Chapter 4

Watching me cough up a mouthful of blood and bawl my eyes out, Gemma smiled and leaned close to my ear.

Like a venomous snake, she slowly whispered, "Oh right, the day your daughter died, Ian didn't come home all night, did he? You don't actually think he went looking for evidence to catch the killer, do you?"

It hit me like a blow to the head. I croaked out in total disbelief, "He told me... He went to check if there was any surveillance footage he'd missed…"

Gemma took in the shattered look on my face and burst into laughter, clapping her hands. "You're so naive. Your husband held me in his arms and comforted me the moment it happened. Because I told him I was terrified, he stayed by my side all night to soothe me, telling me it wasn't my fault."

At that moment, my heart—which I thought had already gone numb from the pain—was violently pierced through once again. Scalding hot tears, born of unbearable agony, trickled down my cheeks.

Ian had clearly seemed more frantic and devastated than anyone else on the day Soleil died, rushing to the funeral home like a madman.

While making arrangements for me after I had passed out, he had pulled every string he could, acting like a man who had lost his soul.

However, it was all a lie. He had only been in such a rush to comfort the person who had caused Soleil's death. Tears of pure despair finally soaked my face.

Pure, unadulterated hatred burst from my chest, almost swallowing me alive. Perhaps catching the flash of madness in my eyes, she smiled at me.

The very next second, a nurse came into view with a sedative.

"Silly me. How could I forget a psychiatric patient's treatment? Don't worry, once you get this shot, you won't remember a thing!"

My pupils contracted as a bad feeling spread through my chest, and I thrashed wildly, screaming for help.

At long last, Ian heard the commotion and pushed the door open. When his gaze landed on my shattered, despairing face, he froze for a moment. "Maybe we should just forget it, Gem. Helena's terrified of needles. Let's just give her some room to breathe."

Jealousy flickered in her eyes, but she wore a considerate smile. "I was too anxious. I only wanted to help Helena get a good night's sleep."

Gemma took the initiative to undo my restraints and reached out to help me up. Yet, in the blink of an eye, a fruit knife slipped out from beside my bed.

A bloodcurdling scream reverberated throughout the hospital room. Gemma clutched her bloodied hand and gasped, "I was only trying to set you free, Helena! Why do you want to kill me?"

Ian pulled her into his arms, his heart aching as he looked at her bleeding arm. Rage stormed in his eyes. "What do you think you're doing?"

Before I could defend myself, he grabbed the sedative and violently plunged the needle into my vein. In an instant, I felt as though I had fallen into an icy abyss. Every drop of blood in my body ran cold.

I suddenly remembered how, whenever I was sick and terrified of needles, Ian would hold me in his arms and comfort me. He would even shed tears out of sheer heartache over the slightest scratch on my skin.

But now, for Gemma's sake, he was the one driving the sharp needle into me.

Drinking in my pained expression, Ian clenched his jaw and followed the nurse out of the hospital room. Gemma was the only one left beside my bed, looking down at me with a sinister grin. "Oh, I forgot to tell you. There's something else mixed into that injection. Stay right here and enjoy the ride!"

As soon as her words fell, my whole body began to tremble, and I collapsed to the floor. A bloody, mutilated vision of Soleil began to materialize before my eyes. She was weeping, consumed by resentment, blaming me for not saving her.

Crushed by guilt, I broke down in tears, my self-loathing reaching its peak. I kept apologizing to Soleil under my breath as I grabbed the fruit knife and cut myself until I was drenched in blood.

I lost track of how long this nightmare went on. I was constantly haunted by hallucinations, and I lost my mind completely. The only thing that arrived like clockwork each day was the sedative needle thrust into my flesh.

…

Thus, day after day, I sank into silence, hallucinations, and everlasting self-loathing.

Then came a midnight; in my muddled fog, I jolted awake from a nightmare and faintly heard a soft knock breaking the silence of the night.

There stood Soliel's small figure, beckoning me over. I crawled toward her with everything I had, stepping into the darkness, a relieved smile spreading across my face.

Ten minutes later, a raging inferno from a ward within Astrae Mental Asylum set the midnight sky ablaze.