Chapter 57

Hoy looked at Sarah, disbelief etched on his face. "Are you serious?"

He thought, How could someone so young, like Isabella, really know acupuncture? And it worked so quickly? Even after all the doctors had given up?

Sarah wiggled her toes again, her heart racing. "Dad… I can really move my toes."

She never imagined Isabella's needles would have this effect.

The anger in Hoy's eyes melted into amazement and joy. He nodded repeatedly, his voice shaking. "Good… good… as long as you can move…"

There's nothing more important than this, he thought, his heart swelling with relief.

Isabella stepped forward, pulling back the blanket covering Sarah's legs and rolling up her pant legs to reveal smooth, slender limbs.

For a woman nearing forty, Sarah had kept herself in remarkable shape. But those once-beautiful legs were now rigid, only her toes twitching slightly, giving the scene an eerie quality.

Sarah felt embarrassed. She'd never thought Isabella would be so skilled at acupuncture. And it's not only safe, it can actually heal, she thought.

Feeling embarrassed, Sarah averted her eyes. "What… what are you doing?" she asked, her voice lacking its earlier defiance.

How could I have been so wrong about her? Sarah thought, uneasiness settling in her stomach.

Isabella ignored Sarah's awkwardness, her lips pressed into a thin line as she leaned down, carefully massaging Sarah's legs. As Isabella pressed on certain points, Sarah gasped in pain. "Ow…"

I've never felt that before. Could it be… my legs can feel again? Sarah thought, her heart pounding.

Tears welled in Sarah's eyes. She felt a surge of hope she hadn't dared to feel in a long time.

Since I got sick, I've always put on a brave face, but no one knows how scared I've been inside, she thought. At thirty-nine, the idea of spending the rest of her life bedridden had haunted her. But now, there was hope.

Isabella's voice broke through her thoughts. "Today's treatment is done. You'll need to press these points on your legs every day." As she removed the needles, she continued, "I'll give you acupuncture sessions periodically. I'll show Whitney where to press later."

After carefully removing the last needle, Isabella wiped the sweat from her brow. She had been working tirelessly. Yet, she didn't notice anything until she pulled out the last silver needle. Only then did she notice Sarah's awkward expression, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't find the words.

Isabella gave her a small, clear-eyed smile. "Ms. Howerton," she said softly, "you don't need to feel any burden. I'm only helping you because you're Samuel's sister."

If it weren't for that, Isabella wouldn't have even spared her a glance.

Sarah was momentarily stunned, never expecting Isabella to be so straightforward. I've dealt with all kinds of people in the business world, but someone like Isabella? She's a first. But… she thought.

Chapter 57 (Continued)

Sarah's gaze landed on Isabella, a trace of doubt in her eyes. "Isabella never knew anything about medicine. Are you really Isabella?" she asked, her voice laced with suspicion.

Sarah mused, I conducted a thorough investigation into Isabella's background. Her mother had passed away early, and her father had remarried soon after, leaving Isabella with no real standing in the Stout family. With a stepmother who oppressed her for years, how could she have possibly become someone noteworthy?

But Isabella, ever calm, simply curved her lips into a faint smile and replied, "Of course."

After everything was finished, Sarah's voice came, barely audible, "Thank you." Her tone was awkward, full of reluctance.

After all, I was just berating her a moment ago, Sarah thought, slightly embarrassed.

Isabella responded with a polite, indifferent smile, "No need to thank me." Her words were formal, almost distant. She didn't dwell on Sarah's discomfort and turned to walk toward Hoy.

Isabella stood in front of him, but Hoy, visibly uneasy, averted his gaze and remained silent. She didn't mind and walked up to him, raising her hand.

The moment the silver needle was withdrawn, Hoy froze, his brows furrowing slightly in confusion. Why do I feel so much better than before? Only my arm, which I had been holding up, feels slightly sore, he wondered, surprised by the lightness in his body. Instinctively, he glanced at Isabella, only to see her meticulously packing away the silver needles.

Meanwhile, outside the room… Gwenna stood at the door, her face tight with anxiety as she clutched Rachana's hand. She was desperate to know what was happening inside but feared interrupting the treatment.

Rachana, in her innocent, childlike voice, tried to comfort her, "Gwenna, Samuel's wife is amazing. Mommy will definitely be okay." Even at five years old, the child understood a lot.

Gwenna's heart softened. She knelt down to straighten Rachana's slightly turned-up collar and replied with firm conviction, "Yes, Sarah will be fine, of course."

Even with Rachana's words, Gwenna remained worried. This is a gamble. A huge gamble, she thought.

Rachana, seeing Gwenna still distressed, leaned in and placed her soft, chubby cheek against Gwenna's face. "Teacher says if we stay happy, good things will happen!"

Gwenna's heart ached at the child's innocent comfort, but she forced a smile and nodded earnestly. "Yes, I will listen to the teacher."

How could I shatter her hope? Gwenna thought, feeling the weight of her emotions. Let the adults carry the burden of pain. She glanced down the hallway and whispered, "Where's Daddy?" She had been too preoccupied to notice who was beside her. Now, she saw only Samuel standing quietly to the side.

Rachana pointed to the end of the hallway. "Daddy said he went for a smoke."

Gwenna blinked in surprise, just as Whitney appeared around the corner, striding quickly toward them, his face barely concealing his urgency.

"I'm going in to check," he said quietly as he approached. His hand reached for the doorknob, but Samuel blocked him. "It's not time yet."

We've waited this long, Samuel thought. We can't let Isabella's efforts go to waste now!

Chapter 57 (Continued)

Whitney shoved Samuel's hand aside, his frustration mounting. "Move!"

Usually calm and refined, Whitney was now determined.

I'm starting to regret this, Whitney thought bitterly. What if that girl knows nothing and ends up getting Sarah killed?

The two men argued, and Gwenna stepped forward quickly to scold them. "Both of you, stop it!" she snapped. The little girl, scared by the tension, clung to Gwenna's hand and hid behind her.

Samuel's cold gaze locked onto Whitney, and he moved to stop him again, his hand just settling on Whitney's shoulder when the hospital room door suddenly opened.

The passage has been significantly improved by:

• Correcting punctuation: Commas, periods, and apostrophes have been placed correctly.
• Improving sentence structure: Run-on sentences have been broken down, and short, choppy sentences have been combined for better flow.
• Clarifying wording: Vague phrases have been replaced with more precise language.
• Formatting: Italics are used consistently for internal thoughts.
• Removing extraneous characters: The seemingly random characters "肉" and "고" have been removed.

The cleaned-up version is more readable and engaging.