Chapter 3

Celine POV

When the hospital press conference began, I sat in the center of the main platform.

I used to accompany Lily to patient meetings and always sat in the audience, listening to doctors say she still had hope.

Now Lily was dead, yet I was pushed in front of the cameras to personally cover up the truth about Lily's death.

Mr. Davis placed the script in front of me, his fingertip pointing to that one sentence.

"Read it as written."

I looked at the words "jointly assessed by family members" on the paper, feeling like my throat was clogged with blood.

The cameras were already rolling.

When I spoke, my voice was terribly hoarse. "The donor transfer was a decision made after... joint assessment by the family."

Someone in the audience immediately cursed.

"Are you even the child's mother?"

"Your child is gone, how much money did you take?"

A reporter pressed. "Did the Bennett Corporation use its position as an investor to interfere with transplant priority?"

Mr. Davis immediately grabbed the microphone. "The family has already explained this matter."

All the questions were pushed back to me.

I sat under the lights, my fingers digging into my palms. I couldn't refute them.

Lily was still at the hospital, and my mom was still at home. If I revealed the truth, the media would swarm my family.

My phone kept buzzing under the table.

The caregiver sent a message. "Miss Ashford, your mother saw the livestream and is on her way to the hospital!"

I stood up abruptly.

Mr. Davis's expression changed. "The press conference isn't over!"

Security moved to block me. I pushed away the microphone and ran out. Reporters immediately chased after me.

In the hospital lobby, my mom was holding Lily's little jacket, surrounded by people.

Her face was frightfully pale, saying over and over. "My daughter would never give up on Lily. She wouldn't..."

A reporter shoved a microphone in her face. "Do you know that Celine agreed to give the donor liver to Sutton?"

My mom shook her head, her voice trembling. "I need to find Liam. I need answers!"

She walked toward the surgical area. Security reached out to stop her.

"Family members can't go in."

"Where's my granddaughter? I need to see Lily!"

During the struggle, my mom missed a step and fell down from the edge of the platform.

I saw the little jacket fall to the ground. My mom clutched her chest, her face pale.

"Mom!"

The emergency room doors quickly closed.

Mr. Davis was still beside me, lowering his voice. "Miss Ashford, it's very chaotic outside right now. You should go out and calm them down, or this will be very difficult to handle."

When Liam arrived, his first question was to his assistant. "Was what just happened in the lobby caught on camera?"

I looked up at him.

"Lily just died. My mom is lying in there right now." My voice shook. "And you're asking if it was caught on camera?"

Liam stiffened for a moment, then told his assistant. "Control the media first. Seal the surveillance footage. Wait for the emergency results before saying anything."

I understood.

He still wanted to cover it up first.

The emergency lasted over an hour. When the doctor came out, he didn't dare look at me.

"The patient was brought in too late."

I was still clutching Lily's little jacket. Liam reached out to support me. I stepped back.

"Don't touch me. Don't touch their things either."

Liam's expression darkened. "Your mother's accident wasn't something I wanted to see."

I didn't listen to the rest. I turned to the lawyer. "I'm requesting the hospital lobby surveillance and security orders."

The lawyer reminded me quietly. "He just had someone seal the scene records."

I looked at Liam.

My phone lit up at that moment.

A preview notification for Sutton's recovery livestream pushed to my screen. In the main image, Sutton wore a hospital gown, smiling at the camera. Next to her was the Lily Medical Fund logo.

The headline read: "Passing on the hope that a child didn't get to wait for to more people."

Liam saw it too. His expression changed. "Remove the foundation."

Before the assistant could make the call, Sutton's call came through first.

Her voice was weak. "Liam, I just wanted to do something for Lily. Why does everyone have to misunderstand me?"

I didn't keep listening. I took my mother's death certificate and a screenshot of the livestream and turned toward the lawyer.