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Charlotte shoved the intruder back, but the woman was younger, stronger, more prepared. She twisted free and bolted for the door.

Charlotte’s instincts screamed at her to chase, but she spun back to her daughter, hands shaking as she checked the IV line. “Ruth, are you okay? Did she get anything into you?”

Ruth’s breath was ragged, her hands clutching the blanket. “I—I don’t know! Mom, what’s going on?”

Charlotte slammed her hand onto the wall code button. Within seconds, the hall erupted in chaos.

The door burst open as Brad Killian stormed in, his face thunderous. Noah limped into the room with Alex following closely behind, Evan Shipley at his side.

Charlotte turned to them, her breath sharp, her hands still shaking. “A woman posed as a nurse,” she bit out. “She was tampering with Ruth’s IV. I stopped her, but she got away.”

Brad’s face darkened as he pulled out his phone. “Lock this floor down. I want every exit covered.”

Noah limped toward Ruth, pushing past Izzy’s protests. “She was here?” His voice was raw, his eyes blazing.

“Yes,” Charlotte confirmed, frustration etched in every line of her face. “She tried to inject something into Ruth’s line.”

Noah reached Ruth’s side, taking her trembling hand. “She won’t get near you again,” he promised.

Alex crouched beside the bed. “Ruth, do you feel anything unusual? Dizziness, nausea?”

“I—I don’t think so,” Ruth whispered, but her hands trembled in Noah’s.

Noah’s grip tightened, his jaw visibly clenching. “She won’t touch you again,” he growled. “Not while I’m breathing.”

Brad shot Charlotte a nod. “Good instincts, Chief. You saved her life.”

Charlotte shook her head. “I let her get away.”

“You made the right call,” Alex said firmly. “Ruth’s alive because of you.”

But the truth settled over them like a weight. Someone would try again. Someone wanted Ruth dead. And they weren’t going to stop.

* * *

The hospital roomhad become a storm of activity—Brad securing evidence, Tristan and James reviewing Ruth’s condition, the hospital administrator demanding answers.

But Noah only focused on Ruth. He watched her expression shift, her breathing change.

Something was wrong.

Charlotte’s gaze met Noah’s. The flicker of hesitation, the lost expression that hadn’t been there before. “Ruth?” she asked, voice cautious. “Are you feeling okay?”

Ruth’s voice seemed small, uncertain. “…I don’t know.”

Noah sat beside her, his stomach twisting. “What do you mean?”

She swallowed hard. “I keep waking up… but things feel wrong. Like—I know you, but I don’t know why.”

Noah felt his chest tighten.

She knew him. But she didn’t remember why.

His grip on her hand instinctively tightened, that realization slamming into him like a gut punch. Charlotte’s sharp gaze darted between them. Ruth hadn’t just forgotten minor details but a whole relationship.

Noah forced his expression into something neutral, but his pulse pounded like a drum in his ears. He kept his voice steady, careful. “You know me.”

Ruth exhaled, her brows knitting together in frustration. “I do. But… I don’t remember how.”