"Copy that, Virgil. I know the place. Give me five minutes."
"Get ready to land."
Claire slammed her foot on the gas. When she said five minutes, she wasn't exaggerating. She meant it.
Edison sat there, realizing Claire was already living in a world he just couldn't be a part of anymore.
The helicopter landed exactly where they had agreed, kicking up dust. A ladder dropped down from the side.
Abbott appeared at the cabin door, waving. "Claire, come on!"
A soldier in camo climbed down and greeted her. "This way, ma'am."
Claire had nothing but a small backpack. She nodded, quickly following the soldier up the ladder.
She glanced back at Edison. "Edison, you should head home." That worked out perfectly. He could take the car back for her.
Edison honestly hadn't expected things to be this intense. A military helicopter? Things were a lot more serious than he'd thought.
"Alright. Just call me if anything happens." He trusted that these people wouldn't hurt her.
They needed Claire, after all. There was no way they'd risk upsetting her.
"I will."
With easy, athletic grace, Claire climbed straight into the chopper. She didn't bother with drawn-out goodbyes, just gave Edison a quick wave.
Once inside, Abbott wasted no time and led her to the patient.
It was a young officer, barely older than a kid.
Claire's brow furrowed as she leaned over him. "It's an arterial wound, isn't it? Right near the heart. Coagulants didn't work?"
"We tried everything we had," Abbott said, shaking his head.
If the attending doctor hadn't been Abbott's close friend, Abbott might never have heard about this case at all.
This operation had been classified and deadly. The young man in front of them was the only survivor.
But he was in serious, critical
condition. If he didn't make it, it
would mean more than just another
tragic loss A lot of powerful people would be responsible
"Abbott, is this the doctor you said could stop the bleeding with traditional medicine?"
That voice came from Tandy, Abbott's friend and the on-board military surgeon.
Tandy had a reputation. In trauma care, he was a top dog. But even he was at a loss over how quickly this officer was bleeding out.
And then there was Claire—just a young woman. No wonder the others looked skeptical.
Their doubts weren't unique. Watching from the other side of a video call, even the senior commander probably wasn't buying it.
"Don't let Claire's age fool you," Abbott insisted. "She trained under Hale, and her first mentor was the famous Pandora."
"You think you're an elite trauma surgeon, but Pandora was a legend."
Tandy's eyes widened. He hadn't expected Claire to have those connections.
"And what's her connection to Pandora?"
Tandy had nursed a secret crush on Pandora back in the day.
Unfortunately, he was late to realize
she was married with kids, and had reluctantly let his feelings go. Pandora was his unreachable
dream, the one person he got defensive about whenever her name came up.
"Claire was raised by Pandora," Abbott said, sounding just a little proud.
Tandy still looked doubtful. "I trust Pandora, but even if she were here, there isn't
much anyone could do in a case like this."
"Well, Pandora wasn't my only teacher," Claire answered quietly.
She glanced at the young officer. Time was running out.
"We don't have time for this. He's crashing."
She'd already checked everything. His condition was critical. If they kept debating, they'd just watch a life slip away.
"Who's actually in charge here?" Claire turned away from Tandy, looking directly at a middle-aged man with officer stripes on his shoulders
This was probably the one who had called her.