Chapter 5

But before my hand could come down, Adrian grabbed my wrist tightly.

His face darkened as he gritted his teeth. "Audrey, what are you causing a scene about now?"

Sophia rushed into his arms with tears in her eyes. "Adrian, I only wanted to invite Audrey to my wedding, but she tried to hit me..."

I ignored her. My phone kept vibrating with calls from the hospital.

I grabbed Adrian's arm and begged him, "Please, give me 40,000 dollars! My mom needs surgery. She can't wait any longer!"

"What? Something happened to Isabelle?" Adrian's face turned pale, and panic flashed across his eyes.

But Adam rushed over and angrily pointed at me. "Don't listen to her nonsense! Mom's condition has been stable for years. How could anything happen to her?"

Jane also glared at me angrily. "Audrey, you've gone too far! You bullied Sophia all through school, and now you're even trying to ruin her wedding?"

I was so heartbroken that I didn't want to look at her anymore.

She knew perfectly well that Sophia had been the one bullying me at school. Sophia had even pushed me to the edge of depression.

But her words suddenly set Adrian off.

He kicked me hard in the knee. "You want money, right? Then kneel here and apologize to Sophia. Stay on your knees until the wedding is over, and I'll give you the money."

He then ordered his bodyguards to chain me outside the hotel.

I waited anxiously as every second crawled by. It felt like an entire lifetime.

I was nearly passing out from the heat when Adrian finally walked out of the hotel.

He handed me a bank card. "Audrey, don't cause trouble like this again."

I pushed his hand away, stumbled to my feet, and ran off to find a cab. I didn't dare waste another second.

When I reached the hospital, I immediately shoved the card into the hands of the doctor in charge. "The money is here! Please, operate on my mom!"

But he shook his head. "It's too late. There's nothing we can do."

I followed his gaze. Isabelle was lying on the hospital bed. Her body had already turned purple, and her breathing was faint.

Her veined hand reached toward me.

I broke down crying and dropped to my knees beside her, gripping her hand. "Mom, please hold on. I won't let anything happen to you. You're the only family I have left in this world..."

"Audrey... I'm leaving now. I can't keep being a burden to you." Isabelle's eyes were already losing focus.

A final tear slipped down her cheek.

My phone suddenly started vibrating violently. It was a message from myself three years in the future.

"What happened to Mom? Is something wrong with Mom?"

My hands trembled as I replied. "I'm sorry. I still couldn't save Mom."

I turned off my phone and stared at Isabelle's limp hand through my tears.

Just like when I was a little girl, I buried my face against her chest.

I felt the warmth of her body slowly fading away. "Mom, take me with you..."

...

After the wedding ended, Adrian couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

He gently removed Sophia's hand from his arm. "I want to go to the hospital and check on Audrey."

Before Sophia could stop him, he got into his car and sped toward the hospital.

The moment he pulled to a stop, a deafening crash rang out. A body had fallen from the high-rise and slammed onto the hood of his car.

Through the windshield, now cracked like a spiderweb, a familiar face appeared...