Chapter 319 Phone Call
Julia knew what was going on in Nicole’s mind, so she continued talking. “I can tell that you care about Old Mr. Benedict. At least you might feel more confident if the patient is in your hands, right? Unfortunately, Old Mr. Benedict can’t wait for much longer. He has to do it within this month.”
Nicole lowered her gaze. She understood the logic behind this plan, but… “I think it’s best that I contact others and ask them for now,” Nicole said after calming herself down.
Julia no longer tried to suggest anything to Nicole after that. Nicole was the one who had to make her own choice, after all. “Sure. Take this. It’s not convenient for you to be out now, so you can just ask me if you need to know anything about Old Mr. Benedict.”
Nicole beamed and nodded gratefully. “Alright. Thank you so much, Julia.”
“We’re all friends, so there’s no need to thank me. Don’t worry about it. It’s all fate! It’d be great if we manage to help Old Mr. Benedict, but we can’t do anything even if we fail,” Julia spoke in an attempt to comfort Nicole.
Nicole smiled without saying anything else.
The next morning, Nicole began to contact a few of her master’s ex-colleagues once she got to Gardner Corporation. It had been years since White passed away, and she had barely kept in contact with any of White’s ex-colleagues. However, she had no choice but to look for them now since Benedict was in such a state.
Nicole started in a polite voice when her first call was picked up. “Hey, Mr. Ekman. It’s me, Nicole.” The doctor on the other end of the line was shocked to hear from her—she had disappeared without a trace after White’s death.
Of course, the doctor wouldn’t have expected her to call him. “Nicole! What is it?”
Then, she explained Benedict’s situation to the doctor, but the doctor seemed to turn increasingly silent as she continued talking.
Finally, the doctor only started talking after a short while. “After hearing your description of the patient, I don’t think it’s advisable to have surgery, Nicole. He’s old, and the tumor is pressing against his nerves. He doesn’t stand much of a chance on the surgical table.”
She froze as she hadn’t expected such a response. She pressed her lips before speaking in a determined tone. “If you’re the one doing the surgery, what do you think are the chances of success, Mr. Ekman?”
The man sighed. “20% at most.”
That’s really low! Nicole bit her lip as a hesitant look flashed across her gaze. She paused for a moment before whispering to the man. “I did a surgery like this with Master White in the past, Mr. Ekman. That person’s condition was almost the same as Old Mr. Benedict’s, but Master White said that there was a 50% success rate.”
Mr. Ekman seemed somewhat exasperated after hearing Nicole’s words. “You know how the top surgeon in the world was Master White back then, right? Even though I trained with him, my skills will never be at his level.
Furthermore, I’m getting old, and I no longer have the same amount of mental capacity. However, you performed such surgeries when you were with Master White, so I believe you can get it done independently. Perhaps you would be able to have a 50% chance of success.”
Nicole was silent after hearing the man’s words. She had assumed that the other doctors would be able to promise a 50% chance, but…
“Alright. I got it. Thanks, Mr. Ekman. Please keep this a secret,” she muttered.
“Your master is gone, Nicole. Those family members have apologized as well. If he were still here, he wouldn’t have wanted you to waste your skills away.
You’re a rare genius, you know?” The senior doctor conveyed thoughtfully. Nicole had mingled with nearly all of the doctors back when she was shadowing White.
After all, White had never taken any apprentices before Nicole. So, it came as a shock when White took an outsider from the medical field as his apprentice one day. Nevertheless, the rest of the doctors were thoroughly impressed by White’s choice.
Even though Nicole wasn’t given professional training, she was a quick learner with a knack for understanding medical-related issues. Moreover, she managed to deal with many complicated cases even at a young age.
