A metallic taste flooded my mouth. I choked, coughing up a spray of crimson that splattered against the sterile white floor.

The doctors recoiled.

Ellie stood over me, grinning like she was watching the climax of a thriller. "Tick tock! Three seconds! One, two—"

My hand hovered in the air. I wanted to reach for my newborn son, but my heart screamed for my battered brother. My gaze landed on Cole.

The man I'd loved for five years. Married for three.

He stood there, stone-faced, watching me shatter. Not a bystander to my nightmare—the architect of it.

Darkness clawed at the edges of my vision. My lips moved, trying to form a name, an answer, anything—but the floor rushed up to meet me.

Johnny!

"Johnny!"

I gasped, bolting upright.

Heavy hands slammed me back against the mattress. My vision cleared to reveal Cole's icy stare. He sat by the bedside, looking bored.

"Cole." I clawed at his wrist. "Where is he? What did you do to John?"

He peeled my fingers off like removing lint. "You were unconscious for a day. Couldn't make a decision, so I made it for you. I chose the child."

He smoothed his cuff. "You should thank Ellie. If not for her pleading for mercy, John would have lost both hands."

"What?" Horror dawned. "Cole, you monster!"

I tried to scramble off the bed, but he pinned my shoulders down with effortless strength.

"Settle down. You just gave birth." His voice cut sharp. "It's done. Hysterics won't change anything."

"Get off me!" I thrashed like a trapped animal. "That's my brother! My only family! Who gave you the right? I'll kill you, Cole!"

Bang!

The ward door flew open. Ellie strutted in with a thermal container, walked to the window, and dumped steaming chicken soup onto the pavement below.

"Ungrateful bitch." She turned to face me. "You aren't worth the Henson family's soup."

She crossed her arms. "I guess being an orphan means no one taught you manners. My brother treats you like a queen, and you blame him for disciplining your trash brother?"

A cruel laugh. "If it were up to me, I'd have told them to cripple him completely."

She tossed her phone onto the bed. The screen glowed with a paused video.

My blood ran cold.

John. Pinned to the asphalt. A bodyguard swung a wooden bat.

Crack.

The snap of bone was audible through the tiny speakers.

On the screen, my brother curled into a ball, wailing. His voice hoarse, broken, screaming one word: Sis!

A primal roar ripped through me. Adrenaline overrode pain. I shoved Cole with everything I had.

He stumbled back, crashing into the wall.

I didn't wait. Didn't look back. Like a madwoman, I sprinted out of the ward—barefoot, bleeding.

I burst through the hospital entrance and froze.

At the bottom of the steps, a figure lay crumpled in the dirt.

John.

His left hand hung at an unnatural angle. Blood soaked his sleeve. His face was grey, lips moving in a faint, delirious murmur. "Sis... my hand..."

My knees nearly buckled. I staggered down the steps. "Johnny... I'm here. I've got you."

I clutched my abdomen, feeling stitches pull like fire. With my other arm, I hooked under his shoulder, hauling his weight up.

I'd drag him to hell and back if I had to.

We leaned on each other, stumbling step by agonizing step toward the hospital exit.

Just as I pushed through the main doors, a wall of black suits blocked our path. Ellie stood at the center, barring our way.

A cruel smirk played on her lips. "Leaving so soon, Charlotte? Do you really want to save your brother?"

She inspected her manicured nails. "It's simple. Get on your knees. Kowtow to me ten times. If I'm satisfied with the sound, I might let you pass."

"In your dreams!" I spat.

Beside me, John jerked his head up, his voice raspy. "Charlotte, let's go! Don't beg her! She's not worth you bowing your head."

He tried to pull me forward, legs shaking. "We'll find another hospital. Someone will help us."

Ellie scoffed. "Let me be clear. One word from the Henson family, and every hospital in this city shuts its doors to you. No one will dare touch him."

My gaze shifted past her to the man in her shadow.

Cole.

He watched quietly, letting Ellie humiliate us without lifting a finger.

A bitter laugh escaped my throat. Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to let them fall.

"Cole," I said, my voice trembling before hardening. "Do you remember the day you proposed? The vow you made?"

I stared into his eyes. "You said you would cherish Johnny like your own brother."

"Is this how you cherish him?"

Cole stiffened. The mask cracked, revealing a flicker of panic.

Ellie noticed immediately. She looped her arm through his, her voice turning sickly sweet. "Sister-in-law, how can you accuse my brother? He's been generous to John. Your brother offended me first. If a dog bites, it needs discipline."

Cole stepped forward, vulnerability gone. His expression hardened into disgust.

"Charlotte, I thought you were reasonable," he said coldly. "I didn't expect you to be so incapable of distinguishing right from wrong."

He adjusted his cuffs. "You don't have to kneel. Abandon him, and there's still a place for you in the Henson family."

He gestured at John like he was trash. "Your child and your status, or this troublemaker? The choice is obvious."

I stared at him, coldness spreading through my chest.

I let out a short, sharp laugh. Slowly, I reached for my left hand.

I gripped the diamond ring and wrenched it off.

With a flick, I hurled it at him.

It hit the pavement with a metallic ping, bouncing once before settling in the dust at his feet. Pathetic. Shattered, like the illusion of his love.

"Cole Henson," I said flatly. "We're done."

I didn't wait for his reaction. I gritted my teeth, tightened my grip on John, and walked away without looking back.

The reality of Ellie's threat hit within the hour.

Three major hospitals. At each one, security stopped us before we reached reception.

"We can't treat him," they said, eyes darting away.

Night had fallen by the time we found a dilapidated clinic in an alley. The sign flickered, but it was our last hope.

I grabbed the elderly doctor's arm. "Please. Look at my brother's hand. We'll pay anything."

He guided John to a gurney and cut open his sleeve.

I gasped.

John's arm was a swollen, purple mess of bruised flesh.

When the doctor probed the injury, John's body seized. His eyes rolled back from the agony.

The old doctor sighed. "This is bad. I can only do basic first aid. You need a trauma center immediately."

He looked at me grimly. "If this is delayed longer, the swelling will cut off circulation. If that happens... amputation."

The world spun. My knees buckled, and I collapsed onto the cold floor.

"Sis!"

John struggled to sit up, panic on his face. The movement pulled at his shattered arm, twisting his features in pain.

Yet he forced a smile, reaching his good hand toward me.

"Charlotte, don't cry. It's okay. I still have my right hand."

His voice was weak, terrified, yet trying to be brave.

"As long as you don't mind having a cripple for a brother... as long as you don't think I'm a burden."

The despair in his eyes pierced straight through my heart.

"Johnny, listen to me. I won't let them take your arm. I promise."

Before I finished speaking, the clinic door exploded inward.

Ellie stood in the doorway, sneering down at us. "Well, Sister-in-law. I expected you to run somewhere decent. Instead, you're hiding in this rat hole?"

She turned to John, her voice dripping with venom. "Johnny, if you want someone to blame, look at your sister. You're going to lose that arm because she was too proud to kneel."

The old doctor frowned. "Miss, please. There are patients here. Watch your tongue."

"Watch it?"

Ellie scoffed. She pulled a thick stack of cash from her designer bag and tossed it onto the table.

"Old man, that covers your rent for six months. Throw them out. Now. Or I won't just shut you down—I'll make sure you never practice medicine in this city again."

A bodyguard stepped forward, glaring at the physician.

The old man hesitated, eyes darting between the money and the thug. Finally, his shoulders slumped. He sighed and lowered the forceps. "Miss... I'm sorry."

Amputation. The word rang in my ears like a death knell.

I scrambled to my knees, slamming them against the concrete, and bowed until my forehead struck the ground before Ellie.

Blood trickled into my eyes, but I didn't care. "Ellie, please! Take him to a real doctor. Don't let him lose his arm. I'll do anything—I'll be your servant, your slave—anything!"

Ellie crossed her arms, watching me grovel.

"Begging me? Sister-in-law, have you lost your mind? I never said I'd help him just because you banged your head on the floor."

The last thread of hope snapped.

I snatched a scalpel from the tray and lunged, pressing the blade against her throat.

"Get him to the best hospital! Now!" My hand trembled. "Find the best orthopedic surgeon! Or I swear I will slit your throat right here!"

Ellie went rigid, face draining of color. She shrieked.

"Charlotte! Are you insane? Brother! Help me!"

Cole burst in a second later.

His eyes went red the moment he saw the blade against her skin. "Charlotte! You dare touch her?"

He didn't ask questions. He delivered a brutal kick to my abdomen.

I flew backward, crashing onto the floor. Pain exploded through my body—it felt like every rib shattered on impact.

"Cole, open your eyes!" I clutched my stomach, gasping, glaring up at him. "She's stopping John from getting treatment! She's trying to kill us!"

Cole didn't look at me. He was too busy checking Ellie's neck for scratches.

When he finally turned, his gaze was ice. "I told you. I will destroy anyone who hurts her."

He barked at the bodyguards.

"Break the boy's other hand. Make her understand what a fate worse than death really feels like."

Terror flooded my veins. With shaking hands, I fumbled for my phone. The moment the call connected, I screamed.

"Is this Jacob Mason? From The Ark? I am the daughter of Mason Pruitt and Penelope Fox! They're going to kill my brother! They're breaking his hands! Please, save us!"

Cole marched over and snatched the phone from my hand.

"Calling for backup? I'd like to see who has the guts to interfere with my business!"

But before he could hang up, a thunderous voice roared from the speaker—authoritative enough to silence the room.

"I don't care who you are. Take your filthy hands off her immediately! If you touch her again, you will pay with your life!"