Chapter 2

Before I received a reply, Isaac came storming into the hospital, carrying an unconscious Candy in his arms. The moment our eyes met, he grabbed me by the collar.

"I only asked you to lend Candy your lucky charm for a couple of days, and you put yam powder on it so she'd have an allergic reaction?"

"Am I supposed to be a psychic?" I shot back. "How could I have known you were going to take it today?"

My indifferent gaze made him pause.

"Candy probably found out you'd worn it and pretended to have an allergy attack to throw a tantrum." He rubbed his temples and added, "She can be dramatic. Just let it go. Apologize to her so she doesn't make an even bigger scene and hurt herself."

With that, my phone buzzed with another transfer notification of 100 thousand dollars.

I looked at my account's transaction history. The compensation payments for apologizing to Candy were nearing a million dollars by now.

The first payment came after she found Isaac's and my marriage license in our house. She cried and accused me of leaving it out on purpose to mark my territory.

That very day, Isaac forced me to hold a press conference and publicly announce that we'd already divorced and were living separately. Then, I had to apologize for trying to drive a wedge between them.

The second payment came when Candy lost the necklace Isaac had given her as a token of his love. She insisted I had stolen it.

To calm her down, Isaac bought another identical necklace and made me pay for it. Candy reported me to the police anyway, and I spent 15 days in custody before I was released.

The third payment came after Candy nearly missed a step while walking downstairs. She immediately claimed I'd covered the staircase in wax in an attempt to kill her.

While Isaac forced me to clean the stairs and apologize, Candy kicked me down the staircase. I injured my spine and nearly became paralyzed.

Isaac casually responded, "Nothing actually happened. Don't hold a grudge against a young woman."

…

When Isaac saw that I wasn't moving, he grew impatient. Just as he reached for me, Dr. Lawson walked past.

"Mr. Jones, you're here? Perfect. There are a few things I need to discuss. Your wife is…"

Only then did Isaac seem to notice I was still wearing a hospital gown.

I immediately cut Dr. Lawson off. "We can talk later. We have something to deal with first."

"Grace, are you not feeling well?" Isaac pressed a hand against my forehead, then took my hand and held it against his cheek. "Or are you pretending to be sick because Candy is here so I'll pay attention to you?"

My phone vibrated in my pocket. It was probably a reply to my text message.

I had no interest in arguing with Isaac any longer. Without another word, I walked toward Candy's hospital room.

"I'm sorry for causing your allergic reaction," I said with a polite bow. Then, I turned to Isaac and asked, "Is that enough?"

Candy immediately threw herself into his arms as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Isaac, your ex-wife nearly got me killed, and all you're making her do is say sorry? If you had just told me you two still have feelings for each other, I wouldn't have humiliated myself by coming here."

Isaac glanced at me awkwardly, then signaled for his assistant to close the door.

"What are you doing, Isaac? You said all I had to do was apologize."

When I saw the large glass of mango juice in his hand, I stumbled backward in horror. I was severely allergic to mangoes. Even the smell could make it difficult for me to breathe.

"You have to suffer as much as I did for it to count as an apology!" Candy yelled from her hospital bed.

"Just do it for show. Once you're done drinking it, I'll give you an anti-allergy injection. You'll be fine," Isaac whispered. Then, he grabbed my jaw and forced the mango juice down my throat.

A fiery pain surged through my mouth and down into my chest. I collapsed to my knees in agony. Within seconds, everything went dark.