Chapter 4

Once the bodyguards had their fill of beating me, they left. I dragged my broken, aching body up and stumbled out of the venue, limping all the way to the hospital.

The moment my dad saw me walk down the hallway, he swung his hand and slapped me across the face.

"Look at what you've done! You were about to get married! Why on earth would you cheat on him?!"

"Your mother was so shocked and angry she had a heart attack!"

I froze, the pain of the slap completely lost in my confusion.

"Dad... Ethan is the one who cheated. I never..."

My dad shoved his phone screen right in front of my eyes.

"Ethan sent these photos of you in bed with another man to your mother! Do you think we're blind?!"

"Go call his father right now and get him to do the surgery! If your mother dies today, I will disown you!"

The man in the photo was a complete stranger. I had never seen him in my life.

I desperately wanted to explain, but looking at my father's tear-streaked, terrified face, I swallowed all my grievances.

I pulled out my phone to call Ethan's father, but the call kept going straight to voicemail.

My dad saw the contact name on my screen.

He was a smart man, and he instantly realized that the top surgeon I had mentioned before was Ethan's father, Dr. Richard Sterling.

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?!"

"You betrayed his son! Why would he ever agree to save your mother now?!"

My dad grabbed my arm, dragging me down the hall where Ethan and Lily had just arrived.

He pushed me toward Ethan, yelling, "Apologize to him right now!"

Ethan rolled his eyes, looking incredibly smug.

"What's the point of an apology, Mr. Carter? Your daughter was incredibly fierce at the wedding venue just now. She literally attacked people. The victim is right here."

Hearing this, my dad's face contorted with even greater fury.

"How did I raise such an ungrateful, shameless daughter? You cheat, and then you go around causing trouble!"

My throat felt like it was blocked by hot coals.

"Dad, that's not what happened..."

"You still dare to lie!"

My dad's anger flared up again. He raised his hand to strike me again, but seeing the horrific bruises and cuts on my face, his hand froze in midair. Ultimately, it fell to his side with a heavy, defeated sigh.

"Your mother is still in that operating room, clinging to life. Stop being so stubborn!"

Ethan put on a gentle, forgiving facade.

"Mr. Carter, please don't be mad at Chloe. Don't blame her."

"She probably just made a mistake in a moment of confusion. She was just angry and lashing out. I don't hold a grudge."

He paused, his eyes shifting to me with a cold, calculating gleam.

"But Chloe, you just said you wanted to call off the wedding. How can I possibly ask my dad to do this favor under these circumstances?"

He was the one who fabricated those disgusting photos to frame me, yet here he was, playing the saintly victim.

My eyes were bloodshot, and the veins in my temples throbbed violently. "What do you want, Ethan?"

"Nothing much," he chuckled softly. "As long as you show some real repentance, I'll talk to my dad."

"After all, we're about to be family. I don't want Mrs. Carter to actually pass away."

Looking at my father's desperate, bloodshot eyes, I dropped to my knees.

It wasn't the first time today anyway.

I began to bow, slamming my forehead onto the cold hospital floor, apologizing to Lily.

"I was wrong. I shouldn't have caused a scene at the wedding. I shouldn't have hit you."

I kept pounding my head against the floor until blood began to trickle down my forehead. Only then did Lily fake a look of generosity and bend down to help me up.

"We're best friends, Chloe. Of course I forgive you."

She leaned in close, whispering in a tone only I could hear:

"I was the one who came up with the idea for those fake photos."

"And keeping you stalled here for so long... your useless mother is probably dead by now, isn't she?"

The last string of sanity in my brain snapped.

I leaped up and lunged at her throat. "I'll kill you!"

Before I could even touch her, my dad kicked my legs out from under me, sending me crashing back to the floor.

I looked up at him, my heart shattering into dust.

"Dad! The photos are fake! They set me up! They are lying to you!"

"I am the victim here!"

But my dad didn't believe me. He shook with anger, grabbing a nearby plastic bin and slamming it against my back.

"Enough! An apology would have solved everything! Why do you keep lying?!"

"Do you really want to kill your mother?!"

Compared to Ethan's sickening lies, my own father's lack of trust was what truly broke me.

A mouthful of warm, metallic blood welled up in my throat and sprayed across the floor.

I closed my eyes in absolute despair.