Chapter 1

• In the corridor outside the ICU ward.
• My husband, Victor Hudson slammed a document on the chair in front of me.
• "Sign it."
• His voice was devoid of warmth.
• His eyes bore into me.
• It was an organ donation agreement.
• He wanted my father's heart.
• To save his lover, Dawn.
• "Seline, your damn gambler of a father is dying anyway."
• He grabbed my wrist, his grip strong enough to crush my bones.
• "Why not let him do some good and save Sherry's life, at least he, this social parasite, would have some value."
• I looked at him.
• At the man I had loved for ten years.
• At the father of our child.
• A week ago, also in this corridor.
• Our son, Lucas, covered in blood, was wheeled into the emergency room.
• Sherry had pushed him down the stairs.
• I saw it with my own eyes.
• When Victor arrived, Sherry was trembling in his arms, crying about being scared.
• He comforted her softly.
• Then he passed judgment on me.
• "Lucas just accidentally fell, no one is allowed to mention it again."
• He used all his connections to suppress the hospital's surveillance, silencing everyone.
• He labeled a murder as an accident.
• Now, he wanted to use my son's heart to save that killer.
• He thought the brain-dead man lying in the ICU ward was my equally rotten father he described.
• But it was our biological son.
• He thought the words "blood type matches Sherry" on the donation agreement pointed to my father back home.
• But in reality, it was his once beloved son.
• I didn't argue.
• I didn't scream.
• I just felt the emptiness in my heart.
• The cold wind in the corridor made a whistling sound.
• I calmly picked up the pen.
• The tip of the pen scratched the paper, making a rustling sound.
• I signed my name.
• “Seline Winters.”
• Each stroke etched into memory.
• Seeing me so understanding, Victor released my wrist.
• The madness in his eyes faded, replaced by a familiar disdain and a sneer.
• "At least you still have a bit of conscience."
• He picked up the agreement that could give his lover a new life and walked away.
• His steps were light, filled with urgency and joy.
• He didn't look back.
• And naturally, he didn't see the fire igniting in my eyes.
• Enough to burn us all to ashes.
• Victor pushed open the door to Sherry's ward with the agreement in hand.
• I followed behind like a silent shadow.
• The ward was warm like spring, with flowers surrounding all corners.
• Sherry, in a hospital gown, looked pale and pitiful.
• Victor walked over and gently held her hand.
• "Sherry, don't be afraid."
• His voice was tender, unlike anything I had ever heard.
• "We found a heart for you, you'll be fine soon."
• Tears welled up in Sherry's eyes.
• As the tears rolled down her cheeks, she said, "Thank you, Victor."
• Her voice was weak and trembling.
• "Also, thank Seline... sister for me. I know she must be devastated... Her father..."
• The word "sister" rolled off her tongue like honey dipped in a cesspool.
• Victor snorted disdainfully.
• "Why should you thank her?"
• He carefully wiped away Sherry's tears with a tissue.
• "If it weren't for her father's heart being useful, he should have died long ago."
• He said it as if it were a matter of course.
• As if it wasn't a human life, but just a commodity to be traded at will.
• A faint smile tugged at the corner of Sherry's mouth, out of Victor’s sight.
• Victor took out his phone and dialed my number.
• Even though I was standing right outside the door.
• The phone rang loudly in the empty corridor.
• I answered the call.
• "Seline, come in."
• It was an order.
• "Sherry's parents want to thank you in person."
• His tone was condescending.
• "Take this opportunity to show some maturity in front of your elders."
• I only replied with one word.
• "Okay."
• I hung up the phone but didn't go in immediately.
• Leaning against the wall, I opened my phone.
• The screen lit up as I clicked on an audio file.
• In it, Sherry's voice sounded proud and boastful.
• "I just gave him a little push, who told him to block my way..."
• "That little bastard, just as annoying as his mother."
• "But don't worry, Victor trusts me, he loves me."
• In the background of the recording, there was the regular beeping of the ICU monitor.
• It was the day after Lucas had an accident, when she deliberately said these things to me when I visited.
• She thought I would just break down.
• She didn't know that I pressed the record button, capturing everything.
• I was going to make her pay for what she did to my son.