第一章

I kept calling Lucien. His phone was off.

I sent a text, but the message wouldn't go through.

This was how Lucien always forced me to give in.

I fought back tears. Even unconscious, Nora was in pain. I quickly messaged Camilla.

"Please put Lucien on. The hospital needs payment now."

Camilla replied with a smirking emoji, then sent me a screen recording of some old messages.

It was from a year earlier, just after she became Lucien's financial advisor.

"Are you sure you don't want to give your wife her own card? I can't stand a woman who refuses to work and lives off her husband. Put me in charge, and I'll make her explain every cent she spends."

Lucien replied with a voice message, a low laugh in the background.

"I started out broke too. Back then, she worked three jobs, lived on instant noodles with me, and helped me pay rent. That's the woman I fell in love with. I don't want money to change her. She managed just fine when we had nothing."

My chest tightened. I could barely breathe.

He was right about one thing: I had survived those years without money.

But I had only gone without because I hated watching him work himself to the bone.

I kept telling myself I didn't need new clothes, skincare, or gifts.

When we finally made it, Lucien told me to quit my job.

I had waited for him to offer to support me. Instead, Camilla gave me one answer over and over. Denied.

"Then I'll approve necessities and nothing else."

Lucien replied with one word, "Fine."

My whole body shook.

And what counted as a necessity?

When the sole came loose from my shoe, I asked for a new pair. She told me to get it patched downstairs. I'd already been repairing the same shoes for two years.

When I ran out of shampoo, I asked for another bottle. She told me to use body wash instead. Shampoo was a waste of money.

I begged for days. In the end, she only approved groceries.

When they arrived, I had to take a picture of every item and send it to her for inspection.

Bit by bit, she took away what little dignity I had left.

Camilla sent me another voice message, her tone sickly sweet.

"Sofia, didn't you read the messages? Approving your spending is my job. If I let you contact Lucien, I'm not doing my job."

My fingers flew over the screen.

"Then approve my request for $30,000! Lucien's mother is the one who's sick. If she doesn't get treatment, that's on you."

She went quiet.

I thought she might finally hand the phone to Lucien. Instead, she sent another voice message, sounding indignant.

"You're trying to cut me out so Lucien thinks I'm not doing my job and fires me, aren't you?"

Then Lucien spoke up, sounding completely unconcerned.

"Relax. I'm not firing you, no matter what she says. My financial advisor is considerate and always looking out for me. I couldn't bear to lose you."

Couldn't bear to lose her.

Those words stung.

It reminded me of something he'd said two years earlier.

His startup had been fighting to survive. To help him land a contract, I drank with a client on his behalf.

That CEO kept ordering more drinks. I ran into the hallway to throw up four times. By the end, I could barely stand.

Lucien found me there and pulled me into his arms.

"Forget the contract. I'm not letting you do this to yourself for me. Come on. Let's go home."

The memory made my chest ache.

Lucien, do you even think of our place as home anymore?

A soft knock came at the door. Dr. Ethan Cole stepped in to check Nora's medications.

His gaze fell on the billing alert clipped to her chart. His face softened when he looked at me.

"We understand families sometimes have financial problems. We won't remove her ventilator or discharge her over an unpaid bill.

"But her hemofiltration isn't covered. If we don't get the deposit, we'll have to stop it.

"Her pneumonia is severe, and she's already in respiratory failure. Without the treatment, her organs could start shutting down. She could die within hours.

"The deposit must be paid by tomorrow morning. She can't wait any longer."