Chapter 3

The doors to the operating room swung open, and I paused outside for one final check.

The doctor looked at me, clearly hesitant.

"Mr. Garrett, the anesthesiologist is ready. But…"

"But what?"

"Your blood tests show that the venom has caused severe coagulopathy and impaired kidney function. The surgery carries a high risk, and you'll need dialysis for some time afterward.

"If we can't get the infection under control, you may also need a second procedure to remove the infected tissue."

I nodded calmly. "I understand."

The doctor looked surprised. "Are you sure you don't want to wait for your family?"

"No," I said, signing my name on the surgical consent form. "I'm not waiting."

As the nurse wheeled me farther down the hall, the doors to the operating room slowly closed behind me.

Just before the anesthesia took effect, I faintly heard my phone vibrate.

The nurse picked it up for me.

It was a message from Astrid.

"The helicopter has taken off. It should be there in about 40 minutes.

"Andre, don't worry. I'll be here soon."

I stared at those two messages for a long time, finally realizing that the people who would truly come running when I needed them most had been there all along.

Five years ago, I had been the one who pushed them away for Nicole.

The anesthetic began to enter my bloodstream. As consciousness began to fade, I found myself thinking back to our wedding day.

Nicole had taken my hand and sworn in front of all our family and friends.

"Andre Garrett is the only man I will ever call my husband," she had said. "Through sickness and health, for richer or poorer, I'll stay by his side for the rest of my life."

Dad had sat stiffly at the head table that day, his face cold and unreadable. He hadn't offered a single word of congratulations. And Astrid hadn't even shown up.

After the wedding, I had asked Nicole, "Do you think you'll ever regret marrying me?"

She looked up and kissed me gently on the cheek.

"The only thing I could ever regret is that I didn't meet you sooner."

Back then, I had believed her without question.

So, even after Conrad came back, I kept telling myself that he was simply someone from her past.

But I was different. I was her husband.

Yet, I learned the hard way that even a husband could be replaced.

…

The surgery lasted six hours.

When I woke, it was already deep into the night.

A sharp, agonizing pain shot through my right leg, so intense that I could barely breathe.

I instinctively tried to lift my leg, only to find nothing beneath the blanket.

That was when it finally sank in.

My right leg was really gone.

The room was silent, a telltale sign that Nicole hadn't been here.

On the bedside table sat a bouquet of lilies and a card that read, "Take care of yourself and don't overthink things."

It was from Nicole.

I stared at the card, and a wry smile spread across my face.

I'd lost a leg, and she hadn't even waited outside the operating room. I'd almost died, and all she'd done was send me a bouquet of flowers.

Conrad, on the other hand, had only been bitten by a snake. Yet he'd received the antivenom, a stretcher, a satellite phone, and Nicole's company throughout the entire night.

When the nurse came in to change my dressing, she couldn't help whispering, "Mr. Garrett, your wife really cares about Mr. Hayes.

"I heard his heart started acting up again tonight, and Dr. Sterling has been by his side the whole time. She hasn't even eaten.

"Are you two…"

She trailed off when she realized she'd overstepped, then quickly fell silent.

"No," I said quietly. "We won't be husband and wife for much longer."

The nurse froze for a moment and didn't dare ask anything else.

I picked up my phone and sent Astrid one final message.

"Is the divorce agreement ready?"

"It's ready," she replied almost instantly. "I've also frozen all of the Garrett family's shares and investments in Sterling Hospital.

"I'll come to the hospital tomorrow and pick you up."

I stared at her message, then slowly closed my eyes.