Selena turned back to the bodyguards and barked, "Are you deaf? I said to feed them the shrimp ravioli. Have they eaten yet?

"Stuff them, especially Mrs. Peterson's mother. She's allergic to shrimp, isn't she?

"Well, as a PhD in nutrition, I'd love to see which allergies can't be cured by a little forced feeding!"

The bodyguards obeyed and treated Fred and Lora like stray dogs by shoving shrimp ravioli into their mouths with cruel aggressiveness. Before they could even swallow, the next mouthful was forced in, so saliva, shrimp, and sauce were smeared across their faces in a sickening mess.

Fred was flushed with rage, while Lora's breathing had clearly turned rapid and uneven.

Seeing Lora on the verge of collapse, Fred found a sudden burst of strength to break free from the bodyguard holding him down. But before he could reach her, another bodyguard kicked him and sent him sprawling.

Selena looked down at him as if he were trash. "I offered you a kind meal, but you're ungrateful and even had the guts to resist. In that case, don't blame me for being rude.

"Beat him up! Let's see if his bones are tougher than my rules!"

At her command, the bodyguards rained kicks and punches on Fred. Within moments, he lay silent and still.

Lora's breathing grew weaker, but when she saw Fred lying motionless, tears slipped from her clouded eyes.

I desperately struggled against the bodyguards holding me down and screamed, "Stop right now, Selena! Are you trying to get them killed?"

She looked down at me with a calm, condescending demeanor. "So what if they die, Mrs. Peterson? Do you think Mr. Peterson would send me to prison over a couple of hicks like them?"

My heart raced with panic, but I knew that she was right. She was Josh's deeply trusted housekeeper, while my marriage to him was nothing but an old family arrangement made by our grandparents.

After we married, he treated me with cold indifference for ten years and stood idly by as Selena humiliated me.

With Fred and Lora at death's door, I spotted a fruit knife in the fruit bowl. I wrenched myself free from the bodyguard who pinned me down and lunged for the fruit knife.

Before anyone could react, I pressed it against Selena's throat and yelled at the bodyguards, "Get the car to the door and put the elders inside. No one follows!"

Selena's face went pale with terror. She quickly barked at them, "Hurry up and do what she says!"

Even then, she still gritted her teeth and threatened me. "If Mr. Peterson finds out about what you're doing to me, you're dead meat!"

Lives were at stake, so I ignored her words.

Once the bodyguards carried Fred and Lora into the car as per my instructions, I dragged Selena to the car, shoved her, and hopped in. Then, I immediately raced toward Josh's hospital.

The Petersons were one of Woodward's most powerful families. Fred and Lora adored Josh so much that instead of forcing him to inherit the family business, they let him follow his passion for medicine and invested heavily in building him a massive private hospital.

I drove as fast as I could, racing against time. As long as we arrived at the hospital, Josh would surely save his parents.

While driving, I repeatedly dialed his number, but every call was rejected, just as expected.

I never hoped he would pick up. Through all these years, my contact with Josh went through Selena. He had never answered my calls or replied to my messages.

Finally, I screeched to a halt at the emergency entrance. I grabbed a passing nurse and urgently said, "I'm the hospital director, Dr. Peterson's wife!

"His parents are in the car; one is unconscious from a severe beating, and the other is in anaphylactic shock. Get them to the ER now!"

The nurse just rolled her eyes at me. "Lady, you've got to be joking. Everyone in this hospital knows Dr. Peterson's girlfriend is Ms. Selena Collins. If you want to skip the line, at least come up with a decent lie."

I froze, but the situation was too critical to argue. So, I could not be bothered to explain and grabbed her arm.

"Find Josh right now and tell him I'm Madelyn Cook. Repeat everything I just told you, and he'll handle the rest!"

Seeing how frantic I looked, the nurse dared not delay further and rushed upstairs to Josh's office. Moments later, he followed her out.

The second he saw me, he coldly snapped, "What's wrong with you?

"Selena just called me. She went out of her way to treat your parents to a meal, and not only were you ungrateful, but you also lied that your mom had an allergy and attacked her with a knife. It seems like you've grown bold!"

The accusation left me speechless, but there was no time to argue. I panickedly pointed toward my car and yelled, "They're not my parents; they're yours!

"They're both unconscious in the car! Hurry up and send them to the ER!"

To my disbelief, Josh did not even bother to glance at the car. Instead, he shook me off and turned away. "My parents have lived abroad for years and never visited. You're lying through your teeth just to skip the queue!

"Selena has a PhD in nutrition. She told me your mother just has indigestion from overeating, and as the director of the hospital, I must avoid favoritism. I can't let you cut in line.

"Register and wait like everyone else. Stop trying to use the Peterson family name to take shortcuts."

Realizing I could not rely on Josh and not knowing how long the queue would take, I decided to take Fred and Lora to the nearest public hospital instead.

Just as I was about to leave, hospital security suddenly set up barricades around my car.

I stared at them in shock. "What are you doing?"

The bodyguards shot me with looks of contempt. "Ms. Collins just called. She said this car belongs to her and you took it without permission, so it's stolen property. It isn't going anywhere until she arrives at the hospital."

My face flushed with rage. "This is my family's car! On what grounds does she call it stolen?"

The bodyguards remained unmoved. "Apologies, but Dr. Peterson has made it clear that Ms. Collins' orders are equivalent to his own. Please stop causing trouble."

Darkness swam before my eyes at the thought of the two unconscious elders in the car. Josh was committing murder!

I tried calling him again, only to find that my number was blocked.

Left with no choice, I called the police and briefly explained how Selena had harmed Fred and Lora, leaving them unconscious, and that hospital security was illegally detaining my car.

A police car arrived shortly afterward.

Just as I thought tables were turning, Josh intercepted and spoke to the officers in his capacity as the hospital's director before I could reach them.

"My wife is having a dispute with our housekeeper. The two elders just have an upset stomach, but she's lying and claiming an allergy to frame the housekeeper.

"As for the car at the ER entrance, it's not ours. It used to be in my name, but I transferred the title to Ms. Collins a long time ago, so my wife did, in fact, take someone else's car without consent.

"I apologize on my wife's behalf for wasting police resources. We're very sorry."

Just as I was about to protest, Josh grabbed my arm and hissed a threat in a voice only I could hear, "I'll deal with you for filing a false police report and framing Selena once we get home. If you keep spouting nonsense, don't expect your parents to receive treatment in my hospital!"

I ignored his threats, knowing that once he saw who was actually in the car, he would certainly save them.

Just then, another car pulled into the hospital.

Josh answered a phone call before his expression immediately shifted. He rushed toward the car and lifted Selena out of it himself.

His expression was full of panic as he barked at the medical staff, "Get Selena to the ER right now! She has a cut on her neck. What if she contracts tetanus?"

Cradled against his chest, Selena shot me a smug glance before chirping in a sweet, syrupy voice, "I know you're worried, Mr. Peterson, but I can't break hospital rules. I should just wait in line like everyone else."

Josh was briefly stunned before a thought seemed to cross his mind. Then, he glanced at me and snapped, "How could Madelyn possibly compare to you?

"She's my family, so I can't play favorites, but she hurt you, and as her husband, it's only right that I make amends on her behalf. This isn't cutting the line; it's perfectly justified."

Everything happened so fast that before I could react, Selena was already on the stretcher heading into the ER.

The police had quietly left during the chaos.

I furiously grabbed Josh and yelled, "Josh! Have you no conscience? Those are your parents in the car, and instead of saving them, you're rushing to save the woman who hurt them. Are you even human?"

To my shock, he shoved me to the ground and coldly said, "They're your parents, not mine, Madelyn. Besides, they're just suffering from indigestion, so they don't need saving at all.

"When we got married, I warned you about abusing the Peterson family's resources to do whatever you want.

"Thankfully, Selena has been helping me keep an eye on you all these years, or you'd even use the Peterson family's connections to jump the queue for a simple hospital line. That just shows how uneducated you are as a country bumpkin."

Ignoring the fact that he had just shoved me onto the floor, he turned and followed Selena into the ER.

I felt a bone-deep chill.

With no other choice, I tried to call the police again, but after rummaging around, I could not find my phone anywhere. That was when it hit me—Josh must have taken it while speaking to me earlier.

I looked around in hopes of borrowing a phone from patients nearby, only to find myself surrounded by a ring of tall, burly bodyguards.

The lead bodyguard explained, "Dr. Peterson gave us strict orders that you're not allowed to cut the line, leave, or make false police reports. You'll quietly wait in line for your turn."

As my last spark of hope died, I slumped against the hospital wall and was forced to accept reality. Lora's breathing had almost stopped, and Fred's condition was not any better.

Hours felt like days before my number was finally called. I anxiously begged the medical staff to get them onto the stretchers, but the doctor stopped me and said, "Our hospital policy requires payment before treatment.

"Ms. Cook, please proceed to the payment counter and pay 2,000 dollars first."