Her voice came out thin, barely a whisper.
"You can do it with one hand."
She looked me in the eyes. "Thomas, you're brilliant. You can do it with one hand. Right?"
Slap!
My left hand cracked across her face, leaving a bloody handprint on her cheek.
My entire body was shaking.
"You actually believe what Chad told you? That surgery can be done one-handed?"
Nellie mumbled, half to herself:
"No... Chad said one hand was enough..."
She grabbed my severed hand. I bared my teeth against the blinding pain, but she didn't care.
"It'll be fine, Thomas. Just try. What if it works? If you don't step in, Chad takes the fall!"
Bang! The door flew open, kicked clean off its hinges.
A tall woman stood in the doorway, her face carved from pure fury.
"What have you people done to my brother?"
Edna Henson's voice dripped with murder.
Behind her, Chad was pinned in place by two bodyguards, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
I looked past Edna.
"Dean!"
"Dr. Delgado..."
The dean's gaze landed on my ruined hand. His eyes went wide with disbelief.
Edna's hand came down on the dean's shoulder.
"Either you tell me the truth yourselves, or I dig it up personally."
The dean flinched.