The Emergency Room Secret Chapter 6

On the drive, images from the USB drive kept flashing through my mind. My fingers unconsciously drummed the steering wheel, trying to piece together these fragmented clues.

"Dr. Foster," the yellow-haired youth in the passenger seat asked carefully, "you said Professor Carter..."

"Wait." I suddenly remembered something. "Last year on Nathan's birthday, his buddy gave him a luxury watch, said it was from the first profits of opening a tutoring center."

"A tutoring center?"

"Right, he even posted about it on social media." I tried to recall. "'Brothers in arms, creating the future together.' That tutoring center was called..."

"Virtue Education! I was so nervous, I should have thought of it earlier. Lily took supplementary classes there!"

The youth's face went deathly pale. "No wonder..."

"No wonder what?"

"No wonder every time Lily came back from tutoring there, she'd act strange." His voice grew softer. "She always said it wasn't just an ordinary tutoring center, but she was too afraid to say more. Every time I asked, she'd shake all over..."

My heart sank. "You're right. Nathan and his buddy are inseparable. If there's really something going on..."

"They must all know." The youth said through gritted teeth. "Those videos were probably filmed at Virtue Education."

The city at one in the morning was shrouded in drizzle, the streetlights dyeing the rain curtain a dim yellow. I glanced at my phone—Nathan's location indeed showed him at his buddy's place.

"They're near Virtue Education." I pressed harder on the accelerator. "We need to find Lily before they realize."

I thought of those videos, of Nathan's gentle smile hiding such cruelty. "I hope we can get there before then."

Turning a corner, the scene under the streetlight made us both gasp. Lily Martinez lay crumpled against a wall, still wearing the hospital gown from when she'd left, her jacket soaked through with rain and mud. Her face was deathly pale, blood at the corner of her mouth, her wrists and neck covered with bruises and ligature marks.

"Lily!" The youth started to rush forward but I pulled him back.

"Don't move!" I quickly checked her vital signs. "She may have internal injuries. Moving her carelessly could worsen them."

Lily weakly opened her eyes. "Dr., Dr. Foster..."

"Don't talk. I'm here." I examined her injuries while taking off my jacket to cover her.

"No hospital..." She suddenly grabbed my hand with surprising strength. "They'll find me there... Professor Carter, he's capable of anything..."

"Lily, tell me," I held her ice-cold hand, "who did this to you? Was it Nathan?"

"Virtue Education and Professor Carter..." Her voice was faint, as if using all her remaining strength. "That place isn't just a tutoring center... They... they specifically target scholarship students like us... First they're kind to us, sponsor us, tutor us... then..."

She couldn't continue, her whole body trembling.

"Then they have leverage, right?" I asked softly.

She looked at me in terror. "You know?"

"I saw the videos on the USB drive." My voice shook slightly. "You're not the only one, are you?"

Lily suddenly grabbed my sleeve. "I'm sorry, Dr. Foster... I, I didn't mean to... Professor Carter said if I didn't cooperate, he would..."

"It's not your fault." I interrupted her. "None of this is your fault."

The youth knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face. "I'm sorry, Lily. I should have taken you away. From the first time you said you were scared, I should have taken you far, far away..."

"Jake..." Lily smiled weakly. "You already did your best..."

The roar of a car engine suddenly echoed from the distance. Lily's whole body began trembling violently. "It's them! I recognize that sound... Professor Carter's car..."

The sound of a car engine suddenly roared in the distance, the noise particularly jarring in the silent night. Lily's entire body shook violently. "It's them! I recognize that sound... Professor Carter's car..."

I quickly made a decision. "Jake, get her in the car. We're going to the hospital first."

I turned to Lily. "Don't worry. I won't let him hurt you."