Chapter 3

Jacob sounded furious over the phone, and Simon, who was standing nearby, fanned the flames.

"See, Jacob? I told you that you don't have to worry about appeasing her. She'll come crawling back to admit she's wrong on her own. We've put up with her for too long, and now she takes our patience for granted. She's nothing like Charlene, who's the sweetest, most thoughtful person ever."

My stomach was killing me. I could barely speak above a whisper. "My stomach is bleeding, Jacob. I need money to pay for my treatment and hospitalization fees, and all of my savings are in our joint account. I need you to authorize my withdrawal."

Before Jacob could respond, I heard Riley remind him in a low voice, "Jacob, don't let her fool you. Daphne only ate a bit of the ghost peppers I put in her food. Could it really be that serious?"

The next moment, Jacob's icy voice rang out. "Daphne Lloyd, you know I hate being lied to more than anything. We've really been far too tolerant with you.

"How dare you fake a medical condition just to ruin our trip? You're wasting all of our time! We're really disappointed in you, Daphne. Use this time to reflect on what you've done!"

The call ended, and the silence was deafening.

Without the deposit, I couldn't be admitted into the hospital.

I fished a debit card out of my bag. A long time ago, Jacob handed it to me with a solemn expression, saying, "I've saved 143,000 dollars in here. The PIN is your birthday. It's the money I set aside for our future."

Clutching the card, I stumbled toward the nearest bank branch. However, when I went to the counter to withdraw some money, the teller's response sent a chill through me.

She told me that there wasn't any money in the account. The 143,000 dollars had been withdrawn a month ago.

That was the day Charlene returned to the country.

I still had the written promise Jacob had sent me because of her return. Back then, I'd gotten jealous when I heard he'd gone to the airport to pick her up and take her out for a meal. When he found out how I felt, he wrote a long letter filled with his promises, just to reassure me.

He said that I was the only woman he loved. He promised that if he were to ever betray me, the 143,000 dollars in the account was his way of making it up to me.

I'd foolishly believed him.

Now I knew he'd already taken the money out even before he'd written those promises.

"I want to take out a loan." The pain in my stomach made my voice tremble violently.

Jacob had spent three years lavishing me with care and affection, but it was now a cage that trapped me in a sea of desperation.

My only chance of survival was to fend for myself.

I had to live.

The teller looked at me with a hint of pity in her eyes. Her hands moved quickly as she processed the paperwork.

By the time I'd completed the process, received the loan, paid the hospital bill, and finally settled into my hospital bed, two hours had passed. Slowly, the medication trickled through my veins. Only then did I realize that my body had grown numb from the pain.

As the tension seeped out of me, exhaustion took over. I let myself sink into slumber.

In my dream, Jacob was still as tender as ever. "Daphne, from now on, I'll take good care of you. No matter what happens, I'll never leave you to face things alone."

But later, the Jacob in my dream stopped saying my name. He called out Charlene's instead.

When I woke up, my pillow was soaked with tears. I looked up and realized that my IV drip had finished some time ago. Because I hadn't called a nurse in time, blood had already begun to backflow into the IV tubing.

"Let me call a nurse for you," the middle-aged woman sitting beside the neighboring bed offered. "Why are you here all alone?"

I turned my head. A little girl lay in the bed beside me, surrounded by family members who had come to care for her.

I thought of Jacob and the others, then forced a bitter smile and told a lie.

"I'm traveling alone. Everyone's too far away to come. But it's okay. I can manage on my own."

I didn't want any of them in my life anymore.