Chapter 1

On the other end of the line, Arnold Greenwood went completely silent for a second.

"Where are you?"

"At… Bailey's house," I said, my voice shaking from the stabbing pain shooting through my arm. Cold sweat ran down my face.

"Stay there. Don't move. I'm coming right now!"

His voice faded in my ears, and before I could say anything else, everything went black.

When I opened my eyes again, all I saw was the blinding white hospital ceiling and Arnold's angry face.

There were dark shadows under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept all night.

"Hey. How do you feel?"

I shifted, and a wave of pain shot up my right arm, making me suck in a breath.

"The doctor says your right arm is shattered. Even if it heals well, you'll never hold a paintbrush again."

Arnold's eyes were red as he muttered under his breath, "You're one of the smartest people I know. How could you let Bailey waste ten years of your life?"

I forced a weak smile that hurt more than crying. I didn't even have the strength to argue.

"That moron… I swear I'll end him right now!" Arnold stood up, ready to storm off.

I quickly grabbed his arm. "Don't. Please, I'm begging you."

I didn't want anything to do with Bailey anymore, and I sure didn't want Arnold dragged into it.

Arnold looked at my pale face, then slammed his fist against the wall. "Fine. You just focus on getting better."

He left so fast that he forgot his phone.

I got up to take it to him. Limping past the VIP ward area, I froze when I saw someone I never expected—Bailey.

He was clutching a test report, walking quickly.

We ran right into each other. His eyes landed on my arm in a cast, and for a moment, he looked stunned.

"Cynthia? What are you doing here? What happened to your arm?"

I turned slightly, avoiding his gaze. "It's nothing."

He frowned and reached out like he was going to check my arm.

I stepped back, out of his reach.

"Are you still mad at me?" he asked, hesitating. "Come on. Let me see. How did you hurt yourself?"

I couldn't believe he had the nerve to ask. Without answering, I tried to walk around him.

But he moved to block me and grabbed my other hand. "Okay, I admit I overreacted. I shouldn't have said those things to you.

"But you have to understand me, don't you? I didn't know she was pregnant last year. And to calm you down, I went too far with her…

"We were both wrong. Now it's time to make it right. Lucy's got anemia from her current pregnancy, and I remember you two have the same blood type. You should donate to her."

My mind went completely blank. I stared at him, not believing what I'd just heard. "Can't you see the state I'm in? And you want me to give her my blood?"

"It's just an arm injury," he said, trying to pull me along. "Donating blood won't kill you."