Under the dim lighting, Ethan and I both had red-rimmed eyes.

"Nina, you're really something. We'll see about that."

If I'd already gotten Mom settled somewhere safe, I wouldn't have made it through that night.

Early the next morning, a message from an unknown number lit up my phone.

Your mom is at Twilight Bar. Want to come find her?

My heart seized. Without thinking, I rushed straight to Twilight—the bar where I used to sing for money.

When I entered the private room, Alex Pruitt was waiting inside with a few junior managers from the company.

"Nina, you finally came."

I kept my guard up. "Where's my mom?"

Alex swirled her wine glass, smiling. "Don't rush. Since you're here, have a drink with us first."

One of the older managers swept his eyes over my body, his gaze making my skin crawl. "Such a temper. No wonder Mr. Yates doesn't want you anymore. I'd behave if I were you—unless you want irreversible consequences."

I clenched my fists, grabbed the drink already waiting for me on the table, and downed it in one gulp. "Enough? Where's my mom?"

Alex's smile widened. "This is just the beginning. Play nice, and I'll tell you everything. Resist too much, and I can't make any guarantees."

My nose stung.

Was this Ethan's "we'll see about that"?

Ruthless enough.

Alex lined up a row of hard liquor and looked at me with disdain. "Drink. All of it."

Without a word, I chugged one glass after another. The alcohol hit my tumor like acid, and my whole body screamed with needle-sharp pain. Before long, the room started to spin.

Several men caught Alex's signal and swarmed me, hands pawing everywhere. From across the room, she snapped photos, her lips curling.

"Don't rush, baby. Mommy's about to find you a new daddy."

At the last moment before everything went dark, a figure appeared and pulled me out of the bar.

"Nina, are you okay?"

The pain was blinding. "My mom..."

I passed out before I could finish.

When I woke up, Alex Matthews was sitting by my bed.

"Nina, your body can't take this kind of abuse. A few more times and you won't last three days." His voice was tight. "For him—is it worth it?"

I laughed bitterly. "It's not for him. I just finally understand how much he hates me."

His phone rang. After answering, his expression darkened.

"Nina. Your mom had an accident."

I didn't care how weak I was. We rushed to the hospital together.

At the operating room doors, a nurse stopped me. "Your mother has high levels of sedatives in her system, along with pesticide residue in her stomach. The drugs kicked in after she went out, causing the accident."

My breath came faster, my head buzzing. "Doctor, please—save my mom. Please."

"Nina, I'm here." Alex gripped my shoulders. "I'll do everything I can. Wait for me."

He turned and disappeared through the operating room doors.

The second they closed, Ethan's voice came from behind me.

"You still know to show up? Had fun drinking with those old men?" His words dripped with contempt. "Nina, if your mom dies, blame her slutty daughter. Shameless."

Hatred flooded my eyes.

Was this his revenge?

First he had me attacked. Then he waited for his chance to go after Mom.

I staggered to my feet, walked toward Ethan, and slapped him hard across the face.

"If anything happens to my mom, I swear I'll drag you to hell with me."

Ethan froze. He'd never seen me look at him with such raw hatred.

"You're insane!"

He shoved me away the moment he recovered.

"Yes, I'm insane—you made me this way. Fine, bully me all you want, but why can't you leave my mom alone? She's innocent."

"Innocent?" He laughed coldly. "If she's innocent, then what does that make my mother? If I could, I'd make sure yours never woke up. Consider it payback."

A stabbing pain tore through my body.

My knees hit the floor. The icy tile shocked some clarity back into me.

Ethan's hand twitched toward me—then pulled back.

Blood surged up my throat and spilled onto the pristine white floor. My voice shook. "Have you ever loved me? Even once?"

He frowned. "What's wrong with you?"

I forced myself upright through the agony and plastered on a smirk. "So easy to fool. Can't even see through a simple trick."

His jaw clenched, eyes blazing.

"Love? What right do you have to even ask? You were just some bar singer. You think you were clean? If it weren't for that scar, you'd never have set foot in my house. You were never worthy."

My clenched fist slowly loosened.

So that's what he really thought.

"I know you didn't sign the divorce papers."

He stepped closer.

"Here's your chance. Kneel. Kowtow to my mother three times—loud enough for everyone to hear. Then scream it: your mother's a slut, a homewrecker, and everything is her fault." His lips curled. "Do that, and maybe I'll reconsider the divorce."

He watched me, certain I'd never go through with it.

"Ethan!"

Alex Pruitt rushed over and stumbled into his arms. Before he could steady her, she leaned close and whispered something in his ear.

He glanced at me—something unreadable flickering in his eyes—then left with her.

In that moment, the eighteen-year-old girl who once loved him shattered completely.

Goodbye, Ethan.

That day, his mother showed signs of waking. Alex Pruitt had arranged an overseas medical team.

My mother pulled through too.

Alex Matthews helped me move her into an apartment.

Before Ethan left the country, he sent me a message:

"I've been thinking. Maybe we were both too impulsive that day. If you don't want the divorce, wait until I'm back. We'll talk."

But I'd never see that message. The phone was already at the bottom of the ocean.

I signed the divorce papers.

I packed everything. Whatever Mom could use, I took. The rest, I threw away.

Until no trace of me remained in that house.

The moment I stepped outside, I collapsed.

Alex Matthews caught me and ran. He got me to the ER just in time.

When I woke, my thoughts were still scattered.

"How long?"

He couldn't meet my eyes. Couldn't say two days.

But I understood.

"Alex. One last favor." My voice was barely a whisper. "Take care of my mom."

He wrapped both hands around mine and nodded.

The next morning, he found my hospital bed empty. He searched everywhere, frantic.

He finally found me on a park bench.

My thin body, pale, leaned against the back of the chair.

Alex supported my head against his shoulder.

"Alex, I'm sorry. In this life, I held you back for far too long. Be happy."

My breathing slowed, then stopped. At last, the light finally fell on me.

Mrs. Yates's surgery was a success. The two of them boarded the plane home.

"Ethan, about what happened—don't take it out on Nina. The number of times your father cheated, even I can't count. This time, I've thought it through."

Ethan's emotions were complicated. When he brought his mother back to the hospital to handle the discharge paperwork, he caught the voice of a young nurse nearby.

"Did you hear? Dr. Matthews's childhood sweetheart—Chambers, I think—she died! He's been a wreck these past few days."