In the dead of night, the sound of footsteps echoed through a dark, eerie alley. At the same time, a woman's anxious voice broke the silence.
"Alright, Dad, I'm on my way. Just have the doctor start the surgery for Sophie. I'll be there in thirty minutes!" After repeatedly assuring her father, Lydia hung up the phone, letting out a deep sigh. Her perfectly made-up face couldn't hide the worry etched on it.
She glanced up at the pitch-black alley in front of her, a shiver of fear and unease creeping up her spine. If it weren't for Sophie urgently needing the surgery money at the hospital, she would never risk walking through such a deserted place.
She hoped everything would go smoothly. Gathering her courage, she tightened her grip on the red leather purse clutched to her chest and continued forward. The sound of her high heels clicking against the ground seemed to add an eerie chill to the air.
Ahead, she could see the bright neon lights of the main street flickering, signaling her escape from this godforsaken place. But suddenly, a loud crash echoed from a side alley behind her!
The sound of wood splintering filled the air. Before Lydia could react, she caught sight of a dark figure lunging toward her from the corner of her eye.
The figure was too large and heavy for her to handle, and without thinking, she instinctively dodged to the side. The shadowy figure brushed past her face with a gust of wind and crashed to the ground, motionless.
Everything happened so fast, leaving little time to process. Her terrified gaze fixed on the man's head on the ground, where she could barely make out a stream of blood trickling down his face, staining the ground beneath him.
"Damn it, there's someone here! What do we do?" a man's angry shout came from behind her.
Despite her legs turning to jelly with fear, Lydia's life experience kept her from losing her wits. In the urgency of the moment, she quickly pulled out her phone and shouted, "Yes! I'm on Glory Road. You'll be here in two minutes? Great, I'll wait for you!"
Hearing this, the shadows deeper in the alley hesitated, seemingly regretful for not finishing the job. "Forget it, let's go!"
Before Lydia could get a good look at them, the group scattered, disappearing into the alley within seconds.
Listening to their footsteps fade away, Lydia finally let out a long breath, her forehead and palms slick with cold sweat. The tension and fear left her almost too weak to stand.
Glancing at her phone's bright screen, she couldn't help but smile wryly. She had no backup coming; it was just a desperate bluff that, surprisingly, had worked to scare them off.
After calming down, she glanced again at the man lying on the ground, looking as lifeless as ever. Blood was pooling beneath him, soaking a large part of his black shirt. She hesitated, wondering if she should just leave him there. But in his current state, if no one helped, he would surely bleed to death.
Lydia bit her finger, pondering for a moment. Ultimately, she decided not to get involved and risk trouble. She could just call an ambulance for him later, and that would be enough. The most pressing issue was that little Sophie was still waiting for her at the hospital. If she didn't deliver the surgery fee soon, it could delay the treatment.
"Sorry, but I can't help you right now. I'll call an ambulance, just hang in there," Lydia muttered to the unconscious man before standing up to leave. But as she took just a couple of steps, a cold, strong hand suddenly clamped around her ankle!
"Ah!" The unexpected touch made her jump, her skin prickling with fear. She tried to pull away, but the grip was like a vice, as if he was clinging to his last hope.
The man, who had seemed lifeless, slowly lifted his head. Through blood-matted hair, his deep, night-like eyes met hers, a chilling gaze Through blood-matted hair, his deep, night-like eyes met hers, a chilling gaze piercing through. In a hoarse voice, he managed to speak, "Help... me..."
With those words, he collapsed again, as if drained of all energy. Yet, his hand remained firmly locked around her ankle, refusing to let go no matter how much she struggled.
"Come on, buddy! Can't you get up and see a doctor yourself? I've got things to do..." Lydia pleaded desperately, but got no response. Finally, she slapped her own face in frustration.
"Sophie, baby... hang in there. Mommy will deal with this man and then come see you..." Reluctantly, she picked up her phone and dialed for an ambulance.
The sirens wailed through the sky as the paramedics rushed the injured man to the hospital and into the operating room. The warning light above the door glowed brightly, and nurses hurriedly passed by in the hallway, the sharp scent of disinfectant stinging her senses.
Once everything was settled, Lydia turned to leave without a word, only to be stopped by a middle-aged man in a white coat who blocked her path.
"Excuse me, miss, are you a relative of the patient who was just brought into the emergency room?" he asked.
Lydia glanced back at the operating room door, then shook her head at the doctor. "I don't know him. I just found him on the street."
"I see..." The doctor looked troubled, eyeing the elegantly beautiful yet slightly flamboyant woman before him. He hesitated, "It's just that... we need a family member to sign the consent form for the surgery, and the patient's surgery fee hasn't been paid yet..."
Lydia shrugged. "Doesn't he have a phone or ID on him? Can't the hospital just contact his family?"
"His phone's broken, and we're trying to reach his family, but his condition is critical. If we don't operate soon, it could be life-threatening. So, uh..."
The doctor handed her a man's ID. Lydia glanced at it James Harrington, a local, and kind of handsome. He looked somewhat familiar too...
She frowned, studying the sharp features in the ID photo. But then she shook her head. She'd met so many strangers in bars and clubs; it was normal to have crossed paths with a local.
"So, you're saying I'm the one who has to sign, and..." She paused, raising an eyebrow in annoyance, "I have to pay too?"
The doctor nodded seriously, though hesitantly. "Miss, it's a matter of life and death. Helping someone in need will surely earn you, their gratitude!"
Gratitude? She wanted to storm into the operating room and give that man a piece of her mind!
She didn't care about gratitude; she cared about money! Specifically, the surgery fee for little Sophie!
But regardless of her thoughts, she couldn't just let someone die...
Her only hope now was that the man would wake up and pay her back immediately!