Chapter 4

Hailey flinched at the urgency in Dr. Hudson's voice. Something in her gut told her the situation was far more serious than she wanted to believe.

Iris looked up at her in confusion, but within seconds her eyes only widened in panic.

“Hailey, you’re bleeding…” Iris gasped, dashing for her bag. She quickly pulled out some wipes and handed them to Hailey.

Hailey took them with shaky hands, forcing a weak smile as she wiped her nose.

She has been feeling worse than before since the morning but had tried hiding it. Hailey tried not to panic, especially not in front of Iris—she couldn't afford to make her even more worried than she already was.

“Hailey…”

“I'm fine… Dr. Hudson just called… I need to go to the hospital.”

“Is it an emergency? Do you want me to come with you?”

Hailey could only release a faint smile. “I'll be fine, Iris… just cover for me…please.”

Iris nodded reluctantly as she watched Hailey's figure disappearing from the cafeteria, but an unnoticed smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

All through the ride to the hospital, Hailey could only think about the worst-case scenario in her head.

Could it be that she really had cancer? What if she was already at the last stage?

She sat in the waiting room now at the hospital, her body was getting a lot weaker than before. She had almost collapsed when she got out of the cab, but fortunately, the driver had assisted her.

But for some reason, she had to stay optimistic. She took her phone from her bag and quickly dialed Carter's number, but as usual, it went straight to voicemail.

Already feeling frustrated, she dialed her mother-in-law's number.

And she picked after the fifth ring.

“What do you want?” Mrs. Smith’s voice came out muffled and angry.

“I was trying to reach Carter, but his line wasn't…”

“And so? What does it have to do with me?”

“I only wanted to know if you can…” She trailed off, but the call ended right away.

Hailey stared at her phone's blank screen like it was the cause of her misery.

She took a deep, frustrated sigh with her head bent downwards but quickly reached for a napkin in her bag when she noticed blood dripping from her nose again.

“Ms. Hailey, it’s your turn,” a nurse’s voice breaks through the air.

Hailey sat nervously on the edge of the hospital bed after some physical checks were done on her body.

Her fingers gripped the sheets tightly as Dr. Hudson flipped through the results with a grave expression.

When he finally looked up, his eyes softened, but his voice carried a weight that made Hailey’s chest tighten.

“Hailey… You’ve been ingesting a poisonous substance for a very long time now,” he said carefully. “The traces in your blood are clear. I won’t lie to you, it’s very serious. Because it was detected very late, the damage could be… life-threatening.”

Hailey froze, her breath catching in her throat. Poison?

“The poison used is an extremely rare one that causes its victims to show signs of cancer that cannot be detected,” Dr. Hudson said. His face was now filled with concern.

“Anyone involved in this could be given life in prison if found guilty… Do you know of anyone with a grudge against you?” he asked.

Hailey shook her head in response, she was too flustered to even say anything.

Her heart was beating more than usual, not just in fear, but in the fear of knowing the truth behind it.

Her mind raced as she tried to recall how it could have gotten into her system.

She thought of the meals she’d eaten but couldn’t come up with a conclusion on how it happened.

The only people she usually shared food and drinks with were Carter and Iris.

The nights she’d felt her strength slipping away, she brushed it off as fatigue, or she had even believed it was cancer but found it strange since her hair wasn't falling off.

Fear clawed at her chest as a dark thought whispered, could this have been intentional?

Dr. Hudson’s voice pulled her back.

“You’ll need to be admitted immediately. But before we proceed with the treatment, you’ll have to settle your outstanding medical dues.”

The words hit her like a hammer. It was always about money.

Dr. Hudson turned to leave, but she stopped him. A particular question tugging at the back of her mind.

“Is it possible to know when I started consuming it?” She asked with shaky lips, the doctor flipped through his clipboard before responding.

“For a year now,” he responded before turning to leave.

Hailey’s breath caught, she clutched at her chest as she felt a knife-like pain tearing through her heart.

That was the same time she noticed Carter might be cheating on her.

A year now… "This was too much to be a mere coincidence,” she thought as tears threatened to fall from her eyes.

With trembling hands, she pulled out her phone and dialed Carter’s number, not to confront him but to request payment for her medication.

As expected, it went straight to voicemail. She tried again and then again, but the result was the same.

With defeat, Hailey typed a quick text to Iris instead: I won’t be coming home tonight. I need to continue treatment at the hospital. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.

She deliberately left out the part about the poison. Iris worried too much already, and Hailey couldn’t bring herself to pile this much burden on her shoulders.

Hailey was admitted first, the doctor had said she was running out of blood, and it should be attended to before any treatment.

And within a few more hours, nurses moved briskly, setting up drips and checking her vitals.

Hailey stared at the ceiling, her thoughts drifting.

After a few more hours, the transfusion was over, and she was starting to feel slightly better.

She quickly went home since she couldn't reach Carter on the phone, and she had no money left to her name and needed to meet him in person even if it meant going home despite her frail body.

Hailey stood outside of her door with a frown, the door still hadn't been fixed, but that was the least of her worries.

Her eyes darted towards a pair of black heels, they looked like like the one's she saw Iris wearing.

“You are so smart, babe.” Carter's voice came in faintly from the bedroom the moment Hailey fully stepped into the house. “Are you sure she won't be coming home today?” He asked.

Hailey froze in fear the moment she heard the next voice.

“Yeah she texted me… Should I just take her to a cliff and push her?” Iris laughed. “Why won't she just die already?”

That was Iris's voice!