Chapter 2

I was dragged to the hospital by force.

Conor was still in surgery.

The moment Serena saw me, she hurried over with a frightened expression. As we passed each other, she lowered her voice so only I could hear. "Addison, you're nothing more than the Bentleys' blood bag."

I met her eyes.

In an instant, she switched back to looking frail and terrified. "Addison, hate me all you want, but why would you lie and say I forced you to donate blood?"

Mom didn't hesitate. "Serena is a thousand times kinder than you'll ever be! She's nothing like you!"

She immediately turned to the nurse. "Draw her blood."

Two bodyguards pinned me down before I could move. The needle sank into my arm.

I'd spent years growing up in poverty in the countryside and had developed severe anemia long ago. As bag after bag of blood was drawn, I felt my strength slipping away.

Mom looked at my deathly pale face and finally wavered.

"Mom..." Serena's voice trembled. "Conor lost so much blood. It's heartbreaking. None of this would've happened if he hadn't gotten into that accident..."

She sniffled, tears pooling in her eyes. "If only my blood type matched his. I'd let them drain every drop if it meant saving him, but I'm useless."

She was doing it on purpose.

Any trace of sympathy in Mom's eyes vanished. She glared at me with open disgust. "Look at Serena! She's so thoughtful. We raised you for twenty years. What's wrong with taking a little blood from you?"

She spun toward the nurse. "Keep going."

Everything went black.

Just before I lost consciousness, I saw Mom's Luck drop again.

[Luck: 3%]

At the same time, Serena's climbed higher.

[Luck: 90%]

When I woke up again, I was in Conor's hospital room.

After learning he'd spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair, he'd completely lost his mind. The room was in shambles. Anything he could throw had already been smashed to pieces.

"Get out! All of you, get out!"

Then he spotted me as the bodyguards dragged me inside. His chest heaved violently.

"Addison! You little curse!" He grabbed a bowl of hot oatmeal from the bedside table and hurled it at my face.

My body was so weak I couldn't dodge. The scalding oatmeal splashed across the back of my hand and my neck. Pain shot through me so sharply that I gasped.

"If it weren't for you bringing me bad luck, I never would've crashed! Why don't you just die?" Still not satisfied, he roared, "Break her legs too! Why should I be crippled while she gets to keep standing?"

"Conor, please calm down! You'll tear your stitches!" Serena hurried over, pretending she wanted to help wipe the burns on my arm.

Instead, she deliberately pressed down hard on the spot where I'd just had blood drawn. Pain ripped through me.

Acting on instinct, I shoved her hand away.

"Ah!" She let out a shrill scream and dramatically fell backward onto the floor, which was littered with broken glass.

Right then, the door swung open. Mom had just returned from paying the hospital bill. The first thing she saw was Serena sitting on the floor, bleeding.

"Serena!"

She didn't spare a single glance for my burned arm. She didn't care that I'd just had so much blood taken that I could barely stand.

She walked straight over and slapped me across the face. My ears rang, and the taste of blood filled my mouth.

"You little witch! You already crippled your brother, and now you're trying to kill Serena too? How did I end up raising a monster like you?"

Mom hurried to help Serena up and wrapped her tightly in her arms.

Serena trembled as tears streamed down her face. "Mom, don't hit Addison. I lost my balance. I just wanted to help treat her burns. Maybe... maybe she just doesn't like me touching her..."

"Serena, you're too kind." Mom's whole body shook with rage. "You're still making excuses for this ungrateful snake. She was born rotten."

She turned back to me, eyes blazing. "I'm going to beat you to death today!"

Before she could raise her hand again, Serena suddenly cried out.

During the struggle, my black card had fallen out of my pocket. Serena picked it up, staring at it in disbelief. Her eyes widened.

"Addison, where did you get a black card? This kind of card is only for accounts with over a million dollars in deposits. Don't tell me that you stole from the Bentleys before you left?"