The Surrogate He Discarded

”Just recently,” Isobel said softly.

Before she could tell Kristoff that she had found her father, the walk-in entrance of the emergency department burst open.

A man came charging inside, his clothes streaked with fresh blood. His chest heaved as he scanned the room, his eyes burning with rage. The moment he spotted Kristoff, he changed direction and stormed straight toward him.

Isobel’s attention snapped to the man.

Something beneath his jacket caught the light.

A dagger.

Her stomach dropped.

The man closed the distance in seconds. With his hand buried beneath his jacket, he lunged forward and ripped the dagger free, raising it high as he rushed toward Kristoff.

Kristoff had his back to him.

”Kristoff, watch out!”

Isobel’s warning shattered the tense silence.

Kristoff spun around.

But he never got the chance to defend himself.

Isobel suddenly shoved him hard to the side, knocking him off balance. Kristoff stumbled, and in that same instant, the man swung the dagger with all his strength.

Isobel stepped directly into its path.

The blade tore across her upper arm.

”Ah!”

Blood immediately seeped through her sleeve.

Kristoff’s eyes widened in horror.

”Isobel!”

Rage surged through him.

He drove his foot into the attacker’s chest with a brutal kick. The man staggered backward and crashed straight into one of Kristoff’s bodyguards, who had already rushed in from the entrance.

Earlier, Kristoff had ordered his guards to remain outside the emergency room so their presence wouldn’t frighten the children and people in the waiting area.

Now they moved with lightning speed.

The attacker struggled violently, still trying to reach Kristoff.

”You deserved to die!” he roared. ”You killed my brother and my cousin!”

Two guards seized him before he could recover. One locked his arms behind his back while another clamped a hand over his mouth, silencing his furious screams. They dragged him toward the entrance as he continued to thrash and glare at Kristoff.

”Aunt Bel!”

Randy and Yana cried out together.

Their faces went pale when they saw the blood running down Isobel’s arm.

Kristoff barely heard them.

He rushed to Isobel, slipped one arm beneath her knees, and the other around her back, then scooped her off the floor.

”I’ve got you,” he said urgently.

Without waiting for anyone to stop him, Kristoff carried her straight through the emergency room doors, bypassing the triage area entirely.

”Help her!” he barked.

Behind him, Randy and Yana remained frozen in the waiting area, staring after them.

Neither child knew whether they should follow or stay where they were.

All they could do was stand there, frightened and helpless, waiting to find out if their Aunt Isobel would be all right.

....

”Sir, please wait outside.”

The nurse gently tugged at Kristoff’s sleeve, her voice respectful but increasingly strained.

Kristoff didn’t move.

His eyes remained fixed on Isobel lying on the treatment bed. A doctor worked quickly beneath the harsh fluorescent lights, cleaning the blood from her upper arm before carefully closing the wound with stitches.

Every time the needle pierced her skin, Kristoff’s jaw tightened.

He should have been outside. He should have been dealing with the attacker.

But he couldn’t bring himself to leave her.

Finally, the doctor tied off the last stitch and stepped back.

”She’ll be all right,” he said calmly. ”The wound is long, but fortunately, it isn’t deep. From the angle of the cut, it looks like she tried to dodge the attack but couldn’t get out of the way completely.”

Kristoff’s gaze dropped to the bloodstained bandage covering Isobel’s arm.

She shoved him and she had taken the blade meant for him.

The thought sent another wave of anger through him.

”She needs to rest for a while,” the doctor continued. ”We’ll keep her here until the anesthesia wears off. After that, she can either be discharged or admitted for observation.”

”Sir, please.” The nurse tugged gently at his sleeve again. This time, her voice carried a note of pleading. ”You need to let her rest.”

Kristoff finally looked at her.

For several seconds, he seemed reluctant to move.

Then he glanced at Isobel one last time before stepping outside.

Not because the nurse had convinced him.

He had another reason. He needed answers.

The attack had changed everything.

His suspicion that someone was deliberately sabotaging him because of the Hugo Project was no longer a vague concern. Someone had walked into a hospital carrying a dagger and deliberately attacked him.

And Isobel had been the one who paid the price.

His expression hardened.

Whoever was behind this had just crossed a line.

...

When Kristoff reached the waiting area, he found Owen already there with the hospital’s head of security. Owen had arrived earlier and had been handling the chaos outside the hospital.

”Boss, I’m sorry I came late,” Owen began.

Kristoff raised an impatient hand.

”Tell me what you found.”

Owen immediately straightened.

”The man who attacked you wasn’t working on the Hugo project. We checked his identification and his background. But there’s something important. The two people he mentioned—his brother and his cousin—were real. They were among the people severely injured in the incident.”

Kristoff’s eyes narrowed.

”And he came here looking for me?”

”Yes.”

”Did he say anything else?”

”Not much. He was furious. He kept saying you were responsible for their injuries.”

Kristoff’s gaze hardened.

”I don’t believe he came here simply to avenge his brother and cousin.”

Owen frowned.

”Why not?”

”Because he came to assassinate me.” Kristoff’s voice dropped, cold and deliberate.

His eyes flicked toward the emergency room doors.

”And Isobel ended up taking the blade meant for me.”

Silence fell.

The hospital security chief shifted uneasily.

Kristoff turned to him.

”Pull every available security recording from the moment that man entered the hospital premises. I want to know where he came from, who he spoke to, and whether anyone was waiting for him outside.”

”Yes, sir.”

Kristoff then faced Owen.

”Investigate every company that participated in the Hugo Project bid.”

Owen nodded.

”Also investigate every worker who were at the site today,” Kristoff continued. ”Contractors, temporary workers, security personnel, suppliers—everyone. I want their backgrounds checked. Look for connections, financial problems, recent disputes, anything unusual.”

Owen hesitated.

”Boss... are you saying you suspect foul play?”

Kristoff looked toward the emergency room doors.

His expression was grim.

”I’m not suspecting it anymore.”

He turned back to Owen.

”I know someone is behind this.”

His voice was quiet, but the threat in it was unmistakable.

”They hurt innocent people. They tried to kill me. And now Isobel is lying in there because of them.”

His fists slowly tightened at his sides.

”Find out who is responsible.”

Owen swallowed and nodded.

”And when we do?”

Kristoff’s eyes turned cold.

”Then they’ll learn exactly what it costs to come after me.”