Rachel ran like lightning through the hallway and dropped to her knees beside Elena.
Without wasting a second, she placed her hands on Elena's face and neck, quickly checking her airway, breathing, and pulse.
Her movements were steady and sharp, like she had done this a thousand times before.
Ashley came running right behind her with panic written all over her face.
She grabbed Rachel's hand and glared at her angrily, saying, "Rachel, what the hell are you doing? We have to call an ambulance to take Aunt Elena to the hospital right now!"
Rachel, whose face was tight with worry, shot Ashley a cold look and said, "Let go of my hand! I have to save her or—"
Before she could finish what she wanted to say, Ashley cut her off and said, "Rachel, I'm calling 885!! Don't worry, I'll ask them to send their fastest chopper so Aunt Elena can be saved…"
Rachel's patience snapped.
Yanking her hand out of Ashley's grip with force, she sharply said, "Relax, Ashley! I know what I'm doing."
Ashley, full of doubt and fear, quickly grabbed Rachel's hand again and said, "How can you say that so confidently? What if something goes wrong? Do you even realize she's Uncle Silas' wife? You know what, forget this; I'm calling an ambulance right now."
Ashley pulled out her smartphone, unlocked it with her face ID, and hurriedly dialed 885.
The line had just connected when Rachel grabbed the phone out of her hand and ended the call. Glaring at her with piercing eyes, she said, "I said I know what I'm doing, didn't I?"
Ashley's chest rose and fell with anger as she frowned and said, "How am I supposed to just believe you when it's Aunt Elena's life on the line? Are you even a doctor?"
Rachel was surprised at the blunt question.
She locked eyes with Ashley and said quietly but firmly, "Well… let's just say I am one, okay? Now please, go get me some bottled water. Aunt Elena will need it once she regains consciousness."
Ashley's eyes narrowed with doubt. "But—"
Rachel's voice softened, but her blue eyes glistened with certainty as she locked her gaze on Ashley's gaze and said, "Just trust me, Cous. I will never play with Aunt Elena's life or anyone's life. Believe me."
Ashley froze.
Something about the way Rachel's eyes glistened with conviction made her heart slow down.
Against her will, she nodded and ran out of the hallway to get the bottled water.
The moment Ashley left, Rachel tilted Elena's head back, pinched her nose, sealed her mouth over Elena's, and gave two rescue breaths.
She wasn't moving as Rachel Shen, the twenty-one-year-old girl; she was moving with the memories of Biya Biryani, a surgeon from one of her past lives, and her body remembered every detail.
After the breaths, she checked for a pulse, found it faint, and then pressed her palms against Elena's chest to start compressions.
Her hands pushed down rhythmically, strong but controlled; she started counting inside her head as sweat ran down her forehead, but she didn't stop.
A few minutes later Ashley came rushing back into the hallway, panting, and holding a cold bottle of water in her hand, but she wasn't alone.
Hurrying behind her were Erica, Susan, Saul Shen and his wife Pamela with their son Ashton, and finally Silas Shen with his son Paul.
The family saw Rachel kneeling on the floor over Elena's body, working like a professional.
At first, Silas moved in to stop her, but the moment he saw the precision in her actions, the way she tilted her head, and the way her compressions were steady and exact, he froze in place and couldn't deny it—that Rachel looked like she knew exactly what she was doing.
Paul's eyes welled up with tears.
His mother's face was pale and lifeless on the ground.
His small hands trembled, his lips quivered, and his voice broke apart as he begged Rachel, saying, "Please, Cousin Rachel, save her! Please, save my mother!" His voice shook with desperation.
Saul Shen leaned closer to his younger brother Silas and whispered harshly into his ears, saying, "Does she even know what she's doing? Are you really going to just stand there and watch her fool around when your wife is lying there? We should be calling Doctor Matthew right now before it's too late—"
But his words were loud enough to be heard by Erica's sharp ears.
The face of Erica, who heard every single word Saul said, instantly turned cold as ice.
She turned towards her son, Saul, with blazing fury in her eyes and snapped at him, saying, "You really are a shame of an uncle... Your brother, who is also a doctor, has not said a word about Rachel's actions... He's watching her carefully and silently, yet you—are you looking down on my granddaughter?"
Saul quickly tried to defend himself as he hurriedly said, "No, Mother, I was only trying to—"
"Shut your mouth!" Erica cut him off with a voice so sharp that it sliced through the hallway air.
"One more word, Saul, and I'll make sure you never speak again. Do you understand me?" She said further in a threatening tone.
Saul's face turned pale; he swallowed hard as he realized his mother wasn't bluffing and shut his mouth instantly, then his eyes shifted back to Rachel.
Even Silas Shen, a man known for his calm and serious nature, found himself in awe as he watched Rachel's hands moving with perfect rhythm, her breaths timed, and her compressions precise.
He couldn't help but wonder what Rachel had gone through in River City during those eight years.
"Where had she learned such skill? What kind of life had she lived?" He asked himself inwardly.
Rachel, unaware of the stares behind her, kept pushing, pressing, and breathing.
She refused to let Elena slip away, and then, finally, she felt Elena's body starting to respond.
She pushed harder and stronger while keeping the rhythm.
After a while, Elena's chest began to rise on its own with air rushing back into her lungs.
Rachel then pressed once more, leaned down, and gave another rescue breath before Elena's eyelids flickered.
As Elena's lips parted, she gasped for air.
Then the family let out a collective breath they hadn't realized they were holding.
Rachel, who was drenched in sweat, slowed her compressions and steadied Elena with a supporting hand before asking softly, "Elena, can you hear me?"
Elena's gaze was hazy and unfocused, but she gave the faintest nod.
Rachel then smiled in relief and took the bottle of water from Ashley.
She unscrewed the cap and held it out to Elena.
"Here, sip slowly," she instructed.
Elena's weak fingers twisted the cap fully, and she raised the bottle shakily to her lips. Then she started to sip carefully while swallowing, and as the water slid down her throat, a touch of color began to return to her cheeks.
Paul, who couldn't hold it anymore, burst into tears, and as the tears spilled down his face, he threw his arms around his mother and said, "Mom, I was so scared!" he sobbed.
Elena's voice was hoarse but warm, her hand brushing through her son's hair as she whispered, saying: "I'm okay, sweetie." Then she lifted her gaze, still weak but filled with gratitude, and locked eyes with Rachel before saying, "It's all thanks to Rachel…"
Rachel smiled while helping Elena sit more comfortably by propping her against the wall before saying, "You'll be fine, Aunt Elena. Just breathe deep and relax."
The hallway finally quieted as relief spread among the family.
But Rachel's mind was already moving past the moment.
She had saved Elena; now she needed to find her little cousin sister, Josie.
She slid her hand down to squeeze Elena's hand gently, then she bent closer and whispered, saying, "We'll find Josie, Aunt Elena. I promise."
Rachel lifted her head and turned the gaze of her blue eyes towards Ashley with her expression hardening, then with her urgent voice dropped low and cutting like a knife, she said, "Ashley… who the hell took our cousin Josie?"