A Man with Nerves of Steel (Joseph Hart) novel Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Cora snapped, “How is that possible? Natalie is my and Joseph’s daughter-how could they conclude that there’s no biological relationship between them? What are those testing centers even doing? I’m going to sue them for issuing such a ridiculous result.”

“You can’t, Ms. Lowell! That’ll only put us in a more disadvantaged position than we’re already in.” Fiona hurriedly stopped Cora.

Once they sued the testing centers, it would blow up into a huge story. The margin of error in a formal paternity report was incredibly small. If they lost the lawsuit, the fallout would be impossible to predict.

Bernard said, “Cora, I’ll keep an eye on the company. You focus on sorting things out with Joseph first.”

Cora looked at the way Joseph had replied to her texts again and felt a headache coming on. In the end, she did as Bernard told and took Fiona with her to seek Joseph out.

Once they were in the car, Cora handed her phone to Fiona to show her the chat log. “What do you think he even means by this?”

“On the surface, it looks like he doesn’t want to keep arguing about the report. He just wants money instead. That might be his ultimate goal, but it could also be that… Cora, are you absolutely sure Natalie is

“Natalie is Joseph’s and mine. Apart from Joseph, I’ve never been involved with another man.” Cora cut in, her tone firm. “Joseph may not be rich, but I don’t care. I didn’t marry him for his money. He’s a decent guy, a doctor, takes care of the family, and he’s healthy. I never had any reason to cheat.

“I carried three daughters for that ungrateful jerk, and now he wants a divorce and is demanding three billion dollars from me. He’s the worst! He’s gonna give me an aneurysm!”

Cora seethed. If Joseph was beside her then, she might not have been able to resist taking a swing at him.

Fiona was baffled. “Then the test results…”

“It has to be the testing center’s mistake. They must’ve mixed things up and tested Natalie as if she were mine and some other man’s. This is outrageous. I’m definitely going to sue them.”

Joseph’s diagnosis sent a shockwave through the room-he suggested that the elderly woman might have cholera. None of the other doctors had dared to go there, but Joseph’s reminder snapped everyone to attention. They all bent over the charts again, re-examining every detail of the case.

The treatment team peppered Joseph with pointed questions. His responses were logical, thorough, and grounded in the data. Eventually, the others agreed to order specific tests for cholera.

By evening, the rapid-testing pathway had produced a definitive result-a cholera infection. Only then did the crowd finally let out a collective breath and wrap up the marathon consultation.

The patient’s family wanted Joseph to travel to Croma to participate in her full course of treatment, but he turned them down, saying he wasn’t skilled enough for the task. The real reason, however, was that he needed to stay in Jenton to deal with the crisis in his marriage to Cora.

After the post-consultation dinner, he returned to his motel. He had just finished his shower when he heard the electronic lock beep. Cora swiped a keycard at the door and unlocked it. If he hadn’t latched the security chain, she would have walked straight in.

“You disappeared for a whole day. Were you playing hide-and-seek with me or something? Open up. We need to talk about the divorce settlement!” she hissed.