Chapter 561 - 553: Main Story Finale Countdown (5)

Until Elmer Grant’s gun was pointed at his head.

"Don’t fool around with a toy gun, little guy. I need to focus on driving. Who’s going to be responsible if we get in an accident?"

"This isn’t a toy gun. It’s real. If you don’t believe me, I’ll give you a demonstration."

Elmer Grant aimed at the windshield, curled his index finger, and a bullet instantly punched a hole through the glass before flying out.

The gunshot made the driver’s heart leap into his throat, and he slammed the brakes.

"Kid... You... Y-y-you actually have a gun..."

Elmer Grant glanced at him. "Focus on driving. Take me to the hospital..."

"Okay, okay, okay." The driver made a U-turn and headed back.

By the time they reached the hospital entrance, the driver’s palms were slick with sweat.

He was clearly terrified.

The three children got out of the car and ran into the hospital.

Dylan Grant ran to the front desk. "Excuse me, nurse, where is Ethan Ellsworth?"

The nurse recognized them instantly. "He’s in the emergency room. I’ll take you there."

"Okay, thank you."

When the three children reached the emergency room, the adults saw them run over and realized they had completely forgotten about them in the chaos.

The kids instinctively kept quiet about their encounter with the driver who had tried to kidnap them. Chloe Marshall threw her arms around Dorothy. "I’m so sorry, Mommy left you behind."

"It’s okay, Mommy. I came here in the car with Dylan and Elmer. Mommy, please don’t cry. If you cry, I’ll want to cry too. Daddy, he..."

She reached out with her little hand to wipe away Chloe Marshall’s tears, and the mother and daughter both dissolved into a sobbing mess.

Everyone present had tears in their eyes. Dylan Grant and Elmer Grant also stood silent, quietly waiting for the results of the surgery.

Time was a knife twisting in everyone’s nerves, tormenting them without end.

They waited from the afternoon until evening, when the doors to the operating room finally opened.

All eyes turned anxiously toward the door.

Several surgeons in white coats walked out.

"Doctor, how is my son?" Mrs. Ellsworth asked, her voice choked with tears.

"Mr. Ellsworth was struck by a metal object, which ruptured his kidney and caused massive bleeding. The surgery has temporarily stabilized his condition. However, the most urgent issue now is that he needs a kidney transplant. His right kidney was already in poor condition, possibly from past overwork, and now his left one has ruptured. His only option is a transplant. Our hospital will begin searching for a donor immediately, but we also hope you, the family, will conduct a nationwide search for a kidney from a young, healthy man of a similar age to Mr. Ellsworth. Based on his current state, we can buy some more time, but we can’t say for sure how long."

Hearing this, everyone’s nerves tensed up all over again.

Nora Ainsworth immediately turned to Quentin Grant. "Quentin, you need to use all your connections right away. See if you can find any young cancer patients who are willing to donate a healthy left kidney."

Quentin Grant nodded. "Okay."

"Also..." the doctor began again, "Mr. Ellsworth’s blood type is quite rare. His family members must donate blood. The hospital doesn’t have much of this type in stock."

Mr. Ellsworth immediately spoke up. "Take mine. My blood type is the same as my son’s."

"Me too!" Zoe Ellsworth raised her hand. "My blood type is the same as my brother’s."

The doctor glanced at Zoe Ellsworth’s pregnant belly and said, "Miss Ellsworth, you’re currently pregnant. It’s not advisable for you to donate blood. We’ll have Mr. Ellsworth do it."

Mr. Ellsworth nodded and followed the doctor down the hallway.

Soon after, Ethan Ellsworth was wheeled out of the operating room, and everyone followed his hospital bed into a VIP suite.

Ethan Ellsworth’s eyes were closed. Chloe Marshall and Dorothy Ellsworth gazed at him, their hearts aching.

After a brief discussion, everyone started heading home to search for a kidney donor, hoping to find a suitable match as quickly as possible.

In just a few moments, only Chloe Marshall and Nora Ainsworth were left in the hospital room. Mrs. Ellsworth had taken Dorothy home. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Chloe, are you hungry? I can go get you something to eat."

Chloe Marshall shook her head. "Nora, I’m not hungry."

Nora Ainsworth felt awful, too. ’After all, Ethan Ellsworth was injured because of me.’

’Right now, words are useless. The most important thing is to find a kidney donor as soon as possible.’

Zoe Ellsworth closed up her clothing store for the time being. She was in no mood to worry about business now.

She kept urging Herman Hawthorne to hurry up and search, and he had, in fact, immediately sent people to look for a donor.

Zoe Ellsworth was sitting on the sofa, watching Dorothy sit silently across from her. She beckoned to her. "Sweetie, come to Auntie."

Dorothy Ellsworth obediently got up from the sofa and went to her. Zoe Ellsworth lifted her onto the couch beside her and asked softly, "Dorothy, do you really want to cry?"

Dorothy Ellsworth shook her head. "I already cried. I won’t cry anymore. If I cry, Daddy will worry about me, and that’s not good."

Zoe Ellsworth’s heart ached hearing this. "It’s okay. And who is your daddy? He’s a huge superstar! Heaven will watch over him. Look, your uncle, your grandpa and grandma, and everyone else is worrying about him. So you just sit here quietly with Auntie, and we’ll pray for him together. And from now on, let’s not go to the hospital. Your mommy is having a very hard time, so let’s just wait for news quietly at home, okay?"

Dorothy Ellsworth nodded and sniffled. "Auntie, Daddy will get better, right?"

"Yes, he will. Our whole family hasn’t given him permission to not recover, so he has no choice but to get better."

That evening, Leon Lynch came home looking grim. Holly Wood asked, "Leon, what’s wrong?"

"There was an accident at Ethan Ellsworth’s award ceremony. He dove to protect Nora from getting hurt and took the hit himself. It struck his kidney. If he hadn’t, it would have hit Nora in the head, and she might have been killed instantly."

"Was it an accident or did someone plan it?"

"An accident." Leon Lynch took off his suit jacket.

Holly Wood paused for a moment. "Did you go visit him at the hospital?"

"I just got back from there. Ethan Ellsworth is in urgent need of a kidney donor."

Holly Wood nodded. "When an accident like this happens, there’s no escaping it. Still, between the Ellsworth Family and Nora’s family, it should be easy to find a donor."

Leon Lynch nodded. "Finding a donor is one thing, but finding a suitable match that won’t be rejected is the difficult part."

Holly Wood pulled a pregnancy test out of her pocket and handed it to him. "Leon, look at this."

He took it, confused. "What’s this?"

"A pregnancy test."

Leon Lynch’s eyes suddenly lit up. He stared at the two lines on it. "We’re pregnant?"

Holly Wood pursed her lips and nodded. "You’ve got a little monster on the way."

A huge smile spread across Leon Lynch’s face. "This is wonderful."

He shot up and hurried downstairs, yelling, "Mom!"

Only when he got downstairs did he see Maeve Sutton, who had arrived at some point. His expression hardened as he glared at her. "What are you doing here? You have the nerve to show your face in my house?"

Mrs. Lynch waved her son over. "Maeve is just here to drop off an invitation. She’s getting married."

"That’s right, Leon. I just came to drop off the invitation."

Only then did Leon Lynch notice the red invitation on the table. His expression softened a bit as he said to Mrs. Lynch, "Mom, Holly’s pregnant."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Lynch was overjoyed. "Really?"

"Of course. I have the pregnancy test right here." Leon Lynch showed it to her. Once Mrs. Lynch saw it for herself, her face lit up with a huge smile. "This is wonderful! I’m going to be a grandmother!"

Maeve Sutton’s face turned ashen, an indescribable pain welling up inside her. ’I’ve loved Leon Lynch for so many years, ever since Nora Ainsworth and I were still good friends. If it weren’t for him, Nora and I might never have had a falling out.’

’In the end, not only did I not win his heart, I didn’t even get a crumb of affection, let alone anything more.’

’He didn’t love me. He married someone else.’

’I must be the most pathetic one of all.’

"Mrs. Lynch, I should be going now," Maeve Sutton said, getting up awkwardly.

"Alright, I won’t keep you then. Be careful on your way home."

"Okay."

Mrs. Lynch quickly stood up. "Where’s Holly?"

"Upstairs," Leon Lynch said, looking at the food on the dining table. "I’ll go get her for dinner."

"Okay, I’ll have the kitchen remake dinner. She can’t eat too much spicy food; it’s not good for her. And definitely no hairy crabs." Mrs. Lynch was in a flustered state. "It’s safer if I cook myself."

By the time Leon Lynch brought Holly Wood downstairs, the dining table was already laden with dishes, all cooked by Mrs. Lynch herself.

"Holly, dear, come try this. See if you like it."

Holly Wood was a bit taken aback. "Mom, I can get it myself."

"I’ve already eaten, and I have nothing else to do. Let me tell you, Holly, you have to eat a lot. You’re a little too thin. If you eat well and aren’t picky, the baby will be healthy."

"Okay," Holly Wood replied. "Mom, what if it’s a girl?"

Mrs. Lynch replied instantly, "Would a daughter not be Leon’s child? She would still be my treasure. Don’t feel any pressure. Just eat and drink as you should. Even though I was hoping for a grandson, I love granddaughters too. A daughter is always so sweet and caring, after all."

Hearing this, Holly Wood felt much more at ease.

After they had eaten their fill, Mrs. Lynch went to her study and found some pregnancy books she had bought years ago. She brought them for Holly Wood to read while she sat beside her, looking up what to eat and what to watch out for in the first trimester. The pregnancy brought the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law much closer.

Leon Lynch felt deeply gratified.

As the couple was heading upstairs to bed, Mrs. Lynch gave them a special reminder. "Holly, Leon."

They both turned back. "Yes, Mom? Is there something else?"

"Absolutely, definitely no sex for the first three months. There’s a risk of miscarriage. Absolutely not, you hear?"

Holly Wood’s face flushed slightly. She glanced at Leon Lynch and nodded. "Okay, Mom."

Leon Lynch put his arm around Holly Wood and led her upstairs. After they had showered and were lying in bed, they both suddenly felt rather bored.

There was nothing to do!

"Three months... Isn’t that a little too long...?"

"Not really. It’ll pass in the blink of an eye..."

"It feels like way too long for me."

Holly Wood huffed. "The days didn’t feel so long before you were with me. Was that because you had a different woman to keep you company every night?"

"No, not at all, I swear." ’My heart was completely set on Nora back then. I didn’t have the energy to look for other women.’

Holly Wood nodded, wrapped her arms around his waist, and draped her leg over him. "Honey, let’s go to sleep. I’m tired."

"Okay." He reached out and turned off the light.

’Such a long night. What torture.’