Leah's bags had fallen over her eyes so it was difficult for her to see clearly. 

What she saw was a tall and imposing man. He dressed in a custom-tailored black suit. His entire presence exuded an aura that warned strangers to keep their distance.

Was he the one who had just steadied her?

Judging from Leon’s reaction, he was clearly afraid of this man. Leah racked her memory to search for any recollection of him and then it hit her. He was the head of the Diakos Family, Nico Diakos.

He was a man that was shrouded in mystery, all that people knew about him was his reputation. Leah had heard about him a few times from Leon. However, Leah had always assumed he was in his fifties. Seeing him now, she realized he was only in his early thirties with a well-preserved, sophisticated and power oozed from his body.

“Leon,” Nico's voice was calm yet commanding, “I recall your engagement three years ago was to Leah. Who is this ‘Ella’?”

Leon stiffened, caught off guard. His uncle had never meddled in his personal affairs before. After all the engagement had been arranged by his parents, so why was Nico suddenly asking about it?

When Leah heard her name called, she raised her eyes and looked at Nico. Their gazes met and for a brief moment, she caught a playful smile on his face. Startled, she quickly looked away. She was unwilling to have anything to do with the Diakos Family anymore.

From the moment she learned that Leon had framed her, all she felt for him was hatred. However, she was powerless against them. It was so hard to protect herself, what was more she had another child.

Leon said, “Uncle, don’t you remember? Leah was convicted of intentional assault and sent to prison three years ago.”

Nico’s brows furrowed. “She went to prison? She doesn’t look like someone capable of that, she is so weak and fragile.”

Leon scratched his nose, he looked embarrassed. “Well, as you know, appearances can be deceiving. You’ve been overseas for years, so it makes sense you wouldn’t know.”

Leon’s sharp eyes fell on Leah. He had already noticed the scars and wounds on her. If Leon was here for Ella, then why was Leon walking with Leah?

She remained silent and leaned against the wall. She did not want to join their conversation. Her pale, gaunt face seemed to evoke a flicker of pity in Nico's heart. He had never been nosy before. "I know the hospital director,” he said coldly. “Take her for a check-up first.”

Leon immediately panicked and blurted, “That’s not necessary. She’s going into surgery soon to donate her kidney.”

Nico raised his brow. "Surgery for kidney donation? Leon, donating a kidney requires that the donor and recipient perfectly match. Also, has she been deemed medically fit for it? Has she been properly tested for compatibility? You do realize the donor must be in good health, don’t you? With her condition, are you still taking her to have an operation?"

Afraid Nico saw something was wrong, Leon blocked him from seeing Leah. "Of course! They’ll run tests before the procedure.”

Leah, who had stayed quiet until now, finally spoke up, her voice soft yet firm. “Thank you, Uncle.”

The word ‘Uncle’ sent a jolt through Nico. A long-buried memory resurfaced.

Three years ago, during a rare visit home for his father’s birthday, a woman had handed him a drink. He had taken a sip and immediately felt dizzy, his mind clouded. Someone had drugged him. When he stumbled back to his room, he found a woman there.

He had been furious and wanted to push her away but her soft voice made him lose control. 

A fragment of memory suddenly flashed in his mind. That woman who was in the bed at that time also called him uncle and begged him not to do it.

The next day, before he could investigate what had happened, he had been called away on urgent business overseas. The overseas company had a problem and he directly took a plane to go there.

As for that woman, he only thought it was a one-time mistake. It wasn't until now that he realized he might have done something wrong that night.

Before he could say another word, Leon shoved Leah forward. “Stop running your mouth! Who the hell you are? How dare you call him uncle? He is mine! He has nothing to do with you! Don’t go calling him that like you have any connection to him.”

The man Leon scared the most was Nico. He held the fate of the entire Diakos Family in his hands, whether it was his and his parent's life or death.

The reason they currently had shares and got dividends was all because of Nico.

Nica watched as Leon furiously berated Leah. As he frowned, he pulled out his phone and made a call.

Leah was quickly wheeled into the operating room without undergoing any preliminary tests. Several doctors in surgical scrubs entered and before she could react, a syringe of anesthesia was injected into her arm. Her consciousness faded almost instantly.

In her hazy state, she seemed to catch fragments of conversation. "I've never seen a family like this. The girl is perfectly healthy, yet they're insisting on a kidney transplant and even faking surgery."

"Haven't you heard? The two sisters are fighting over the same man. The older one obviously wants to punish the younger."

"What? Are they really sisters? I heard she’s an illegitimate daughter. So, which is it?"

"Shush, don’t talk too much. We can't talk about rich family's issues. We’re just here to do our job and take the money."

The cold touch of the scalpel against her skin sent a chilling realization through her.

It turned out her sister was truly healthy and all of these were just a test to determine Leon's true feelings for Ella, she deliberately wanted to take Leah's kidney.

Was she not her parents’ biological daughter? Whose illegitimate daughter was she?

Despair swallowed her whole. She was going to die on this operating table because everyone wanted her to die.

***

Leah thought she had died. How else could she explain the vast expanse of white before her eyes?

"Is this heaven?" she murmured weakly.

As soon as she finished talking, Nico who had just finished reading a medical report, set the paper down and strode over to her bedside. "Are you awake? Do you feel any discomfort?"

It took Leah several seconds to register who was speaking.

Seeing him up close for the first time, she realized Nico was far more striking than Leon. His sharp, well-defined features exuded an air of authority and strength. He had an intense presence that was almost suffocating.

"Uncle... you saved me?" she asked hesitantly, instinctively shrinking back and avoiding his gaze.

Nico chuckled. "Your body is in terrible shape. You’ll need at least a month to recover. Even if you wanted to donate a kidney to save your sister, there was no need to rush into it so recklessly."

Leah didn’t know how to respond to his statement. She also did not have any idea how she had ended up here instead of on the operating table.

However, it seemed Nico had saved me. Still, he was a man constantly occupied with business. How many times could she expect him to intervene in her life? She had relied on herself.

"Thank you," she said simply. After that, she remained silent.

Nico vaguely recalled seeing Leah years ago when Leon was still a student. He had picked his nephew up from school a few times and noticed that Leon always walked alongside a lively, talkative girl.

How had she become like this?

"Rest well. I have work to do. Nico will take you home," he said.

Leah wanted to refuse. She did not want to have anything to do with Leon. However, compared to him, she was even less familiar to anyone in Diakos's family.

"Is ‘thank you’ all you can say?" Nico asked, his voice carrying a hint of amusement.

For some reason, he found himself unusually invested in this frail, battered young woman. When he saw the scars on her body, a rare flicker of anger stirred within him.

Leah averted her gaze. Nico didn’t press further. He set the report down and left the room.

Leon stormed in not long after and pointed his finger at Leah's face. "What the hell did you do to my uncle? How did you get him to take you off the operating table?"

Leah jerked her head up and looked at Leon incredulously, “He carried me away?”

She had only met Nico once before. He didn’t seem like the type to meddle in others' affairs.

Leon couldn’t stand Leah's feigned innocence. To him, she was manipulative and always acted like she was the victim. Fury surged through him as he stepped forward and raised his hand. He was ready to slap her across the face.

"Don't pretend to be innocent in front of me. Three years ago, you ended up sharing a bed with another man and to think I actually believed you wanted a platonic relationship with me."

Leah's face burned from the slap. She lowered her gaze while clutching her cheek.

Back then, her heart had belonged solely to Leon. She had dreamed of giving herself to him completely after their engagement. However, who could have foreseen the cruel twist of fate that shattered her plans?

Who would have thought that she would lose her purity in the Diakos Villa, only the man was not Leon?

When she had discovered her pregnancy in prison, she had felt a whirlwind of shock and joy. That feeling would never return. Leon had personally destroyed her love and future.

After enduring three years in prison, the man before her no longer had the power to stir her heart anymore because all she felt toward him was disgust.

"Leon let me go. I'm begging you," Leah pleaded with a weak humble voice.

Leon's hand shot out and gripped her throat, his bloodshot eyes filled with rage. "I told you that's impossible! Leah, you will spend the rest of your life atoning for what you did to Ella!"

Summoning a strength, she didn't know she had, Leah shoved him away. Barefoot, she bolted from the hospital room without looking back. She had to escape and find a way to find her child. She could not afford to fall into that hell again.

However, no matter how much she had planned, she hadn't anticipated one thing Ella would be standing right outside the door.

The moment Leah stepped out, Ella stuck out her foot and sent her crashing to the ground.

"What? Are you trying to run? That's not going to happen, my dear little sister," Ella sneered. "You haven't given me your kidney yet. How could I let you leave so easily?"

Leah's hand had broken. She tried to prop herself up but slipped across a trace of blood.

"Ella, sister … you weren't like this before, why are you ....”

"Don't call me that!" Ella snapped. "I hate you! You wear that face and act all innocent while trying to steal the love that belongs to me! If it weren't for you, Mom and Dad would have only doted on me!"

Yet even with her existence, hadn't their parents only ever favored Ella? Leah felt her last bit of hope shatter into nothing.

Leon stepped out of the room, his gaze cold as he looked down at her curled-up figure. Without hesitation, he kicked her hard.

"Stay away from her, Ella. Who knows what tricks she pulled to make my uncle speak up for her? I don't trust her scheming ways."

Ella immediately changed her expression and wrapped her arms around Leon’s arm like a delicate vine. "Leon, I'm scared. What if she tries to kill me again? I can’t let her come home."

As she said that, she let a few tears slip down her face, she looked so pitiful.

When it came to deception and acting, who could compare to this sister of hers? For years, from childhood to adulthood, Ella had played her role flawlessly and earned her sympathy while Leah took every beating meant for her.

Leah still remembered the night she was beaten black and blue by their father. It was Leon who had taken her to the hospital in the dead of night. Back then, he had been a sincere, kind-hearted boy, but that boy had died now.

Since getting out of prison, he had already slapped her twice. The part of her that wanted to ask him why he had done this to her, had already broken beyond repair.

"If you hate seeing me so much, just let me go," Leah said.

Leon frowned. "Leave? Not a chance. From today onward, you're coming back with me. In fifteen days, you’ll undergo surgery and donate your kidney to Ella."

Ella pouted while clinging to his arm. "Leon, how can you let her stay at your place? We’re the couple, what will people think?"

"I’ll send her to the Diakos Villa. She can stay in the servants' quarters."

Ella beamed. She leaned in to kiss Leon’s cheek. "Now that’s more like it."

Leah found the scene sickening. However, as long as she could stay far away from the three of them, she was more than willing.