Isaac's words stabbed Madeline's heart like knives. She swayed on her feet.

An outsider? Was that all he considered her after all these years?

It was laughable!

Rachel was delighted to hear this but feigned concern and said, "We can talk about the sleeping arrangements later. Queenie's injury is too serious. Can you accompany me to the hospital so we can get it tended to, Isaac?"

He immediately lifted Queenie into his arms and turned to leave. Rachel followed him.

Madeline stopped him and said plainly, "Let's call off the engagement, Isaac."

He didn't believe she was being serious and thought this was another one of her tricks. He didn't even turn back as he said, "I've had it up to here with your dumb tricks. Stay here and reflect on your mistakes!"

With that, he hurried off with Rachel and Queenie.

As soon as the door was shut, Madeline felt her strength leave her. She slowly crouched on the floor with the painting in her arms. It was almost as if she were holding her whole world.

Tears filled her eyes as bitterness washed over her. Her nose prickled, and she found it hard to breathe. Her vision seemed to go black.

She didn't know how long she stayed there crouched up like that; she only moved when her phone vibrated. A notification indicated that Rachel had requested to follow her on Instagram. She approved the request, but Rachel didn't follow up with anything else.

Just then, she received a text from a colleague. "I just shared an Instagram story for a giveaway, and I need people to like it. Could you help me, Dr. Snow? Please!"

Madeline scrolled through the available stories to look for the colleague's story when Rachel's stories caught her attention. They were mainly photos of Isaac sitting by Queenie's bedside and peeling an apple for her. Rachel had captioned, "Thank the heavens for bringing you to me."

The last story was a video that hadn't been muted. Rachel and Isaac's conversation was recorded.

Rachel asked worriedly, "Are you sure things will be okay with Dr. Snow, Isaac? She looked like she was packing her things earlier. What if she's so angry that she moves out?"

Isaac sounded like he couldn't care less. His tone even carried a hint of mockery. "She's just an orphan. Where can she go? At most, she'll go out of town to perform a surgery or two. I've seen her pull this trick one too many times."

Madeline locked her phone and shut her eyes as she laughed bitterly. She felt pathetic.

Her memories of Isaac standing before her and shielding her from harm now felt like knives stabbing into her. They reached her bones and hurt her to the core.

…

Madeline didn't return home for a week after that. She stayed at the hospital and worked longer hours than before. She was genuinely busy—she needed to clear the surgeries she'd already scheduled, and it didn't help that there had been a huge fire in the city.

There was an increase in the number of patients requiring surgery, and all the surgeons were so busy that they could barely catch their breath.

"Thanks for your hard work, Dr. Snow!" a colleague said.

Madeline took off her surgical mask and nodded in acknowledgment. She changed out of her scrubs and headed to her office. Before she could even drink water, Rachel came over with Queenie in tow.

"Please don't chase Queenie and me away, Dr. Snow!" she cried. She fell to her knees before Madeline's desk and pulled Queenie down with her.

She didn't have makeup on that day and looked a lot more haggard than usual. It was almost as if she were a fragile flower, and she looked pitiful as she cried.

The nurse who had accompanied Madeline to her office had yet to leave. She was stunned when she saw this but didn't dare linger. She hurried out of the room and shut the door.

Madeline didn't even move from her seat. She frowned and asked coldly, "What's with the act when Isaac isn't here?"

Rachel continued weeping. She sounded aggrieved as she said, "I know you hate me, Dr. Snow, but know that I have no intention of taking Isaac from you!

"Queenie and I don't know anyone in Summeria—we're only temporarily living with Isaac so we can have a roof over our heads. We'll move out in the future! How do you expect us to survive if you kick us out of Isaac's place now?"

Madeline retorted, "When did I ever—"

Before she could finish, her phone rang. It was a call from Marie.

"Hi, Maddie. Are you busy?" Marie's voice was kind and affectionate.

Madeline couldn't help softening when she heard it. "No, I'm not. I just finished a surgery."

Marie had watched Madeline grow up and loved her like she was her own granddaughter. Madeline relied on Marie, too. To her, Marie and Shirley were the two people who loved her most.

Marie sensed the fatigue in Madeline's tone and reminded her not to push herself too hard. Then, she got to business.

"I heard about what happened between you and Isaac, Maddie. Don't worry about Rachel Livingston—I've already dealt with her on your behalf.

"I sent a group of bodyguards over to throw her things out of Isaac's apartment and chase her out. You are the only woman I'll ever consider my granddaughter-in-law!"

Madeline was taken aback when she heard this. She looked at Rachel, who was still on her knees. It turned out Marie was the one who'd chased her out.

She was moved yet also filled with bitterness. She held her phone without saying anything for a long time.

Marie sighed, her tone a little pleading as she said, "I know Isaac has taken things too far lately, but I still want you to give him another chance. He's just enchanted by that woman—he'll go back to normal once you two are married. Is it okay if I set your wedding date for next month?"

Madeline's nose prickled. Instead of answering Marie, she made an excuse to hang up. As soon as her phone screen went dark, her office door opened again.

Isaac stormed in. He hurried forward to help Rachel and Queenie up when he saw them kneeling.

His gaze was frosty as he looked at Madeline. "How old are you, Madeline? I can't believe you still like to tattle at this age. Are you happy now that you can marry me? Your manipulative side disgusts me!"

He turned away without another look at her and left with Rachel and Queenie in tow. The door slammed shut behind him.

Madeline smiled mockingly. She leaned back and shut her eyes. She would just leave things be—it wouldn't be long before she left, anyway.

…

Madeline thought she wouldn't see Isaac and Rachel again before leaving. Unexpectedly, they brought Queenie to the emergency room that very night. She was covered in blood.

The three of them had gotten into an accident, and Queenie had suffered the brunt of it.

Rachel was panicking and grabbed Madeline's hand tightly when she saw her. "You have to save Queenie, Dr. Snow!"

Madeline was the doctor on duty and had no reason to reject, so she headed to the operating theater. The surgery was minor and didn't pose much of a challenge for her. It was soon over.

Oddly enough, Queenie showed no signs of waking up despite it being past the observation period. Madeline headed to her hospital ward to check on her when she heard the news the following morning.

Isaac wasn't inside—it seemed he'd stepped out. Rachel was alone with Queenie.

When Rachel saw Madeline, her eyes reddened, and she cried, "Why hasn't Queenie woken up yet, Dr. Snow? Did you do something to her? I know you hate me, but you can't hurt my daughter!"

Madeline didn't know what the problem was and wanted to step closer to check on Queenie. However, Rachel was agitated by this and stood in her way, stopping her from getting any closer. "I've had enough of this. Don't you dare touch Queenie anymore!

"You deliberately made a mistake in the operation because you wanted to hurt her! I want a different doctor! Someone get me another doctor!"

Madeline only wanted to figure out what was wrong with Queenie, so she didn't bother arguing. She pressed the call button for the nurse's station.

Then, she looked Rachel in the eye. "It's fine if you want another doctor, but we have to find out why Queenie is still unconscious! I'm not taking the blame for making a mistake during the operation!"

When the nurse on duty arrived, Madeline instructed, "Take the patient's blood for a proper examination. Find out whether there's any possibility of the patient taking medication or other sedatives before surgery—"

That was as far as she got. Rachel cut her off and screamed, "I won't let you do that! My daughter didn't take anything before the operation, nor is she sick! You made a mistake during the operation, and that's that! What right do you have to take Queenie's blood?"

She started crying after saying that.

Madeline watched her exaggerated performance and suddenly pinpointed what about it felt off to her.

Madeline looked Rachel in the eye and asked coldly, "Did you keep part of Queenie's medical history from us?"

Rachel's eyes flickered. Then, she cried, "What are you talking about? I'm her mother! Why would I hurt her?"

Madeline thought about how Rachel had shoved Queenie aside a few days ago. The latter had knocked her head against the bedside table and even bled. It only made her believe that her guess was likely to be right.

Anyway, there was no point arguing with Rachel. Everything would be clear once the results of the blood test were out. She turned to the nurse and said, "Take her blood sample."

Rachel gnashed her teeth and tried to stop them. "You can't! I'm Queenie's guardian, and I won't let you touch her!"

Madeline kept Rachel from stopping the nurse, so the latter was soon done taking Queenie's blood. The, she ran off to have it submitted for analysis.

Once the nurse was gone, Madeline wanted to release Rachel. However, the latter suddenly backed away and fell to the floor. In the next second, Madeline was shoved aside roughly.

"Rachel!" Isaac ran to her and helped her up. "Are you okay?"

He turned to glare at Madeline. "This is the hospital, and you're a doctor! What the hell were you doing to a patient's family member? Where is your professionalism?"

Before Madeline could say anything, Rachel grabbed Isaac's sleeve while weeping. She cried, "Hurry up and save Queenie, Isaac! She… she's still not awake after the observation period. It has to be because of a mistake during the surgery! Will she be unconscious forever?

"Dr. Snow even had someone draw Queenie's blood for a test. She said she won't take the blame for this. Does this mean Queenie will be in a coma forever?"

Madeline almost wanted to laugh at the absurdity of her words. She retorted, "Once the report is out, we can be sure—"

"That's enough!" Isaac snarled. His eyes were filled with disappointment as he looked at her.

"I didn't think you would pull something like this, Maddie. When did you become evil enough to hurt a child? Allowing you to continue performing surgeries will only be putting others in harm. You don't deserve to practice anymore!"

She looked at him in disbelief. "What are you going to do?"

He pulled Rachel closer to him and called, "Sean!"

His assistant, Sean Camden, hurried in. Isaac said, "Escort her to Greenwater Hill Villas and lock her up so she can reflect on her mistakes. Since we're going to marry soon, ask the hospital to give her some time off. Handle this properly."

What was there to reflect on? Why did he always believe Rachel over her? Why was she always the one at fault?

Madeline couldn't take it anymore when she saw Sean coming over to drag her away. She roared, "Don't touch me! I'm not going anywhere! I'm going to stay here and wait for the results of the blood test. I won't push the blame onto anyone else if it's my—"

A sudden pain coursed through her, starting from her neck. She abruptly stopped talking and blacked out.

…

Isaac ultimately had Madeline locked up. Greenwater Hill Villas was far from the city center, and bodyguards surrounded the villa. The place had even been equipped with a signal blocker, so she couldn't ask for help if needed.

She spent a week there without contact with anyone. One night, the electricity suddenly went out. Before she could understand what was happening, she heard her phone ring in the darkness.

She immediately answered it.

The voice on the other end of the line said anxiously, "You've finally answered the phone, Ms. Snow. Hurry up and come to the nursing home—your grandmother isn't doing too well! If you come now, you might be able to see her for the last time!"

Madeline's ears rang, and she felt like she'd been struck in the chest by something heavy. Her hand trembled violently, and she almost dropped her phone.

After hanging up, she threw on a coat and ran out of the room. She had to see Shirley one last time!

She hurried downstairs and to the door, but the bodyguards stopped her. "Mr. Chance has made it clear that you're not to leave, Ms. Snow!"

Madeline frantically pushed their hands away and shouted, "My grandmother is in critical condition! Hurry up and let me out!"

They exchanged a look before shaking their heads. "Please don't make things hard for us, Ms. Snow. Mr. Chance told us that you're not to leave the house under any circumstances. Maybe you can give him a call—we won't stop you from leaving if he gives the green light."

She pulled out her phone and called Isaac. She was so panicked that she almost dialed the wrong number.

The first and second calls went unanswered. On her third attempt, the phone rang twice before she was told that the line was occupied.

Isaac had seen her call and rejected it.