False Accusation, Fatal Delay

Traffic was at a complete standstill on the highway. I clutched the cooler bag and ran.

Suddenly, two police officers stopped me.

Someone reported you for transporting contraband.

I froze.

I glanced back and spotted Maya, the intern, covering her mouth as she laughed.

That's her! There are drugs in that box!

I quickly explained, "It's insulin in this box!"

"The patient has diabetic ketoacidosis. The ambulance is stuck in traffic. He needs his injection immediately!"

The officers checked and were about to let me go.

Maya suddenly shouted:

"She's lying! Insulin is code for drugs! She's trafficking!"

"If you don't believe me, smash it open and look!"

Watching Maya's triumphant expression, my entire body went cold.

If I couldn't get the insulin to the Mayor within ten minutes, his life would be in danger.

No one could bear that consequence.

"You can't smash it!" I shouted desperately.

There had been an accident on the highway. The ambulance transporting the Mayor was stuck in traffic.

I received a call from the Mayor's secretary and immediately left the hospital with the insulin.

I was the Mayor's personal physician.

Since he took office, I'd performed all his surgeries, major and minor.

The Mayor's secretary had just called me. The Mayor's entire body was ice cold, and he was losing consciousness.

If he didn't receive his insulin injection within ten minutes, the consequences would be unthinkable!

The seconds flew by. Nine minutes left!

"Whether it's drugs or not, we'll know after we test it," one officer said.

I shook my head desperately, clutching the insulin tightly.

"No, the patient can't wait! I'm begging you!"

The Mayor's secretary had warned me that the Mayor's condition must remain confidential.

So I had to prove my identity and get there as fast as possible.

Two hundred meters from the ambulance. Nine minutes left.

The officers brought me to their car.

I stared hard at Maya.

"Before we left, you clearly saw me get the medication from the storage room. All the paperwork was in order."

"Why would you lie? Why are you framing me!"

"A life is at stake! Can you handle the responsibility?"

Maya was scrolling through short videos on her phone, giggling constantly.

Hearing my question, she sighed.

"Why are you yelling at me?"

"I was just bored and wanted to make a joke."

"How was I supposed to know they'd take it seriously?"

At her words, the officers' expressions changed immediately.

They sternly warned Maya:

"Maliciously wasting police resources and spreading false informationwe can arrest you for this!"

Maya snorted, her face full of indifference.

"Why are you giving me attitude?"

"My dad is the Mayor's secretary. Keep glaring at me like that and I'll have you all fired!"

She crossed her arms, acting like none of this concerned her.

I stared at the time on my watch, my heart in my throat.

"Two hundred meters ahead, there's an ambulance."

"My patient is in there! He's waiting for me to save his life!"

"We can't delay any longer! You can escort me there to verify everything!"

My eyes were red as I pleaded with the officers in the most humble way possible.

Right now, I didn't care about dignity.

I had to save the Mayor as quickly as possible!

The officers looked hesitant and immediately went to report to their captain.

I frantically searched through my phone.

Finally, I found my digital medical license and employment verification.

The police captain reviewed everything, confirmed my identity, and was about to let me leave.

Maya suddenly covered her mouth and laughed.

"Officers, let me tell you a story."

All eyes turned to Maya.

She cleared her throat and spoke slowly:

"Have you guys seen Breaking Bad? She's exactly like that."

Maya took a deep breath, acting mysterious:

"She makes and sells illegal substances in the hospital basement. I saw it with my own eyes!"

"Maya! That's slander!" I was shaking with rage.

Maya was an intern, a nepotism hire.

At first, she couldn't even find a vein to draw blood.

I taught her step by step, putting in so much effort.

And this is how she repays me?

The officers pressed me down hard.

Clickthey handcuffed me.

"Take it for testing immediately!"

The insulin pen I'd been desperately protecting was confiscated.

I shouted at the top of my lungs.

"Please believe me!"

"Take me to that ambulance and the truth will come out!"

I started crying from desperation.

Only eight minutes left!

If something happened to the Mayor, no one could handle the consequences!

The captain glanced at me and stopped the testing personnel.

He told an officer nearby, "Go investigate up ahead."

He helped me up, about to get out of the car.

Maya suddenly screamed:

"Don't go over there! Everyone in that vehicle might be her accomplices! They have guns!"

"If you let her go, it'll be dangerous!"

The atmosphere immediately became tense.

I heard the sound of guns being loaded.

In an instant, I was staring down multiple gun barrels.

I was so angry my chest felt tight. I bit my lip until it bled, tasting blood in my mouth.

"Maya! What do you gain from smearing me like this and hurting me!"

Maya laughed until tears came out.

She moved next to me and whispered:

"Because I need to vent."

"Last time during surgery, I just forgot a gauze sponge in that kid's stomach, and you criticized me in front of the entire department."

"No one's ever dared talk to me like that! I lost all my dignity."

I clenched my fists.

Maya wasn't even qualified to perform surgery independently.

But the hospital director still let her do it, despite my objections.

If I hadn't checked before closing, that gauze would've stayed in that child's stomach!

"You almost killed a child! And you have the nerve to say this?"

"Maya! Do you have a heart? You don't deserve to be a doctor!"

Maya spat in my face.

She took out her phone to record me, but the captain knocked it out of her hand.

"So you're making this up? Maliciously providing false information?"

He questioned Maya coldly.

"I was just speculating. I didn't say I knew everything for sure."

"You guys can't even take a joke."

"This is so boring."

Maya opened a mobile game, turned the volume to maximum, her face full of indifference.

The captain sternly rebuked her:

"Second warning!"

"One more time and I'm taking you in!"

My phone vibrated. A document came through.

From Anderson, the Mayor's secretaryMaya's father.

Worried I might run into trouble, he'd given me the highest clearance.

Along with the document came a text message:

[The Mayor's condition is critical! Get here within five minutes!]

I immediately showed the document to the captain.

The Mayor's situation was critical. I couldn't keep this secret anymore!

The captain glanced at it once and his face went pale.

He unlocked my handcuffs and prepared to escort me.

"Wait!"

Maya suddenly pulled up several photos.

"Sorry! I lied!"

"I'm reporting Christa for organ trafficking!"

"Here's the evidence! She's trying to flee!"

All AI-generated screenshots.

They showed me in the hospital's organ storage facility, trafficking organs with accomplices.

Then she pointed at the document:

"She's so bold! She even dared to forge documents!"

"She's trying to run!"

"Just control her and you can bust the whole ring!"

The captain stared at the screenshots Maya provided.

He sternly warned her:

"Organ trafficking is a serious crime. If prosecuted, it carries severe legal penalties."

"But if you're making false accusations again, you're the one getting arrested!"

Maya held her head high, self-righteous:

"Why would I be afraid! I'm just reporting!"

"Besides, my dad's the Mayor's secretary. You can't arrest me!"

I looked at Maya in complete despair, unable to control my emotions anymore.

"Maya, are you insane? My patient really is the Mayor!"

"His condition can't wait!"

"If something happens to the Mayor, your dad is finished too!"

Smack

A sharp slap struck my face.

Maya jabbed her finger at my nose.

"You evil woman, how dare you curse my dad!"

Then she said through gritted teeth:

"I'm calling my dad right now!"

Maya dialed her father's number.

Several calls went unanswered. She frowned.

On the sixth attempt, Anderson picked up.

"Maya, I'm in a meeting with the Mayor right now. Talk later."

Maya clapped her hands, laughed out loud, even started humming happily.

"You said the Mayor was in danger, but he's clearly in a meeting with my dad."

"See? You're cursing the Mayor. Your intentions are evil!"

"You should investigate her thoroughly. She might be a spy!"

Listening to Maya's extreme accusations, the captain's brow furrowed.

He called the officers he'd sent to investigate via radio. No response.

Then Anderson's phone rang.

I quickly put it on speaker:

[Dr. Christa, why aren't you here yet!]

[The Mayor has lost consciousness!]

[We've tried every emergency measure! Nothing's working! We're waiting for your insulin!]

[What are you doing! If something happens to the Mayor, you're going to prison!]

Anderson hung up in agitation.

He'd given me an ultimatum. Four minutes left.

If I could get there and give the Mayor his injection, he'd survive!

If I couldn't make it, everything was over! Everyone was finished!

I broke down crying.

"I'm not lying! He really can't wait!"

"You can escort me there under guard!"

"The Mayor really is in that ambulance!"

The captain quickly helped me up, uncertainty in his eyes.

Although the Mayor's secretary had said the Mayor was in a meeting, what if?

After all, someone at the Mayor's level maintained strict secrecy about everything.

If something really went wrong, no one could handle the responsibility.

I desperately pointed at the watch face, constantly emphasizing the time to the captain.

"She's tricking you!"

Maya grabbed me.

"That's not even my dad's phone number!"

She pulled up her call history to confront me.

Arrogantly pointing at Anderson's private number.

"Christa, you liar! How dare you impersonate my dad!"

"My dad won't let you get away with this!"

I explained in a trembling voice.

Anderson contacted her using his private number.

When he called me, it was from the Mayor's office dedicated line. There was no conflict.

"That was clearly Anderson's voice on the phone. How do you explain that!"

I stared hard into Maya's eyes.

Maya was instantly speechless. She anxiously scratched her head.

"Please, just escort me there!"

"I'll take full responsibility for any problems!"

"If I'm proven guilty, I'll serve my sentence!"

Less than three minutes left!

I begged the captain almost desperately. After thinking for several seconds, he nodded.

Just as the captain was taking me out of the car, Maya suddenly blocked my path, talking non-stop:

"She used a voice changer! That wasn't my dad on the other end! It's her lover!"

"You don't knowshe loves using voice changers for online relationships!"

"She's really good at it!"

"Check her phone!"

She desperately pulled at me, refusing to let me leave.

Insisting the captain check my phone.

"Christa, you're not getting away today."

"You want to save the person in that ambulance up ahead, I know."

"Must be your family member, right?"

"You embarrassed me, so I'm going to make your family member suffer!"

Maya leaned close to my ear and smiled maliciously.

So she'd known all along I was trying to save someone.

So she'd been deliberately blocking me this whole time!

Just to get revenge for me criticizing her in public!

All my emotions exploded at that moment. I shoved her hard.

Maya fell heavily to the ground, wailing.

I had no time to deal with her.

Clutching the cooler bag, I ran desperately toward the ambulance ahead.

The captain followed right behind me.

Less than a minute and a half left!

Soon I'd be able to save the Mayor!

The officer the captain had sent ran over to meet me.

The ambulance door opened immediately.

Anderson, the Mayor's secretary, pulled me into the vehicle.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, I opened the cooler and froze instantly.

The insulin had vanished.

In its place were two lollipops!

Maya's call came through.

"Christa, I accidentally put lollipops in there."

"Is the person in the ambulance still alive?"

"No worries, my dad will handle it."

Anderson's face went pale.

As Maya laughed, the Mayor took his last breath.

The heart monitor flatlined.

A deathly silence spread through the vehicle.