Marriage Fraud? Fine—I'll Rise Higher!

"There's another cornea match for Sophie! This time, the donor is young, and they only passed away six hours ago. The corneas have already been carefully preserved," Anton Girard said.

Sophie Walker was still groggy from the fever medicine she'd taken, but she was delighted when she overheard what Anton said.

Anton was her family doctor and also a friend of her husband, Jason Gray. He'd told her before that she would be able to see the light of day again once they found a cornea match and performed the surgery.

Now, the chance she'd been waiting for had finally come!

However, Sophie's joy didn't last for long. She heard Jason say, "We don't need it!"

He spoke in fluent Faerian. His voice was pleasant, but it was laced with impatience. It was the complete opposite of the tender tone he'd used with her earlier when persuading her to take her medicine.

Jason continued, "I already told you to stop searching for cornea matches for her. Sophie doesn't need them. Things are perfect the way they are right now!"

When Sophie and Jason first came to Faeria, she hadn't known a word of Faerian. She'd need to rely on Jason to be her interpreter. She wanted to learn Faerian, but he kept saying she didn't need to because he would be her interpreter for life.

Sophie was headstrong, though. She wouldn't easily give up on something that she'd made up her mind to do. Despite Jason's objections, she'd secretly taught herself the language.

It was a thousand times more challenging for a blind person to learn something, but Sophie had managed to pick up most of the language after two years of hard work.

She had planned to wait until she'd mastered Faerian to surprise Jason with this. Yet now, Jason was the one who'd given her a shock first.

Sophie's blood ran cold when she heard Jason's words and understood them. She'd felt warm just minutes ago because of her fever, but she was chilled to the bone.

He knew better than anyone how much she wanted to treat her eyes. Why had he told Anton that she didn't need the corneas?

Judging from their conversation, this wasn't the first time Anton had found a match. It seemed Jason had turned him down each time. Why had he done this?

Sophie felt like a fist had clamped tightly around her heart. It ached so badly that she was finding it hard to breathe. She couldn't help clenching the sheets beneath her tightly as her hands trembled.

"The longer Sophie goes on like this, the lower the chances of recovery. You've had plenty of opportunities over the past two years to treat her.

"Why do you keep refusing to let her undergo surgery?" Anton asked. He did not understand Jason's motives. "You and Sophie are already married. Why are you still so hung up on Geraldine?"

"Shut up! That's none of your business!" Jason roared, sounding furious.

"You're being unfair to Sophie!" Anton raised his voice as well. Both men were agitated. "You know Geraldine was the one who stole Sophie's corneas, yet you chose to hide her crimes! Even if you have feelings for Geraldine, you can't treat Sophie like this because of her!"

Geraldine Samson was the one who'd stolen Sophie's corneas, and Jason had known this all along. Yet, he'd kept the truth from Sophie because of his feelings for Geraldine!

When did Jason have a change of heart? Why had Sophie never noticed before that day?

The blood drained from Sophie's already pale face. She squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth, trying her best to hold back her tears.

Sophie and Geraldine had been swapped at birth. Sophie had been raised by the Samson family in Rivervale until she was ten. Only then did she learn she wasn't a Samson at all. Her adoptive father, Michael Samson, had later brought the true Samson heiress, Geraldine, home.

After that, their identities were restored. Sophie went to live with her birth mother, Tricia Walker, while Geraldine stayed with the Samsons as their heiress.

The hospital's negligence was what had caused the baby swap, yet Geraldine stubbornly believed Sophie had stolen her life. She held a grudge against the latter for it.

Even after Sophie left the Samson family, Geraldine continued to bully her. During her loneliest moments, it was Sophie's mother, Tricia, and childhood friend, Jason, who'd stayed by her side.

Jason was gentle, thoughtful, protective, and doting. He'd given Sophie all the security she needed. Naturally, she'd fallen for him, and they'd gotten together when she was 20.

However, shortly after that, Sophie was abducted. When she regained consciousness, she'd already gone blind.

She'd been devastated. It was Jason who'd stayed by her side during those darkest moments. Later, he'd even defied his family to marry her. Then, they'd moved from Rivervale to Livera for her treatment. They ended up settling down there.

Sophie had always thought Jason was her salvation. Now, however, she realized it was all a lie!

He knew Geraldine had stolen her corneas, yet he'd never told her. He'd even refused to let her undergo surgery to restore her vision!

He liked Geraldine, so he'd helped her. He'd deceived and hurt Sophie without a care. He'd trampled all over her love for him. The two years of what she thought was a blissful marriage had been a scam from day one!

She should've thought of this ages ago. Why would Jason choose her over an heiress like Geraldine?

The ringing of a phone interrupted Jason and Anton's argument. The ringtone was distinct from the one Jason had set for his other contacts.

Sophie remembered it. Whenever it rang, Jason would step away to answer the call. She'd trusted him unconditionally in the past, so she'd never suspected anything was wrong with it or him.

But now that she knew the truth, her gut told her that this special ringtone had to do with Geraldine.

Sure enough, Jason hurried back inside shortly after having stepped out to answer the call.

He said urgently, "Something's happened to Geri. I need to go back to Dalea immediately! If Sophie asks where I've gone, tell her something urgent happened at the company back home and that I had to deal with it."

Sophie listened as Jason told Anton how to lie to her. Her hands balled into tight fists underneath the covers, and her nails dug into her palms.

So, had he actually returned to Dalea to be with Geraldine each time he'd told her he needed to deal with something urgent back at home?

Hatred and anger surged in Sophie's heart. In that instant, she found Jason to be such a hypocrite. She felt like she'd never actually known him.

Jason had no idea Sophie was awake and that she'd understood his conversation with Anton. He hurried off after telling Anton what to do.

Anton sighed heavily but ultimately said nothing as he left the room.

Sophie waited for a while. Once she was sure Anton was gone, she felt around for her phone, which was on the bedside table. Then, she got out of bed and locked the door.

Devastation and disappointment washed over her the moment the lock clicked into place. The tears that she'd been holding back finally burst forth.

She never would've thought that the man she'd married—the man she'd loved throughout her youth—had been lying to her from the start!

Sophie wanted to cut ties with Jason right then and there. She wanted to demand to know why he had done this to her before leaving him without another look back.

However, she had yet to regain her vision, and she didn't have much money with her. She was also trapped abroad. She would be on her own there without anyone to help her if she confronted Jason now. It'd be hard for her to deal with any trouble if she ran into it.

So, she knew she had to stay calm. She had to act like she knew nothing. Everything else could wait until she was safely back in Dalea!

Sophie gripped her phone tightly at that thought.

When she was 18, Tricia had abruptly passed away in a freak accident, leaving her heartbroken. When going through Tricia's belongings, Sophie had discovered a ring and a letter.

In the letter, Tricia had written that Sophie could call the number indicated if she ever encountered any difficulties. Either that, or she could take the ring to the Walker family in Jeriton.

Sophie had guessed that Tricia had a significant connection to the Walker family. However, she also knew that Tricia had never reached out to the Walkers over the years, no matter how hard things got. That meant she didn't want to seek them out.

Sophie hadn't wanted to do anything that went against Tricia's wishes, so she'd never thought of going to the Walker family, no matter how tough things were.

As for the ring, Sophie had given it to Jason as a token during their wedding. She'd never told him about the Walker family, though.

Before leaving him, she would get the ring back. But now, she was out of options. She had to dial the number.