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Medical Center.
Sure, Piki's a bit over-the-top, but Adam still believed her. He could tell she was genuinely shaken up. And honestly, who wouldn't be? Living in paradise one day, then nearly crashing into hell the next—anyone would be freaked out! 😱
Adam gave Piki a quick checkup to make sure she was okay, then figured he'd pry some fresh intel about the Channing scam from her. Socialites like her always have the juiciest gossip, right?
Sadly, while Piki's "heart attack" was fake, a ton of other people were having real ones. The ER was packed in no time.
"I'm loving this Channing family!" Christina's eyes sparkled as she watched heart attack patients roll in one after another.
"Yeah, sure. Let's see you say that when you're scammed out of everything, your house is seized, and you're drowning in debt," Adam shot back with a smirk.
"That's on them for being greedy and dumb!" Christina shrugged it off. "Who actually believes those ridiculous profit guarantees? Maybe they should check into psych—oh wait, never mind, the head shrink's gone nuts himself!" 😂
"Hold up!"
Chief of Surgery Richard rushed in after getting the news, his face dark as he called everyone to attention. "Listen up! Here's the deal: any doctor or nurse who invested in the Channing Foundation is banned from surgery. Go home and rest. This isn't a suggestion—it's an order!"
He shot a pointed look at Adam, Dr. Burke, Dr. Shepherd, and a few others. Obviously, your average Joe wouldn't have the cash or the connections to sink money into the Channing Foundation—the hot, hush-hush "money tree" the elite crowd had been buzzing about. Only mega-rich folks like Adam or top-tier docs like Burke and Shepherd, pulling in at least two million a year, could even get in on it.
And those guys? They're the backbone of the medical center. If the Channing scam threw them off their game and they botched a surgery, the whole place would be screwed.
Adam and the others glanced around, locked eyes, and chuckled. They were cool as cucumbers.
"No one, huh?" Richard let out a long sigh of relief but still scanned the room to double-check. "We'll investigate later. If anyone broke hospital rules, you're out—no exceptions! So if you did invest, go rest now. Last chance!"
No one budged. "Good!" he nodded. "Then let's get moving!"
Everyone sprang into action.
"Dr. Duncan, we've got a ton of patients tonight. You're flying solo on the scalpel," Richard said, stopping Adam. "You good?"
"Of course," Adam replied with a nod.
"Alright." Richard turned to Christina, who was practically bouncing with excitement. "Dr. Yang, you're leading tonight too. I'll assist."
"Thank you, Chief!" Christina beamed.
"Wait, Chief, you're—?" Adam raised an eyebrow. Something was off. With so many patients flooding in, the Chief—a total pro—was stepping back to assist an inexperienced Christina instead of taking charge?
"Rules are rules. Even I can't break them," Richard grumbled, his face still stormy. "Dr. Yang, what are you waiting for?"
"Oh, right!" Christina bolted toward the OR.
Richard followed, stone-faced. Adam watched him go, half-laughing, half-sighing. Ohhh, so the Chief's a victim too. No wonder he's so salty!
With his status, wealth, and New York address, it wasn't shocking he'd gotten tangled up in the Channing mess—just unexpected yet totally believable.
While Adam and the team busted their butts saving Channing scam victims, over on the other side of town…
A tall blonde girl got the news, cut her graduation trip short, and flew back to her family's fancy New York estate. Outside the mansion, a police car was parked.
Panic flashed in her eyes. For a moment, she couldn't bring herself to get out of the car. What if they were there to arrest her? After all, her name was Caroline Channing.
The Channing name had once brought her endless pride. Now? Nothing but pain. Unless something crazy happened, starting today, "Channing" would be the most hated name in New York.
Then, as she hesitated, two cops escorted a man out of the house.
"I'm not a princess anymore—just a regular person," Caroline thought, stunned.
Anger surged through her next. This man—the one she'd trusted—had betrayed her, shattering her perfect world in an instant. But then she remembered: he was also the one who'd read her bedtime stories, taught her to tie her shoes with goofy little tricks, and patiently showed her how to count money growing up. He'd showered her with love.
Her rich friends? They didn't have her wealth or a dad like that. Their fathers were just… dads. They handed out cash and not much else—no real love. But this man? He wasn't just her father—he was her amazing dad.
Tears welled up, and Caroline couldn't hold back. She jumped out of the car and ran to him, sobbing, "Daddy!"
In that moment, the princess life, the perfect world, the endless glory, the crushing fall from heaven to hell—it didn't matter. All she knew was that this handcuffed man was her incredible dad, the person who loved her more than anyone in the world!
The whole city—heck, the whole world—could curse him and hate him. But not her. Never her.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Martin Channing said, his voice full of regret and heartache as he looked at his precious daughter. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be okay."
"Mhm, mhm!" Caroline nodded through her tears, blocked from getting closer.
Martin gazed at his daughter—her eyes full of love, not a hint of hate—and smiled as he climbed into the police car.
"William…" Caroline watched the car pull away. She tried to enter the mansion, but it was sealed off. With nowhere else to turn, she called her boyfriend for help.
"Sorry, the number you've dialed is out of service. Please try again later."
William—the guy who'd chased her relentlessly, always so eager and clingy she'd found it annoying—was suddenly unreachable. Sure, U.S. cell service sucked, but this was Manhattan, where you could practically pick up alien signals!
What happened was obvious.
Lugging her suitcase, Caroline had nowhere to go. Her mansion, her credit cards, her $800 million trust fund—everything was frozen. Swallowing her pride, she headed straight to William's family estate.
But nope. The Channing name was toxic now—everyone avoided it like the plague. William's villa was lit up like a Christmas tree, but the maid told her the whole family "wasn't home."
Caroline left, tears streaming down her face.
Next, she tried her besties. But the rich people's world is brutally real. She hit up five of her closest friends—girls she'd grown up with, her ride-or-die crew—just hoping for a place to crash. Every single one pulled the same "not home" excuse through their maids, just like William.
"Wahhh!"
Legs aching, heart hurting even more, Caroline stumbled out of the fifth friend's neighborhood and broke down crying in a quiet corner. What happened to "sisters for life"?! These were her childhood besties! 😭
A curvy figure passed by, took a few steps, then paused and turned back to look at the sobbing girl. She hesitated, started to walk away again, but stopped when the crying got louder. Clenching her fist and gritting her teeth, she spun around and came back. "Caroline Channing, you okay?"
Caroline wiped her blurry, teary eyes and looked up, uncertain. "Max?"
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