Chapter

    bChapter /b473

    By the time they reached halfway up the mountain, things became a little simpler.

    Originally, Cole had nned to fly Alessia straight back ito /ithe Capital by helicopter. But it was clear now that they wouldn’t make it in time. The only real option was to get Alessia settled somewhere safe, then arrange for someone to bring the emergency blood supply from the city’s blood bank.

    Even so, time was slipping away.

    Cole pressed his lips together, anxiety gnawing at him, but he forced himself to stay calm–just a little longer.

    He called everyone he could think of: Larkin, Vera Leigh, Lillian White, even Max’s assistant. Anyone who might help, he called.

    His goal was simple: spread the word, widen the, and pray that someone–anyone–woulde forward as a donor.

    But, as fate would have it, Alessia’s blood type was the rarest of all.

    “Cole, is Miss Lessie here?”

    Susannah Holt had woken up at some point and wandered over on her own. She looked pale–who knew how long she’d been searching for Alessia–but she remembered the man who had rescued them.

    “She’s here,” Cole replied, ncing at Susannah. He didn’t feel like talking, but he managed a reassuring pat on her head anyway.

    His eyes stayed locked on the doors to the operating room, hope and desperation flickering in his gaze.

    “Is Miss Lessie going to be okay?” Susannah tugged anxiously at his sleeve.

    Cole noticed but didn’t push her away.

    He pressed his lips together, unsure how to answer. Just then, the doors

    12.21

    to the operating room swung open.

    “She’s still in critical condition,” the doctor announced. “If we can’t get her a transfusion within the hour…” The rest of his words made Cole’s face go pale.

    “I’ll do it! I can help! I want to save Miss Lessie!” Susannah rushed to the doctor, her face full of urgency.

    “Sweetheart, I know you’re worried about your teacher, but you’re not eighteen yet. You can’t donate blood. Besides, her blood type is very rare–it’s RH–negative O. We call it ‘panda blood‘ because it’s so hard to find-”

    “But I have it! I have that blood! And so does my mom!”

    “Your mom?”

    Both Cole and the doctor stared at her in surprise.

    Susannah nodded fiercely. “She told me when I was little. I remember, I’m sure of it. Please, I’m healthy, let me give blood! It’s my fault Miss Lessie got hurt.”

    “Susannah, do you know where your mom is right now?i” /iCole crouched down, gripping Susannah’s shoulders a little too tightly in his excitement, making her wince.

    “She’s… she’s in the city,” Susannah answered, notining but sharing everything she knew, holding nothing back.

    As soon as Cole took it all in, he grabbed his phone and called Susannah’s mother.

    Thankfully, Susannah’s mom had rushed back home the moment she heard about the earthquake. When she found out her daughter was safe, she finally allowed herself to breathe again.

    After all, what parent wouldn’t be concerned about their own child?

    Cole didn’t waste a second. He knew this wasn’t a conversation for the phone, so he sent someone to escort Susannah’s mother straight to the

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    hospital.

    When she arrived–her very first time in a helicopter–she was still dazed. It didn’t take long to realize the man she’d spoken to on the phone wasn’t just anyone.

    The thought made her nervous, heart pounding in her chest.

    Cole, unaware of her worries, brought Susannah up to the rooftop to greet her mother.

    “Susannah!” The moment she saw her daughter, the woman’s eyes filled with tears.

    “Mom!” Susannah broke free from Cole’s hand and ran straight into her mother’s arms.