She Was the Treasure All Along novel Chapter 238

“There’s nothing wrong with the machine. I trust my people, and I trust my judgment.” Lucian’s voice wasn’t loud, but it cut through the clamor in the medical bay like a drawn saber.

His combat boots echoed steadily on the metal floor as he took two steps forward, positioning himself in front of Loyce and shielding her from the hostile stares. His action was a clear statement of protection.

“Lucian, you…” The Naval Commander’s disappointment deepened. “The facts are right in front of you. Why are you still so stubborn? Are you really willing to lose your title and position over this?”

Others chimed in, trying to persuade Lucian.

Gavin, playing the part of the reasonable peacemaker, stepped forward. “It’s possible it was just a diagnostic error. My software has a virtual patient simulation. Let me just check if that’s been corrupted.”

An anatomical diagram appeared on the medical machine’s screen. Gavin deliberately launched a trauma simulation. “Let’s test the basic functions.”

As the virtual patient showed signs of a massive hemorrhage, the machine blared a piercing alarm. “Warning! Abnormal vital signs! Immediate transfusion recommended!”

But the projection incorrectly displayed a Type O blood marker, while the simulated patient was clearly Type AB.

“My God!” a medic exclaimed. “If this happened on the battlefield…”

Gavin feigned panic as he fiddled with the controls. “Strange, the system’s assessment is completely wrong!”

He tested a few more basic functions, each resulting in either a delay or a misdiagnosis. Finally, the machine blue-screened, displaying a ‘System Failure’ message.

The medical bay erupted.

“This is what you call an upgrade?”

“It’s a joke! A deadly one that gambles with soldiers’ lives!”

“How could Admiral Shapiro fall for such a childish prank…”

The Army Commander, having already heard from his daughter how poorly she was treated at the Shapiro estate, slammed his hand on the table. “Lucian! What do you have to say for yourself? You’ve ruined a multi-million dollar piece of military equipment for a woman!”

“Commander, please calm down. Admiral Shapiro was likely just misled…” Caden interjected smoothly, then turned to Lucian. “This has blown up. You can’t protect that audacious girl anymore. Send her to the stockade, apologize to Gavin, and we can put this behind us.”

“I wasn’t misled,” Lucian said, his voice chillingly calm. “This machine was sabotaged.”

“Loyce! What are you doing!”

She moved so quickly that Gavin’s heart leaped into his throat. He lunged to stop her, but she was impossibly fast. In a flash, she had him on the ground, a sharp kick to his stomach making him cry out and his eyes roll back.

“Ah! Stop her! Someone, stop her!”

At a look from Caden, his subordinates rushed forward to grab Loyce. Robert and the men loyal to Lucian immediately moved to intercept them, and the scene descended into chaos.

Amid the pandemonium, Loyce effortlessly tossed aside anyone who got in her way and tore off a side panel of the machine. The inside was exactly as she’d suspected.

“What are you doing!” Caden realized something was wrong and moved to block her himself.

Loyce deftly dodged him, plucked a micro-device from the machine’s internals, and tossed it lightly in her hand. Then she held it up for all to see.

“Gavin,” she said, her voice cutting through the noise, “care to explain what this signal jammer was doing in your machine?”

At first, she hadn’t understood why the machine was malfunctioning, so she had waited for Gavin to reveal his hand. The moment he ran the simulation, she knew he’d tampered with the hardware.