Ch 562 - Are You a Doctor?

"Mr. Strang, please get rid of this impostor," Troy said, turning to Melvin. "He's interfering with my ability to help Miss Robinson, which is risking her life."

Melvin looked back and forth between them, clearly confused.

"If you let him proceed, it could kill her," Alex said, frowning.

"Are you a doctor, too?" Melvin asked him.

Alex shook his head. "No. I'm not a doctor."

"See?" Troy said triumphantly. "He's not a doctor, and he doesn't know what he's talking about. This is ridiculous."

Melvin sighed. "Well, thank you for your kind offer to help," he said to Alex. "But I think we should let Dr. Wilkinson treat Miss Robinson."

Everyone in the crowd nodded.

Melvin knew the situation was too serious to allow an amateur to make decisions, so he resolved to stick with the experienced doctor.

Maryann looked on, still fighting for breath, and scared she was going to die.

Alex tried to argue. "But—"

"Please leave," Melvin said, growing impatient. "Just let Dr. Wilkinson work."

Alex sighed, realizing there was no point in arguing. No one would believe he knew anything about medicine, and they were determined to ignore him, so he walked away, hoping Maryann wasn't sensitive to aspirin.

The paramedics were unimpressed by Alex's attempt to intervene.

"Imagine being so childish as to pretend to be a doctor," one of them said, tutting.

"And he even had the nerve to contradict a proper doctor," another agreed. "It's shameful."

Troy took an aspirin and dissolved it in a glass of water, and then he held it up to Maryann's mouth, helping her to swallow it.

Within a few minutes, Maryann visibly relaxed, and everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Dr. Wilkinson," Melvin said, vigorously shaking Troy's hand. "I will make sure to tell Miss Robinson's family about what you did for her."

"Thank you, Mr. Strang," Troy said, thrilled at the idea of the powerful Robinson family being grateful to him. "It was all in a day's work."

"Oh!" Maryann exclaimed, her eyes growing wide. Then her hands shot to her throat, clawing at it as she tried in vain to draw in a breath.

"What's wrong?" Melvin asked, rushing to her side. He glanced up at Troy. "Help her!"

Troy ran back over to Maryann and used a stethoscope to listen to her breathing.

"She's having an asthma attack," Troy said as the color drained from his face. "That young man was right, after all. Miss Robinson has asthma, and she must have a sensitivity to aspirin."

Everyone gasped, unable to believe the pretend doctor had correctly diagnosed the woman.

Troy called over the paramedics, and they all frantically tried to help Maryann, but nothing they did seemed to make any difference. If anything, the asthma attack seemed to be getting worse. The wheezing was more pronounced now, and she was clearly starting to panic. Her lips were tinged with blue, and tears ran down her face as she desperately tried to get enough air.

Troy started to look worried, realizing Maryann's heartbeat was elevated, and he knew he only had minutes to act if he was going to save her life. Unfortunately, he didn't know what to do.

The paramedics were out of ideas, too, and they knew they didn't have time to get her to a hospital.

"Do something!" Melvin demanded, grabbing Troy. "She can't breathe!"

"I don't know how to fix this," Troy admitted, staring at Maryann. "She needs to get to the hospital. Now!"

Troy stood there, gaping at Maryann in horror. If she died, her family might blame him, especially if they heard about him disregarding someone's warning about using aspirin, and the Robinson family was powerful enough to destroy his career.

"Don't just stand there!" Melvin yelled, shaking him. "You're the doctor, so treat her." Realizing he was getting nowhere, he turned to the paramedics. "Get her in the ambulance."

"I'm afraid it's too late for that," one of the paramedics said. "She won't last that long."

"What about that young man from before?" another paramedic asked. "Do you think he's still nearby?"

"We don't have time for this," Troy said. "She needs to go to the hospital."

"Shut up!" Melvin snapped. He could see Maryann was in a critical condition, and he knew the paramedics were right. Taking her to the hospital was not an option. He pushed past Troy and ran into the crowd, trying to find Alex.

Before long, he spotted Alex walking away and ran even faster.

"Sir!" he called, reaching out a hand to stop him. "You were right! Miss Robinson does have asthma, and the aspirin has provoked a severe attack. Please help her. No one else knows what to do."

He had accepted the responsibility of protecting Maryann on this outing, and if she died, he would be in a lot of trouble, so he was even more anxious to save her.

Alex was surprised the aspirin had reacted so quickly with Maryann's asthma, but he understood this was an emergency, so he didn't waste any time asking questions.

"Let's go," he said, pulling away from Melvin and dashing back to Maryann.

Saving a life was more important than holding a grudge at the way everyone had treated him, and he really wanted to help.

"Get out of the way!" Melvin called, clearing a path through the crowd. "Let him through."

Alex looked at Maryann, noticing the blue tinge on her lips and the way she labored for every breath. She stared at him with fear, silently begging him to help her.

Alex considered using his special supplement, but he didn't feel it was necessary. It was too valuable to waste when he had other options to save Maryann.

He pulled on his inner power, sending it into his hands, and then he gently placed his palms on Maryann's upper chest.

"Get your hands off her!" one of the bodyguards demanded, stepping forward with a menacing expression.

Melvin grabbed the bodyguard and pushed him back, choosing to trust in Alex.

Everyone watched as Alex focused on Maryann, trying to help her. Then, suddenly, Maryann sucked in a breath. And then another.

Gradually, her breathing eased, and a little color came back to her cheeks as she returned to normal.

Alex took her wrist and checked her pulse. "That's much better," he assured her. "You're going to be fine, but you should rest for a while."

He knew she was extremely lucky to be alive. Time was critical in such cases, and if Melvin hadn't found him when he had, Maryann could have died.

"She's past the worst of it," he said, glancing at Melvin. "But maybe she shouldn't come here again. It seems the excitement was too much for her, setting off the attack, so it isn't worth the risk."

The crowd burst into a round of applause, finally acknowledging Alex's quick thinking.

The paramedics hung their heads in shame as they remembered what they had said about him earlier. Although Alex was not a doctor, his treatment had been much more effective than anything they had tried. He hadn't even given Maryann any medication, and yet he had saved her life.

Troy stood to the side; his face flushed with anger. He had tried to curry favor with the Robinsons, but instead, he had almost gotten the patient killed, and he may have provoked the family's fury.