Chapter 231
Chapter 231:
“Actually, don’t look at them,” he said, his voice soaked in dark, quiet cruelty. “Because once you see the truth, I highly doubt you will have the courage to keep breathing p>
He disappeared into the shadows.
Cole sat motionless on the floor. Cold alcohol soaked through his expensive trousers. Crawford’s words echoed in his skull like a death knell. A sudden, sharp spike of anxiety drove itself through his chest.
He dug frantically into his wet pocket, pulled out his phone, and hit the speed dial for his executive assistant.
“Davis,” Cole rasped, his voice scraped raw. “Call the Chief Administrator at NewYork-Presbyterian. I want June’s complete, unredacted medical file from six months ago. I want it in my hands in twenty minutes p>
𝗡е𝗐 𝘸𝗲е𝗸𝗅𝘆 с𝗁𝖺р𝘵e𝗋𝘀 𝗈ո
2:00 AM.
Three massive black Compton Group SUVs tore through the empty streets of Manhattan, ignoring every red light. They hopped the curb and came to a hard stop directly in front of the emergency entrance of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
Cole threw his door open before the vehicle had fully stopped.
He marched into the brightly lit lobby. He was a terrifying sight — his suit wrinkled and stained with alcohol, a dark purple bruise swelling rapidly along his jawline, dried blood crusted at the corner of his mouth. Four armed private security contractors flanked him on either side.
The hospital’s Chief Administrator, a balding man who had been pulled from bed twenty minutes earlier, stood waiting near the reception desk. He was visibly sweating.
“Mr. Compton,” the administrator began, raising both hands. “Sir, I must protest. Under the HIPAA privacy act, I cannot release a patient’s medical history without their written consent or a federal court order p>
Cole didn’t slow his stride. He closed the distance in two steps, seized the administrator by the collar of his white coat, and slammed him against the reception desk.
“Listen to me very carefully,” Cole said, his breath heavy with stale whiskey. “You are going to take me to the archives right now. If you say the word ‘HIPAA’ to me again, the Compton Group will withdraw the fifty-million-dollar grant funding your new pediatric wing. I will bankrupt this hospital by morning. Do you understand me p>
The administrator’s face went pale, but he shook his head weakly. “Sir, even if I wanted to bypass the system, it requires two high-level security keys. I can’t simply p>
“Then get the other key holder,” Cole interrupted, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper. He leaned in until the administrator could feel the heat coming off him. “And tell him his child’s medical residency at Columbia is on the line p>
His grip tightened until the collar fabric strained. “I own people, not just buildings. You have sixty seconds to make a choice. Now move p>
The administrator’s face turned gray. The crushing weight of ruin — professional, financial, personal — broke through whatever remained of his resolve.
“Yes, sir. Right this way,” he choked out.
Cole released him.