want Luke to overcome this more than anyone else. We won’t cause a disturbance anymore. We’ll be waiting over there.”

At this crucial time when both of their fates were about to be decided, they could not get kicked out of this place. Even if it brought her shame, Susan had to secure her place with her daughter at that moment.

Courtney casted a sidelong glance at them but did not bother to question them further and simply sat back down.

On the other side, the doctors and nurses had also dismissed the onlookers. The front of the operating room returned to its quiet state. Only the elapsed time of the surgery above the door of the operating room slowly passed by, second by second, slowing their beating hearts.

“What’s gotten into you, Mom? That b*tch said all those things about us...”

“It doesn’t matter. She won’t be able to get more money anyway,” Susan murmured. A deceptive look grew in her eyes. “As long as your father doesn’t wake up, we are the biggest legal inheritors of his assets. The most Courtney will get are those few houses. She doesn’t have a share in the company.”

“How do you know he won’t wake up, Mom? What if—”

“There isn’t a ‘what if’.” Susan smirked. “Besides, even if he manages to live past this day, he doesn’t have much time left.”

Shuddering, Anna felt rather torn. “But he’s still my father. Are you really going to do this, Mom?”

“You see him as your father, but he only ever thinks of his own little girl. I’m doing this for the sake of our future. Don’t worry, Anna. There won’t be any mistakes. We just have to get past these two days.”

“Okay... Mom.”

The surgery went on for over six hours. When the time on the wall stopped, Courtney balled her hands into fists tightly; she didn’t even realize that her nails had dug into her skin and caused her to bleed.

“Doctor, how is my dad?”

“The surgery went well. The patient is stable for now, but he has to be kept in the ICU under observation.”

Courtney let out a sigh of relief. Beside her, Cameron quickly held her up for support.

After the hospital admission procedures were taken care of, Anna and Susan stubbornly remained at the entrance of the ICU with a concerned and longing look on their faces.

Courtney stood at the front of the ICU for a moment. Through the glass door, she could see Lucian attached to numerous tubes.

It was an agonizing sight. Lowering her head, she wiped off her tears and headed straight to the doctor’s office to look for Lucian’s head doctor.

“There is severe deterioration in Mr. Hunter’s liver function. People in old age are more inclined toward this. It has to do with diet and daily habits. I’ve talked to you about this before. His sudden fainting this time was a warning. I’ll be straightforward with you, Miss Hunter—you’re going to have to prepare yourself.”

“Is there no other way?”

“He can only depend on medication to help maintain his current condition, but it’s not quite possible to recover. You also know that once human organs are damaged, it’s almost impossible to reverse the damage.”

“I understand. Thank you, doctor.”

Although she had planned for the worst, her mind was still buzzing with feelings of helplessness after hearing the doctor’s explanation.

“One more thing,” the doctor called out suddenly. “There was something suspicious in the lab test. Mr. Hunter’s blood showed a small amount of clearly abnormal chemical intake. Does he usually take health supplements?”

“Why?” Courtney stood in place, feeling slightly confused. “Would taking health supplements cause a problem? We have quite a lot at home.”

She was not too knowledgeable on the matter, but Lucian was old and his body was not in good condition. They had a pile of health supplements at home from salespeople who often showed up at their doors. Lucian must have taken some of it at some point.

“Except for the prescription he gets from the hospital, he shouldn’t take anything else. It will also be a good idea to inform the nurse about his diet. I will write up a list to give you an idea of what he can eat. When he wakes up later, any food that he wants to eat has to get a doctor’s approval beforehand.”

“Okay, I understand.”

When she came out of the doctor’s office, Cameron walked up to her. “How did it go?”

Courtney shook her head and was in low spirits.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Cameron blurted, “Alexander was here.”

Those words caught Courtney off guard. She looked at the takeaway container in Cameron’s hands and did not say anything.

“Since he came and gave this to me, I couldn’t return it out of courtesy. But I told him that you weren’t feeling good and sent him on his way.”

“Okay.”

Courtney frowned. Currently, she had no intention of seeing Alexander at all.

“But, Anna went after him.”

As soon as Courtney heard that, she lifted her head with a slight change in expression. “Why did she do that?”

“I don’t know.” Cameron shook her head. She probed further, “Do you want to go take a look?”

Courtney took a couple of quick steps, then, as though a thought had struck her, she started to slow down.

“What’s wrong?”

“Forget it. She can do whatever she wants. It’s not important.”

With that, Courtney turned back around and headed toward the ICU.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Cameron held the takeaway in her hand and quickly chased after her.

“One cappuccino, please.” Anna was ordering a drink at a café near the hospital. She looked up at Alexander and asked, “What would you like to have?”

“Plain water.”

His attitude was cold. The cup of plain water was an implication that he did not want to chat with her for long.

Once she made her order, the corner of her mouth curled up into a knowing smile. “President Duncan. I heard you broke up with my sister. It’s normal for relationships to go on and off. After all, my sister was pampered and spoiled all her life. She’s always had a bad attitude, so it’s hard for anyone to stay with her for long. I don’t think this breakup was your fault.”

“Really? Did you ask me here just to talk about that?”

“Certainly not. Even though I don’t know the real reason you two broke up, I feel like there is something you need to know so you don’t feel like you’ve gotten duped later on. It also involves the rest of us in the Hunter Family.” She was looking at him. “Do you know why my sister went abroad all those years ago?”