"What?! What happened to Lory? She's so little, why does she need surgery?!" Quinn's voice spiked with sheer panic.
Riley exhaled softly, steadying her emotions, and gave Quinn a brief rundown of the situation.
Quinn was so furious she practically screamed through the phone. "Is Pierce out of his damn mind?! His own daughter is in emergency surgery, and he's playing daddy to some other guy's kid?! Oh hell no, I'm going over there right now. If he doesn't give me a good explanation, I swear I will end him today!"
"Wait." Noting Mrs. Gable sitting nearby, Riley stood up and walked over to the window for privacy. "Don't go looking for him. He's not a doctor. Dragging him here won't fix anything."
"But he's her father! Cheating on you is one thing, but completely abandoning his own child? You might be able to swallow this, but I sure as hell can't!"
"I've been looking for evidence of his neglect, haven't I? Now I have it. Right now, I only care about Lory. I have no energy to deal with him. Once Lory is stable, I'm divorcing him."
Quinn had been blinded by rage, but Riley's words grounded her. "You're right. I'm being too impulsive. Leave things on this end to me. I'll find a few more witnesses so he can't possibly deny it in court."
"Okay."
Riley hung up and walked back to the operating room doors. She peered through the small window, but she couldn't see anything. Sighing, she returned to her seat.
Minutes dragged by like hours. She had never felt time move so agonizingly slowly. Every second of waiting was pure torture.
After what felt like an eternity, the OR doors finally swung open.
Riley rushed forward. "Doctor, how is my daughter?"
"The surgery was a complete success," the doctor said warmly. "She's in the recovery room now. She'll be moved to a regular ward in about half an hour."
The massive weight pressing on Riley's chest finally vanished. "Thank you so much."

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