Love Severed, Affection Faded

During my appendicitis surgery, Kevin personally escorted me into the operating room.

As the anesthesia seeped into my veins and my consciousness began to fade, I overheard Kevin speaking with the doctor.

"Mr. Nores, are you sure about this? Two milliliters of concentrated sulfuric acid won’t just burn through Ms. Cortez’s throat—it could kill her! If you just want to get Valentina out of this nightmare, there are other ways! Why do you have to harm Ms. Cortez?"

"If she dies, she dies. I’ll send her body to Damian and take Tina far away from all of this!" He coontinued, "I promised Tina I’d save her from Damian’s grasp. Valeria is her twin sister—having her take Tina’s place is the safest plan."

As the anesthesia took full effect, it felt like my heart was already dissolving.

So all the love, all the warmth—it had all been a cruel joke.

Kevin, the man who once caught me when I was falling, had only done it to clear the path for Valentina.

If that’s what he wanted, I’d give him exactly that.

——

"And one more thing—Tina has a scar from giving birth two years ago. Make the same incision on Valeria and age it properly. Damian can’t suspect a thing."

The doctor’s hand trembled at Kevin’s words. A few drops of concentrated sulfuric acid dripped out of its container. He sucked in a sharp breath.

“Mr. Nores, do you really have to go this far? Ms. Cortez was your childhood friend!”

“Three years ago, Valentina set her sights on Damian—Ms. Cortez’s boyfriend at the time. You planned Ms. Cortez's assault so Valenitna could get what she wated. It forced Ms. Cortez to broke her engagement. And now, you’re—”

Before the doctor could finish, Kevin cut him off.

“Just do your job! Don’t forget, you were the one who personally performed Valeria’s hysterectomy back then. What’s wrong? Growing a conscience now?”

Snatching the beaker from the doctor’s hand, Kevin pried my mouth open and poured the diluted acid down my throat.

The liquid scorched everything in its path—burning my mouth, searing down my esophagus and clawing into my stomach like fire.

Pain exploded inside me. My body convulsed violently, tears blurring my vision as I gagged and choked, my instincts desperately trying to expel the poison.

Kevin held me tighter, his voice rising in alarm. “What’s happening? Didn’t you give her anesthesia? Why is she in so much pain?!”

The doctor’s face tightened, hesitation flickering in his eyes. “It’s a physiological reaction. I can’t stop it.”

Perhaps I looked too miserable, because the doctor tried once more to talk Kevin out of it.

“The acid has already corroded her stomach. If we operate on her now, there’s a high risk of infection. Mr. Nores, are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

Kevin’s grip on me tightened. His jaw clenched as he snapped, “Enough! Just do your job and prep for surgery!”

The doctor let out a heavy sigh before turning away to get everything ready.

A single tear landed on my face. Kevin’s voice wavered. “Ria, I’m sorry… but this is what you owe Tina.”

“She was kidnapped when she was only two. She suffered for years and we barely managed to get her back. I won’t let her go through hell again.”

“And you… you spent all these years living the life she should have had.”

He gently wiped the blood and bile from my lips, his touch unexpectedly tender.

“This was my decision alone. Tina knows nothing about it. If you need someone to hate, hate me.”

My stomach churned violently, the acid burning through me like fire. But I felt nothing—just a deep, hollow cold.

The nightmare that haunted me for three years… was never an accident. It was all part of Kevin’s plan.

He destroyed me once to help Valentina steal Damian. Now, it happened again. Kevin was sacrificing my whole being just to save Valentina from Damian’s grasp.