Chapter 285 - 284: The Real Secret on the Luxury Cruise Ship

Chapter 285: Chapter 284: The Real Secret on the Luxury Cruise Ship

I lost control and rushed forward, grabbing the doctor by his collar. "Say that again! Isn’t the ship’s blood bank fully stocked? There’s no way you couldn’t save her from that amount of blood loss! You’re lying!"

Over on the side, Zeke Shaw was completely numb. He stood frozen in place, unsure of what to do.

Brain death was no different from death itself.

"I’m sorry. My condolences," the doctor murmured.

I tightened my grip on his collar. "Condolences?"

"What was the cause of brain death?" Asher asked calmly, blocking the doctor’s path.

"Excessive blood loss..." The doctor, intimidated by Asher’s presence, sounded unsure of himself.

Asher pushed the doctor aside and headed for the operating room.

"You can’t go in there! It’s a sterile..."

Before the doctor could finish, Felix Foster clamped a hand over his mouth from behind.

Asher went to the changing area, put on a set of scrubs, and entered the operating room after passing through the disinfection zone.

On the operating table, Madeline Quinn’s face was deathly pale. The wounds on her wrists were stitched and bandaged, and her heartbeat was faint.

Asher checked Madeline Quinn’s pupils, his brow furrowing slightly.

"When she came in... she was still conscious. She called my name..." Zeke Shaw said, his voice trembling, before crying out, "She called my name!"

"Who’s the anesthesiologist?" Asher asked.

A doctor in a surgical mask nervously raised his hand.

Asher glanced at the oxygen mask, saying nothing.

"Are you the patient’s family?" Just then, a doctor from the next operating room rushed over. "Given that the patient is brain-dead, would you be willing to cooperate with a heart compatibility test?"

"The other party has promised to provide five million in compensation if the family agrees," the doctor said urgently, looking at us.

Zeke Shaw gritted his teeth, about to lunge at him.

"If that’s not enough, you can ask for more," the doctor added quickly.

’Such a massive temptation... Any other family, any normal tourist, would have probably agreed by now.’

’After all, there’s no coming back from brain death.’

I looked toward Asher.

A chill ran down my spine.

I shuddered.

’Every year, this cruise ship sets sail from ports all over the world, carrying both the world’s top billionaires and ordinary tourists...’

’So that’s why they let "lucky" regular tourists on board. It wasn’t just for the rich to gloat over the wealth gap.’

’It was... so the wealthy could pick and choose the most suitable organ donors for themselves.’

’Once a match was found, these tourists would become fish on a chopping block for the rich... They’d suffer some "accident," get rushed into an operating room, and never wake up.’

"We agree to the compatibility test," Asher said in a low voice.

Zeke Shaw lost control and tried to rush him. "Sebastian Lancaster!"

But Asher refused to offer any explanation.

I stopped Zeke. "Lucas, take Zeke away and let him cool off."

The doctor who had brought the news looked thrilled, and the family member behind him nodded eagerly.

"They went to so much trouble. They must have already known Madeline’s heart was a match..." I whispered.

Asher nodded. "The wealthy tend to choose young, healthy university students. It’s highly likely that Madeline’s data, like her blood type, was leaked while she was in college. They probably get it by offering free or public-service health screenings on campuses, then upload and sell the big data they collect..."

And The Genetics Organization is the one that likely controls this massive database of genetic information, not just from our country but from around the globe.

’It’s a terrifying thought.’

"Will Madeline be okay?" I whispered.

"She won’t die," Asher said calmly.

I looked at Asher. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because the blood on the bed wasn’t Madeline’s. Someone faked the scene to make us think she was bleeding out and on the verge of death, with brain death being the ’best-case’ scenario," Asher whispered, glancing at me. "Do you know what’s required for a heart transplant? The heart has to be viable. If they’re careless and let the donor bleed out and die, the organ becomes worthless."

So they wouldn’t risk actually killing Madeline.

"But..." I was still nervous. Madeline’s current condition really did look like she was brain-dead.

Asher didn’t explain any further. He just pulled me aside to wait for the results.

Zeke had also quieted down by now. He chose to trust Asher.

He knew... if Asher wasn’t worried, it meant there was still a chance.

’There’s definitely something fishy going on.’

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before they returned.

The family member was ecstatic and immediately dropped to her knees.

The woman was weeping, her acting skills on full display. "Benefactors! Thank you, thank you so much! The test was a success..."

"Thank you so much."

I watched her kowtow repeatedly on the floor.

Asher spoke coldly. "Thirty million. Not a penny less. Transfer the money first."

Her kowtowing froze. She looked up at Asher. "Sir... you can’t make such an exorbitant demand. My father is in desperate need of a donor. If we weren’t on this ship... we might have other options. And as you know, organ donations are typically free..."

"Ours isn’t," Asher said, cutting her off.

The woman panicked and looked back at the doctor.

The doctor stepped forward to mediate. "Sir, please... can we agree to the surgery first and discuss the price later? A life is at stake."

Asher replied, his face expressionless, "No."

The doctor looked awkward. "Could you take less...?"

"The chairman of the Confluence Group can’t come up with a mere thirty million?" Asher sneered, looking down at the woman on the floor. "And you’re not his daughter. You’re his mistress. Am I wrong?"

The woman froze for a long moment before nervously scrambling to her feet. "You... you know who we are."

"Hah..." Asher let out a cold laugh. "Thirty million. And have Walter Carter come talk to me in person."

The woman panicked. "What do you mean by that? I... Mr. Carter is already in the emergency room. How could he possibly come out to talk to you?"

"He’s perfectly fine for the time being. Either he comes out now, or I go in," Asher said, giving her the choice.

The woman frantically tried to call for bodyguards.

Felix Foster and Lucas Grant stepped forward and slammed the bodyguards against the wall.

"What do you think you’re doing...?" The anesthesiologist standing by Madeline also started to panic.

"Wake her up," Asher ordered, pointing at the anesthesiologist.

The anesthesiologist froze. "She’s brain-dead..."

Before he could finish, Asher slammed the anesthesiologist against the wall, grabbed the anesthesia mask that had been used on Madeline, and forced it over the man’s face.

"You know perfectly well what happens when you inhale too much carbon monoxide. Let’s see... how long you can hold your breath," Asher sneered.

I reached over and opened the valve.

Soon, the man couldn’t hold his breath any longer. He started slapping the wall, begging for mercy.

’So the anesthesia masks they used on patients were filled with carbon monoxide.’

’Those bastards...’

The man scrambled up and, with trembling hands, placed an oxygen mask on Madeline’s face. "She’ll wake up..."

Zeke finally caught on. Well, damn... He quickly whipped out his badge. "Police! You’re under arrest for suspicion of illegal organ trafficking."

A moment later, the door to the other operating room opened. Chairman Walter Carter emerged in a wheelchair, his expression icy and his presence imposing.

"So, you’ve discovered our little secret..." Walter Carter’s voice was low as he glanced at the doctor behind him. "In that case, none of you can be allowed to live."

The doctor nodded. "Understood."

In an instant, all the doors to the medical bay sealed shut. Not even a fly could get out.

"Kill them all. Leave no witnesses. Clean up the mess and arrange for the surgery as soon as possible," the lead doctor ordered the men behind him in a low voice.

I glanced at Asher as we backed away cautiously.

’These people... they actually have guns.’

"Son of a bitch!" Felix Foster swore as the other side opened fire. "This just got interesting!"

Lucas Grant grabbed Felix Foster by the back of his collar, yanking him into Madeline’s operating room and slamming the hatch shut.

"We’re done for... We’re going to die in here," Lucas said nervously.

’There are too many of them, and now there’s no way out.’