Chapter 2 - The Fall
The sound of shattering crystal paralyzed everyone in the room for a fraction of a second.
Then Thomas collapsed to the hardwood floor.
"Thomas!" Phoebe screamed, dropping to her knees beside him.
The elegant engagement party instantly dissolved into absolute chaos.
Guests backed away in horror as Thomas began to convulse, his eyes rolling back.
My medical training overrode my shock in a heartbeat.
I dropped my purse and sprinted across the room, sliding onto the floor next to my sister's fiancé.
"Call 911!" I shouted, pressing my fingers to his carotid artery.
His pulse was wildly erratic, racing at a speed that felt like a fluttering bird beneath his skin.
Dr. Wells was suddenly beside me, his hands shaking as he reached for his son.
"He has no history of cardiac issues," Dr. Wells stammered, his usual authoritative demeanor completely shattered.
"Richard, step back," I ordered, not caring that I was speaking to a medical legend.
In this moment, he was not a surgeon.
He was a terrified father watching his child die.
"Claire, let him handle this!" my father barked, grabbing my shoulder to pull me away.
"He's the Chief of Surgery at Hopkins, for God's sake!"
I shoved my father's hand away with enough force to make him stumble backward.
"He's panicking, Dad," I snapped, ripping Thomas's dress shirt open to expose his chest.
"And Thomas is in ventricular tachycardia."
I looked up at Dr. Wells, who was pale and hyperventilating, staring blankly at his son's blue lips.
He was completely frozen by trauma.
"Richard, look at me!" I yelled, snapping my fingers directly in his line of sight.
He blinked, tears spilling down his cheeks.
"I need you to tell me if he has any congenital defects he hasn't disclosed," I demanded.
"No," Dr. Wells choked out. "Nothing."
Thomas's body arched suddenly, a terrible gasping sound tearing from his throat.
Then, the fluttering pulse under my fingers completely vanished.
"He's in cardiac arrest," I said, immediately locking my hands over the center of his chest.
I began compressions, counting out loud over the sound of Phoebe's hysterical sobbing.
The sirens wailed in the distance, growing louder as they approached the Roland Park estate.
May you like
I pushed hard and fast, feeling the awful crunch of ribs giving way under my weight.
Suddenly, Thomas's mouth filled with bright, frothy blood.
