Chapter 43

The words barely left his lips before a sudden, stabbing pain tore through his chest. Instinctively, he clutched at it, grimacing. At that exact moment, his phone rang, and in his discomfort, he answered it on speaker. “Mr. Brown, thank goodness we reached you. We reviewed your chest X-rays again and suspect there might be a foreign object in your blood vessels. Please get to the hospital immediately.” The voice boomed across the judges’ table, reverberating through the room. Silence fell, thick and heavy, pressing down on everyone. Robert’s chest pain intensified, sharp and metallic, and an odd tang of blood lingered at the back of his throat. He staggered slightly, pale as ash. “Grandpa!” Nick Brown spun around, heart hammering, only to see Robert’s hand pressed against his chest, face drained of all color. “Somebody call an ambulance, quick!” Chaos erupted. Panic rippled like wildfire. “Mr. Brown!” Sloane didn’t hesitate. She moved without thought for grudges or past arguments, crou