Chapter 20
I gasped sharply,the pain so intense that my vision went completely white. Yet not a single person spared me even a glance. Simon was the first to rush over–but only to crouch down and lift Fiona into his arms.“Does it hurt? Did you hit yourself anywhere?I will take you to the hospital.”
He didn’t even raise his head,as if the acrid stench of burnt flesh behind him simply didn’t exist.”
Ethan frowned and stepped up to me–not with concern,but to seize my collar so hard that I was forced onto my toes.\ “Callista,you just can’t stop wallowing in filth!You’re still as vicious as you were three years ago!Fiona already told us–it was you who threatened her to leave and she couldn’t handle the pressure,so she left sick. Now that she’s finally come back,if you dare to bully her again,don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
My back trembled from the pain,tears spilling uncontrollably down my cheeks.“I never did such a thing!”
Jason’s expression was so cold it felt like he was a stranger.“Callista,just to compete for attention,you would even go after someone who’s ill?Your methods…truly disgust me.“}
His gaze fell on me as though I were nothing more than a pile of garbage.”
It was a look I had never seen in his eyes before–like every last shred of patience with me had been exhausted.
Fiona,supported to her feet,lifted her eyes to him,her voice drifting softly.“Jason,don’t blame her. Maybe she just doesn’t like
me…”
Jason’s eyes darkened. Reaching out,he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, his voice gentle as he soothed her. “Don’t be afraid.As long as we like you,that’s enough.“”
The pain on my back surged in waves like a relentless tide,leaving me barely able to stand.”
Through the blur of my vision,I could only make out three tall figures,one after another,shielding Fiona as they walked out the door–the light casting their side profiles in a warm glow.”
They gave her all–the tenderness,the heartache,the instinct to protect.”
They always believed Fiona so easily, without hesitation. And I was left alone in the vast,empty living room, collapsing into despair until consciousness slipped away.”
When I woke again,the pain stabbed so fiercely it seemed to cut right through my bones.
My eyelids felt weighed down with lead, my chest unbearably tight. Even the slightest breath tugged at the wound,like someone was tearing me apart from the inside.
And yet I was still at home. No one had bothered to take me to the hospital.”
The housemaid stood stiffly at the foot of the bed,her hands twisting the apron into knots,eyes darting everywhere but me,not daring to meet my gaze.”
“Awake?”
A deep,cold voice rang out from the doorway.”
I turned my head and saw Simon and Ethan step into the room almost at the same time. Their strides were hurried,their expressions carrying a heavy weight that pressed down on me like a suffocating force.”
Simon strode straight to the bedside,lowering his gaze onto me. His tone was icy,utterly devoid of warmth. “Fiona is in the hospital, losing too much blood. This afternoon,you caused her wound to reopen. Now you must give blood to make amends.“> I froze,a wave of cold absurdity rising in my chest.“I didn’t hurt her. I’m not giving blood.”
Ethan sneered coldly. “Everyone saw it–you pushed her and caused her to be shocked. This is your debt and now you have to pay!”
“I already said I didn’t-“I shouted instinctively,only to be cut off by Simon’s piercing glare.
“Shut up!Whether you admit it or not,your blood type is the perfect match:Get up right now and come with us to the hospital.”
I gritted my teeth as waves of pain slammed against my chest. “I’m not going!l didn’t do anything wrong–why should I give blood?I’m injured!If I give blood,I could die!”
The air froze instantly.
Ethan narrowed his eyes and stepped forward,looking down at me,his voice low and cold. “If you won’t give the blood willingly,you’ll have to do it by force.”
“If you had any conscience at all,you would give your blood to Fiona voluntarily, “Simon’s face darkened to an extreme shade. “Otherwise,starting today,we have no sister in you!”
In that instant,my eardrums seemed to explode with a loud ringing &
I looked at the two people who had protected and loved me for the past three years–my family–and felt my chest hollow out completely.So,in their eyes,my life was worth so little.
They knew how much I valued their love and used the threat of severing ties to control me.!!
8:30 AM
“I said it–I’m not in the wrong!I won’t give her a drop of my blood!” My voice trembled,yet cut through the air with piercing. clarity.”
They would never know that I had already made up my mind to leave–their threats no longer held any power over me. Simon’s eyes turned suddenly frigid.“Hold her down. Make her kneel!”
The housemaid flinched in fear,not daring to move.”
Ethan strode forward without hesitation,yanking me off the bed. My knees slammed hard against the cold floor,the pain so sharp my vision went black.\
“Kneel here and think carefully!You’ll only be allowed to stand once you agree to give blood and admit your mistake!“”
I bit down hard on my lip,my back held perfectly straight.“I will not admit to something I never did!“\
The patience in Simon’s eyes was completely exhausted. In an icy voice,he commanded, “Pin her down and take her to the hospital!”
Ethan roughly grabbed my arm. When I struggled,the movement tugged at my wound,sending sharp pain through me as cold sweat trickled down my back. My hands and feet were firmly pinned down and the light before my eyes grew dimmer and dimmer.
A sudden surge of searing pain rushed through my chest,draining all my strength. The voices around me sounded distant,as if muffled by water.
I lost consciousness once again.”
****
When I woke up again,the pungent smell of disinfectant filled my nose.”
The cold hospital bed made me shiver,while the burning pain in my back felt like countless needles pricking into me.
Through the half–open ward door,I heard the doctor’s low and regretful voice.“Her back is covered with injuries.In this condition,drawing more blood could be life–threatening.”
“Do it!“Simon’s voice was cold and unyielding, without the slightest hesitation.“She harmed Fiona–she must pay for it!”
