The Fourth Case
Morning came too quickly. Susan hadn’t slept much, her mind replaying the image of Mr. Richards’ worried wife.
Now, as she stood outside Operating Room 8, she couldn’t shake the sense of dread.
Through the glass, the surgery looked normal. The surgeons joked lightly, the monitors beeped in steady rhythm, and Richards lay peacefully under anesthesia.
On the surface, nothing seemed unusual. But Susan’s eyes narrowed on the details; the same anesthesiologist, Dr. Lyons, calm and precise, almost too calm.
His movements were flawless, but his expression unreadable, detached. Susan wrote his name down in her notebook.
Mark’s voice pulled her back. He stood beside her with his arms crossed, trying to sound casual.
Susan didn’t look away from the window.
Susan Wheeler
If Richards doesn’t wake up, that’s four.
Max
*Mark sighed* You’re pushing too far, Susan. The attendings are already talking.
Susan Wheeler
Then let them talk.. *she replied quietly*
Susan Wheeler
Someone has to notice what’s happening.
For the first time, Mark didn’t argue right away. His gaze softened, but before he could respond, the red light above the OR door flicked on.. surgery in progress.
Hours later, Susan hurried into the recovery ward. The sharp alarms hit her before she even saw the room.
Nurses crowded around Richards, calling out vitals, adjusting machines. His chest rose only with the help of the ventilator.
Her whole body went cold. She remembered his wife’s voice:
Mrs. Richard
He’s strong. This isn’t serious, right?
She wanted to believe those words.. but now Richards lay silent, another victim.
One Of The Staff
Complication *shaking his head.*
No. Not a complication. This was the fourth. Her hands trembled, but she steadied her voice inside her mind: This is a pattern.
She looked up and spotted Mark at the far end of the hall. He wasn’t moving, just watching her, his face unreadable.
And then her gaze drifted back to Dr. Lyons, calmly filling out his notes as if nothing unusual had happened. Too calm. Almost rehearsed.
Susan’s pulse raced. Four patients. Four simple surgeries. Four lives stolen in the same operating room.
And if she was right, Richards wouldn’t be the last.
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