Chapter 33: Repair Serum
"What did you say?"
"Steve was injured by Hodge and just came out of surgery, but he's still in critical condition. His life could end at any moment."
Shocked, Mason's grip on Carter's neck loosened slightly, and the pistol pressed against her temple shifted a few centimeters.
"What exactly happened? Colonel Phillips said you killed Professor Erskine." Carter pressed at the opportune moment.
"I didn't do it."
"When I arrived, the professor had already been shot. Although he didn't explicitly say so, it had to be Hodge."
"If it were a Hydra operative, they would have burst in from outside the building, but the evidence left on the stairs and at the scene indicates the killer escaped through the front door after shooting the professor."
Although he hadn't seen the killer, Mason suspected Hodge, though he wasn't certain of his motive.
"But Hodge clearly said it was you..." Thinking of what Hodge had done to Steve and his undisguised hatred for Mason, Carter suddenly understood.
"Now you can confirm I'm not here to arrest you, right?" Carter gestured to the gun at her head. "Can you let me go now?"
Mason hesitated for a moment, then withdrew his hands. "Take me to the hospital where Steve is. I have to see him!"
"Are you insane? Although there's no city-wide manhunt yet, besides me, other Strategic Scientific Reserve agents are looking for you, including Hodge! If he sees you, he'll shoot you on sight!"
Mason understood all this, but Carter didn't understand his mission: he had to save Steve!
"I have a special serum the professor gave me. I can save him!" Unable to fully explain to Carter, Mason attributed the super gene repair serum to Professor Erskine.
Thinking of the miraculous effects of the super soldier serum, hope flashed across Carter's face. She started the car and sped toward the hospital.
After parking, the two quietly approached the ICU where Steve was located. But just then, a clean-cut young agent walked out of the intensive care unit.
"Watch out!"
Carter pulled Mason back. "That's a junior agent Colonel Phillips sent to watch Steve. I'll distract him." She gave Mason a meaningful look.
"Please—you have to make him better!"
"Hey, Jason, what are you doing here?" Carter emerged from around the corner, waving and greeting the agent cheerfully.
Everyone in the Strategic Scientific Reserve knew Agent Carter, this "Iron Rose," and naturally many agents were pursuing her. Carter turned on the charm at the right moment, then led the agent away.
Mason casually grabbed a white coat from a supply room, put on a surgical mask, and silently slipped into the ICU.
Inside, Steve lay pale-faced on the bed, eyes closed. He was shirtless, his thin chest wrapped in thick bandages. Additionally, his shoulder, arms, hip, and thighs were all in casts, making him look like a mummy.
His vital signs on the monitors were highly unstable, seemingly kept stable only by medication.
"Dr. Wright, is that you?"
Mason took a few steps closer to the bedside, but suddenly heard a woman's voice behind him. He turned to see a slightly heavyset middle-aged nurse carrying a medication tray emerging from a side room.
She was startled when she saw Mason, then fear crossed her face. "You're not Dr. Wright—who are you?" She nervously took a step back, opening her mouth to cry out.
"Don't make a sound!"
Seeing the black muzzle of the gun in Mason's hand, the nurse's voice caught in her throat, her face turning beet red. In her panic, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
Mason hadn't expected that simply brandishing his gun would frighten her into passing out. The nurse collapsed to the ground, the medication tray clattering loudly.
Mason rushed to the door, slammed it shut, and returned to the bedside with a silver-white syringe in his hand.
The professor's repair compound was too slow-acting, and Steve's constitution was weak—even if he used the professor's compound now, the intense pain would likely kill him.
Therefore, Mason threw caution to the wind and directly injected the super gene repair serum into Steve's body.
"Bang bang bang!"
A knock came at the door. Mason was startled and quickly raised his gun.
"It's me."
Carter's familiar voice came from outside. Mason opened the door and let Carter in. As soon as Carter entered, she went straight to Steve's side, looking at him with concern.
At this moment, the super gene repair serum seemed to be taking effect—Steve's body trembled slightly. His pale complexion gradually improved, and the vital signs on the monitors began to rise rapidly, quickly stabilizing at normal levels.
Just then, Steve suddenly opened his eyes, meeting Carter's worried gaze.
Time seemed to stand still—something called love passed between them, while Mason watched with a frustrated expression.
"Damn it, what time is it and you're still making googly eyes?!"
"Steve, how are you feeling?" Interrupting their moment, Mason asked urgently.
"I feel... I feel great!" Steve hesitated for a moment, though his eyes remained on Carter's face.
"Hey, are you two ever going to knock it off?" Mason looked annoyed. "We need to get out of here right now!"
"What happened?" Steve looked confused.
"It's a long story. Let me wheel you out first." Mason released the bed's wheel locks, but as soon as he stood up, he saw Steve prop himself up on his hands and sit upright.
"Oh... my God!"
Carter also covered her mouth with her hands, unable to help but gasp. She'd seen Steve's medical report, which showed multiple fractures and internal organ damage—she'd thought it was a miracle he'd survived at all.
But what was she seeing now?
"What kind of miracle drug did you give him?"
Mason was secretly amazed, while also feeling a pang of regret. The effect was practically instantaneous full recovery—in less than a minute, he'd brought someone back from death's door to perfect health.
Mason now felt he should have kept this vial of super gene repair serum as backup. Perhaps using the regular repair compound on Steve would have worked just as well?
But since he'd already used it, he could only pretend not to care. "No time to explain—let's get out of here quickly. We have more important things to do!"
Unwrapping the bandages and breaking off the casts, Steve stood on the ground, his bare body showing no signs of injury. Mason secretly compared their heights—Steve had actually grown slightly taller than before.
Though it wasn't dramatic, it was enough to lift him out of the ranks of the physically frail.
"That's terrifying efficiency!" Mason suppressed his amazement, while also looking forward to other rewards from the Dimensional Express Company.
He suddenly felt that being able to join this company was truly a stroke of incredible luck.
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