"Charles, you can''t! This is way too dangerous!"

    Andrew desperately wanted to save Charlie, but even more than that, the thought of Charles getting hurt was unbearable.

    He knew exactly what it meant to be a human test subject. The worst-case scenario? Charles could die right there on the table. Best case? His organs would be wrecked, and there was no telling if he''d ever recover. It was just too much of a gamble.

    "Luna." Francis broke the tense silence. His voice was quiet, but the message was loud and clear.

    "She''s had heart surgery."

    Charles hadn''t dismissed the idea of using Luna. She was the one who''d poisoned Charlie, after all. If she wouldn''t hand over the antidote, Charles wouldn''t hesitate to use her to fish it out-no pity, no second thoughts.

    But her body was clearly too weak. Using Luna as a live test subject would be a dead-end. Her own life hardly mattered-someone that vicious deserved no mercy. But Charlie couldn''t afford to wait for a safer n.

    "Andrew, use me! Charlie''s out of time!" Charles locked eyes with Andrew, his voice growing more determined with every word. "Charlie''s my daughter. I owe her this. Use me. Right now. Inject whatever you took from her blood straight into me!"

    He didn''t care what happened to him-life, death, or worse. The only thing that mattered was saving Charlie.

    Andrew looked at Charles, searching his eyes. Behind him, Charliey fighting for her life. Seeing Charles''s resolve, Andrew finally nodded and rushed to get everything ready.

    Charles stood beside Charlie''s bed, his eyes rimmed red as he watched his daughter struggle through the pain. He leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

    "Charlie, I promise I''m going to get you through this. Stay strong, sweetheart. Your mom''s still waiting for you."

    ...

    Once Andrew had everything set up, Charles stepped into theb without a second thought and climbed onto the cold metal table.

    With a silent nod from Charles, Andrew slowly injected the concentrated toxin- fresh from Charlie''s blood-into Charles''s vein.

    Instantly, a freezing, corrosive pain ripped through Charles''s body. It was like a thousand icy needles racing through his bloodstream, tearing him apart from the inside.

    ''e''

    The poison went for his nervous system first. His vision blurred and darkened. A shrill ringing filled his ears, so sharp it felt like it could split his skull. His head throbbed with blinding pain he wanted to smash it against the wall just to make it stop.

    His muscles convulsed uncontrobly, jerking as if he were being electrocuted. Every joint cracked and creaked in protest. Charles turned ghostly pale in an instant.

    His heart seized, squeezed by an invisible fist wrenched and ripped apart. Every heartbeat was agony, each breath

    drowia Struggle, as if he were

    drowing in pain. His blood pressure swung wildly, cold sweat pouring down his body. His lips turned a sickly blue.

    His immune system, usually his greatest strength, went berserk, unleashing a furious cytokine storm. Fever zed through him, body temperature spiking until his skin felt scalding to the touch. Inmmation tore through his liver and kidneys-waves of pain érashed through his stomach and lower back.

    wne

    Monitors screamed warnings as his vital signs nosedived-liver and kidney function tanking fast.

    And that was just the beginning.

    Andrew had to keep a constant watch-tracking the poison, monitoring every reaction, tweaking the protocol, trying one antidote after another. Each new attempt brought a new wave of agony.

    Vomiting, diarrhea, full-body pain, a burning, maddening itch that wouldn''t let up—

    Charles was strapped to a special hospital bed, tubes everywhere, his body twisted by endless spasms. His teeth ground together so hard that blood oozed from his lips and gums. His fists clenched so tight, his nails tore into his palms, drawing blood.

    He drifted in and out of consciousness, battered by wave after wave of pain, always on the edge of breaking. But the thought of Evelyn, and his desperate need to save his daughter, kept him hanging on.

    One thought throbbed in his mind: He couldn''t give up. If he did, Charlie was lost for good.

    As Charles endured his own private hell, Charlie''s condition was sliding downhill

    fast.

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    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!