Chapter 4

Evelyn's eyes widened. Her chest felt like it was being squeezed by a giant hand—tight and aching.

Looking at his cold eyes, she forced a smile and made up a lie on the spot: "Yeah, you got me. I just wanted to make up a story with the nurse to touch your heart. I've had my eye on a necklace lately, and I'm a bit short on cash."

Caspian's face darkened to the extreme. Evelyn blinked hard, trying to keep her tears from falling. He actually believed it—believed she would lie for money.

The air froze for a few seconds. Caspian turned to the doctor, his voice seething: "I don't care how much she paid you to tell this lie. I'll pay you double. However much blood Kiera needs, take it from her. Don't worry about whether she can handle it or not."

The doctor opened his mouth to say something, but the identical threatening looks from both Evelyn and Caspian silenced him.

A huge needle pierced Evelyn's arm. She couldn't help but flinch.

Blood flowed through the tube into the blood bag. Her body grew colder and colder, and the lights before her eyes began to blur.

She didn't know how much blood had been drawn. The blood bags were replaced one after another. She felt like a bloated cow being constantly drained of life.

Her heartbeat slowed, her ears buzzed, and the world turned black and white.

In a daze, she heard a nurse shouting: "Her blood pressure keeps dropping! She's going into shock!" Then everything went quiet. She passed out.

When she woke up again, her situation had improved slightly—the makeshift bed in the hallway had been replaced with a cramped regular hospital room.

Evelyn realized she'd been brought back to life again.

Probably because of the powerful karma from Caspian, as a Christian, repeatedly telling her "I will make your life worse than death," she seemed harder to kill than most people.

Evelyn smiled bitterly and moved her wrist, which had stiffened to the point of pain. The IV bag hanging beside her was nearly empty.

The old lady in the next bed was snoring, the young woman across from her was arguing with someone, and the air reeked of a mix of disinfectant and urine.

Not eating for so long had filled her mouth with the taste of rust and acid, torturing her fragile body.

Evelyn tried to sit up, but the old injury to her ribs hurt so much her vision went dark. There was a piece of chocolate on the bedside table. Without looking closely, she swallowed it whole.

Evelyn savored the familiar taste. Before her eyes appeared two versions of Caspian—the one from when they were dating and the one now. One warm, one cold, but both had abandoned her.

She struggled to swallow the sweet chocolate, feeling her heart convulse in waves, the pain suffocating.

For the next three days, Caspian didn't visit her once.

Almost every day she heard nurses talking about Kiera, who was staying in the VIP room upstairs. They all expressed nothing but envy for Kiera.

They said she had fresh roses replaced daily, fruit baskets with cherries air-shipped from Peru, and most importantly, Caspian by her side at all times.

"That Kiera is so lucky. Caspian treats her so well."

"I know, right? I heard she even donated a kidney to Caspian years ago. They love each other so much—they're perfect together."

"But isn't his wife Evelyn from our floor?"

"Who knows if they're still married? I've never seen Caspian visit her."

Evelyn closed her eyes, pulled the blanket up to her chin, and curled into a ball.

Her condition never improved. Fluid in her lungs caused an infection, and she developed a high fever—104 degrees Fahrenheit. She was completely out of it.

The nurse had no choice but to call Caspian: "Mr. Drake, your wife has an infection and is in critical condition. Please come sign for surgery immediately!"

But as her husband, the only person she had any connection to in this world, Caspian hung up directly.

She already knew this would be the outcome. He was getting revenge for her hanging up on him years ago. She suddenly found it funny. She struggled to sign the surgery consent form herself and fought through the entire night, barely making it through.

Early the next morning, as soon as she regained consciousness, she saw the familiar packaging on her bedside table again. Her heart trembled, but she still grabbed the chocolate and left the room.

Just as she reached Kiera's hospital room door, she saw Caspian holding Kiera in his arms, gently coaxing her to take her medicine.

Kiera kept frowning, refusing to take the capsule. She pouted: "There are too many pills."

Caspian patiently broke the pill into smaller pieces and offered it again.

Kiera was still reluctant, complaining sweetly: "It's too bitter."

Caspian showed no sign of impatience. He pulled a soft candy from his pocket and held it out in his palm to her lips.

Kiera chewed it, her eyes falling on Caspian's lips, her expression flirtatious: "Not sweet enough."

Caspian chuckled softly and sat up straight, cupping her face lovingly and kissing her gently.

Their lips and tongues intertwined for a full half minute before they reluctantly parted.

Kiera smiled sweetly: "Caspian, stop loving Evelyn. Love me instead, okay?"

Evelyn's heart jolted. Her steps halted, frozen in place.

She saw Caspian looking straight at her, his deep eyes hiding emotions she couldn't read.

After two seconds of silence, she heard Caspian's answer: "I don't love her anymore. I never will again. I've already had my lawyer draft the divorce papers. And I want her to be your bridesmaid."

Kiera covered her mouth and laughed: "Will she agree to that?"

Caspian looked at Evelyn, his eyes cold: "She will. As long as there's money involved, she'll agree to anything."

Evelyn said nothing. She just gave a sad smile, then turned and walked away.