The ambulance’s siren blared as it sped toward the hospital.

But an obnoxious power-walking mob blocked its path at the entrance of our residential area. As a result, the ambulance could not leave the area.

I got out of the car to negotiate with that group of power-walkers. I immediately recognized that the woman who led the mob was none other than my mother-in-law, Miranda White.

“Miranda, the illness of someone important to me has flared up. He’s in critical condition!

“Please get these people to move and let the ambulance pass! Quick!”

I was frantic with worry.

But Miranda shot me a sideways glance and jumped to conclusions. “He should’ve died a long time ago!

“He’s your father. What gives him the nerve to interfere in Caleb’s marital home?! If he’s sick, he deserves it!”

Right after she finished her sentence, she waved her arms and called more people over.

The number of people joining the power-walking mob continued to increase. They packed the road so tightly that it was completely blocked.

When it became clear the ambulance could not possibly leave the area, Miranda shot me a smug glance. She picked up her phone and said in a coy voice, “Honey, what are you doing at home? Come down and join me for a power walk! Getting some exercise is what matters most for your health.”

Inside the ambulance, the phone screen next to the patient lit up for a moment, then went dark again.

It was not my father who had collapsed.

After sending the voice message, Miranda White put her phone away. She jabbed her crimson-painted nails in my face. “Listen up! We’ll gather here every day before we head out. That’s the rule!

“If you want to leave, fine! Go the long way around!”

The other members from the power-walking mob beside Miranda chimed in one after another.

“That’s right! Ever since we formed the power-walking group, we never made way for cars!”

“We won’t make an exception for today either. Otherwise, any random vehicle will think it can push us around! What if one of them hits us?”

“If you want to go through, then skirt around. Why should we be the ones to make the way?”

But we only had one entrance that led out to the main road. There was no other way to skirt around.

I remembered my father-in-law, Bradley Priestly, had collapsed all of a sudden and foamed at the mouth. His body had convulsed helplessly.

A human life was on the line.

I clenched my fists tightly as I stared at Miranda at the center of the crowd.

“Miranda, everyone listens to you. With just one word from you, the ambulance can get through.

“The patient’s condition is really serious! We can’t afford any more delays!”

Although they had loaded Bradley into the ambulance with professional emergency equipment on board, the doctor who rode with him had said his condition was extremely critical. The equipment in the ambulance alone would not be enough. They had to get him to the hospital immediately.

Every minute of delay meant greater danger.

I looked at Miranda and said through gritted teeth, “Miranda, I’m begging you. You and—”

“Get lost!”

Miranda shoved me aside impatiently. “What do I have to do with your patient?! Stop talking nonsense!”

My shin slammed into a round stone bollard. I tripped and fell hard to the ground. My palm hit the pavement. A sharp sting shot through it as blood slowly seeped out.

Miranda waved the small flag in her hand as she shouted even more energetically, “Sunset Power-walkers, assemble! Everyone gathers here! Nobody gives way!”

Miranda was a central figure in the group.

At her command, those who had hesitated before decided to join them.

The narrowed road was about to be completely jammed. It was packed so tightly that even a cat could barely pass through.

I panicked. If this went on any longer, my father-in-law would be in danger.

I struggled to get back on my feet. I pleaded with the crowd. “There’s a person in there fighting for his life. Please move aside. Just a little. It won’t take long…”

But no one paid me any attention.

They avoided me with cold faces. They gathered under Miranda’s small flag and quickly formed neat rows.

They completely blocked the road.

Even a bicycle would not be able to get through the tightly packed crowd, let alone an ambulance.

The doctor in the ambulance grew anxious. He wound down the window. “Ms. Shirley, the patient’s condition is extremely critical. Any further delay will cost him his life!”

Miranda clearly heard what the doctor had said, yet she only let out a cold snort.

With no other choice, I picked up my phone to call my husband, Caleb. Miranda always listened to him.

Caleb answered my call.

“Caleb, Bradley…”

Smack!

Miranda knocked my phone out of my hand with her small flag.

It hit the ground. Then, the power-walkers trampled over it one after another. It was crushed beneath their feet.

The screen flickered once before it went completely black.

Miranda strode to the front. She held her small flag high and shouted, “You’re a disgrace! Your father’s nothing but a country bumpkin! He’s nothing like my hubby!”

Miranda led the long, snake-like procession as they started their power walk.

The crowd was packed shoulder to shoulder. They took over the entire street while blaring their music.

The ambulance did not dare to force its way through. It had no choice but to pull over to the side with its siren wailing while it waited. The doctor already started emergency treatment on Bradley, but it barely helped his condition.

His vital signs dropped fast.

Fifteen minutes later, the power-walk mob finally cleared out and gave way.

The ambulance sped off at full throttle as it raced to the hospital. Bradley barely hung on by a thread.

My phone was crushed under their feet. I had no choice but to use a landline at the hospital to call Caleb.

The phone rang twice before he picked up.

The moment he heard my voice, his tone turned impatient.

“Shirley, my mom already told me about your father. Not to be harsh, but you know our situation. How can you waste money like this?”

I froze. “Caleb, how is treating an elder’s illness a waste of money?”

“How is it not? Your father’s just a country bumpkin, yet he insists on coming to the city for treatment. Do you have any idea how expensive medical care is? How much is this going to cost?”

My chest felt so tight that I almost felt like I had difficulty breathing.

My father, Peter Langley, had always been in poor health. After much persuasion, he finally agreed to leave our hometown and come to the city where I lived for treatment.

He had medical insurance, so he paid the medical expenses with his money.

He only needed to stay at my home for a few days.

Caleb was worried that Peter would take advantage of us. Hence, Caleb insisted on bringing his parents over as well. The five of us ended up squeezed under the same roof.

Miranda repeatedly told Peter that Caleb was the one who had bought the house, and that he could not be so thick-skinned as to come and stay in the house.

It was true that Caleb and his family had been the ones who paid the down payment for the house. But Caleb was still a PhD student. He needed to prepare his thesis at home, so he did not generate any income for the household. As a result, I was the one who paid the mortgage all along. Yet in Miranda’s version of events, everything somehow belonged to Caleb.

But it was not the time to argue about any of that.

We delayed the treatment window. Hence, Bradley needed an emergency surgery. The doctor held a thick stack of consent forms and payment notices.

“We need to operate as soon as possible. Are you going ahead or not? If we wait any longer, it’ll become truly life-threatening!”

On the other end of the phone, Caleb shouted, “Don’t do it! We don’t have the money!”

“Caleb, how can you…”

I was so angry that I could not even finish my sentence.

Caleb hung up. I called again, only to find that he had blocked my number. As a result, I could not get through anymore.

This was the man who once swore he would love me for a lifetime.

Thinking back on everything, I felt nothing but exhaustion and ridicule.

But Bradley was lying on the bed, so what could I do?

I could not just stand by and watch him die.

My phone was already broken, and my cards were not with me. I had no way to pay for the surgery. If I return home to get them, it would be time-consuming. Should I really give up on Bradley?

“Shirley…”

Just then, someone called my name.

I turned around, and my eyes immediately reddened. “Dad!”

Peter was still in his house clothes as he rushed toward me in panic. “Shirley, how’s Bradley?”

I shook my head. I did not know what to say to him. Tears spilled down my face.

“Take this.”

Peter pressed a credit card into my hand. “We’re family. This is urgent. Use it now.”

After settling the payment, they pushed Bradley into the operating theater.

The red light outside the operating theater lit up.

With no phone working, I had no way to contact anyone. I could only sit outside the operating theater with my father and wait.

After all night long, I persuaded him to go home and rest.

He shook his head. “Miranda and Caleb must be busy. That’s why they didn’t come. How can you handle everything here alone? Let me help you.”

I was about to say something when Peter’s phone vibrated.

The word “Caleb” showed up on the screen.

I quickly answered, “Hello.”

“Bah! So your dad’s phone’s with you!” he said. “Where are you?”

I froze.

Caleb pressed on impatiently. “Hurry up and speak. I’m already at the hospital entrance. I’m coming in to find you.”

I immediately told him I was at the emergency building on the eighth floor.

But before I could add on that I was outside the operating theater, he hung up again.

Peter was beside me. He reached out and wiped away the tears at the corners of my eyes. “Caleb’s a good man. He has a sharp tongue, but he’s soft-hearted in nature. Although his words are a bit harsh, he still comes for you at the end of the day, right?”

After a while, the elevator doors opened at the turn of the corridor.

Caleb strode over to me.

I went up to him. But before I could even speak, he paused mid-stride and looked past me with disgust. “So that’s how it is?”

“What?” I froze. Then, I turned around.

I saw Peter smile somewhat flatteringly as he walked over to us.

A wave of anger surged in my chest. “Caleb, what do you mean?”

He smirked. He brushed past me and left.

I chased after him and grabbed his sleeve. “Did you come to the hospital just to take one look and leave? Where’s the money?”

“What money? Don’t embarrass yourself out here!”

Caleb yanked his arm up and sent me stumbling.

He said, “Mom got back from her walk and didn’t see Dad. So she thought something had happened to him and told me to come check.”

I felt as if something had slammed hard into my chest. I steadied myself against the wall. “What now?”

Caleb pointed at Peter. “Since it’s your dad, that’s that.”

I was so furious I almost laughed. “Isn’t my dad your in-law, too?”

“So?” Caleb shot a contemptuous glance at my father’s plain clothes. His expression was filled with disdain. “He’s just my in-law. Meanwhile, my father has been a cadre his whole life. He’s an honorable and dignified man. Your father’s just some sort of farmer who scratches a living out of dirt. How can they be the same?”

I recalled our wedding three years ago when Caleb held my hands and said, “From now on, we’re one family. There’s no difference between us.”

It all felt absurd at that moment.

I did not even want to speak to him anymore.

My father caught up to us, only to watch helplessly as Caleb turned around and got back into the elevator. He did not even spare me another glance.

Five hours later, dawn broke.

The red light above the operating theater finally went out.

I rubbed my tired eyes and rushed over to the doctor. “Doctor, how is he?”

The doctor removed his surgical cap and wiped the sweat from his forehead. “We’ve managed to save his life for now. But his treatment was delayed, so he’s still in a critical condition.”

He looked at me, and his voice was heavy with concern. “The next few days require both care and financial support. As his family members, you have to make up your mind. If you decide to continue treatment, you’ll need to prepare the funds now.”

I understood what he meant.

After asking for an estimated figure, I took Peter’s phone and logged into my banking account.

I wanted to transfer money first to pay the hospital fees.

The moment the page loaded, my eyes flew wide open as I stared at the balance in disbelief.

I had zero balance in my account.

The only person who could have accessed this card was Caleb.

My hands trembled as I used Peter’s phone to call him. But he hung up immediately.

I called again, and he blocked my father’s phone number.

Caleb had withdrawn over a hundred thousand dollars from my account! I had painstakingly saved that money.

I could no longer hold back as I turned on WhatsApp and sent him a voice message.

“Caleb, do you even realize that the one lying in the operating theater is your father, not mine?!”