The False Prophet of the ER

At the campsite, the concern about me kept building. Voices overlapped one after another.

"Dr. Brooks, we still can't reach Ruth!"

"Yeah, every call goes straight to voicemail. What if something actually happened to her?"

Melanie frowned, dialing my number again and again. After several failed attempts, she looked at Colin. "Can you get through to Ruth?"

Colin paused, then put on a worried look. "I tried. Nothing. Ruth's just too stubborn. She never listens."

Astrid let out a quiet laugh. "No need to keep calling. Just check your phones. You'll probably see the accident in the news soon enough."

Someone snapped back immediately, irritation clear. "What's wrong with you? Ruth might be strict, but she's always looking out for us! Why are you talking like that?"

Astrid's expression shifted, playing hurt.

Colin stepped in right away, frowning. "That's enough. This isn't all on Astrid. Ruth's got a temper, too. If she had listened to us yesterday, would we even be in this situation?"

On the surface, he sounded calm and reasonable. In truth, he was clearly siding with Astrid, as if they were the ones together.

I watched all of it from a distance, a cold smile tugging at my lips.

"Enough," Melanie cut in sharply. "Right now, we need to reach Ruth. Stop arguing."

That finally shut everyone up.

Astrid still looked certain, her tone steady. "For all you know, your precious Ruth is already dead. What's the point of all this fake concern…"

"Who exactly are you calling dead?" I stepped forward, cutting her off mid-sentence.

"Ruth!"

My sudden appearance sent a wave of relief through the group.

Astrid's eyes widened for a split second. Panic flashed before she forced it down, replacing it with confusion.

"Y-Your death countdown… Why is it gone?"

I met her gaze, my voice calm and edged with mockery. "Yeah. Guess I beat death this time."

As I spoke, I tossed what I was holding onto the ground in front of her. It hit with a sharp clatter.

"Is that…a brake line?"