No Strings Attached

Upon hearing these words, Brodie felt the tension that had been coiled tight within him ease slightly. His voice was urgent as he asked, "Who is it?"

"It's Mr. Hayes. Can you believe it? His liver is a near-perfect match for your mother, and they have the same blood type. You can rest easy now. The surgery should go off without a hitch."

Brodie's brow furrowed with concern. "But the man's just been through a burn injury, not fully recovered. Can he handle it?"

The doctor clapped him on the shoulder, with a gesture of reassurance. "Don't worry. It'll be fine. Mr. Hayes insisted I tell you that he's willing to endure anything if it means saving your mother. I'll start prepping for the surgery immediately. You just wait here."

Before long, lan was discreetly wheeled into the operating room.

For fear of any leaks, lan was registered under an alias. His head was swathed in bandages.

Only the chief surgeon was in the know.

Two hours later, the doors to the OR swung open.

The doctor appeared, looking weary yet with a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. "The surgery was a success. The patient should wake up by tomorrow."

An emotional Brodie clenched his fist, then asked, "And what about him? How's Mr. Hayes?"

He'll come around

convenience's sake, Katherine was placed in the

his mother's pallid face, Brodie's heart ached

fingertips gently brushed a stray

emotion. "Mom, we've dodged

couldn't recall how many close calls they'd

time he was a mere whisper of

them and erased their tracks that they could finally

years, Brodie watched over his mother with a heart still racing from the

all this, and I'll make sure you live out your days in

Teo entered the

rest. She won't wake up till tomorrow, and you can't go on like this." Brodie

a little surgery

check on

rose from his chair and headed out the

was genuine, but so was his need to

to

see that Teo had indeed been attentive to

Teo had pulled out all the