Chapter 4

“Why are you pretending?” Greg cut me off impatiently and, in a fit of irritation, ripped open the top buttons of his shirt.

“Luanne, isn’t this what you wanted? To see that I just can’t bring myself to be cruel to you? Well, now you’ve achieved your goal. You should be happy!”

He grabbed my hand roughly and pulled me along. By the time we walked out of the hotel, the night was dark.

Greg went to fetch his car, leaving me standing next to Chloe on the steps. Looking at the resentment filling her eyes, I thought about it for a moment and decided it was necessary to explain myself.

“Chloe, you really don’t need to pull those little stunts. I didn’t come here today to steal Greg from you. Honestly, seeing you two together actually brings me a sense of relief.”

My tone was sincere, but Chloe wasn’t buying any of it. She raised her hand and slapped me hard across the face.

“Luanne, do you have any idea how much I despise this noble, saintly act of yours? Do you really think I’m going to believe your bullsh*t? As a fellow woman, I can see your love for Greg. So, there is absolutely no need to act all fake in front of me. We’ll just win him over with our own capabilities.”

The moment she said that, she turned around. Suddenly, her sharp stiletto heel missed a step, and she tumbled straight toward the edge of the staircase.

My heart skipped a beat. Subconsciously, I lunged forward to grab her, but she began to struggle against me frantically.

“Luanne, I swear I didn’t seduce Greg! He and I only got together long after you two broke up! And I wasn’t the one who told him about you checking into a hotel room with Frank, either! Please, I beg you. Let me go! It’s so high up here, and there are cars passing by. If I fall, I’ll die!”

During our frantic tug-of-war, her weight dragged me down with her just as the sharp screech of braking tires pierced through the night.

With two loud thuds, Chloe and I crashed to the ground beneath the vehicle at the same time. Inside the oncoming car, all the color drained from Greg’s face. He threw the door open and rushed over like a madman.

Chloe curled up weakly in his arms, her breath faint.

“Greg… Luanne, she… She…”

Her fingers gripped Greg’s clothes so tightly that her knuckles turned white, and two streams of tears rolled down the corners of her eyes. She didn’t say another word, but she didn’t have to.

Greg snapped his head up to look at me, his eyes filled with a burning hatred. He scooped Chloe up into his arms, then brought his foot down, grinding his boot directly onto my palm as I lay sprawled on the ground.

“If anything happens to Chloe today, I will make sure you wish you were dead!”

Thick, scalding tears crashed onto the pavement.

Greg, all I wanted was to see you one last time. Why won’t you give me even a chance to explain myself?

It felt as though a massive hand was squeezing my heart, leaving me in such excruciating pain that I could barely breathe. I had gone through so much trouble just to make this trip; I couldn’t have Greg hate me for the rest of his life. So, with my fists clenched, I forced myself to crawl up and stumbled blindly after Greg’s car.

In the hospital, Greg dragged me to a doctor.

“If you don’t have a matching blood type, draw hers! She has an O-negative blood type. As long as you can keep Chloe safe, you can draw as much as you want.”

The doctor hesitated, looking between us. “But this lady is also injured. She actually looks like she’s in worse shape than Miss Chloe. What if something goes wrong?”

Greg’s voice was ice-cold. “She’s a murderer. Even if she dies, she deserves it. Just draw the blood. If anything happens, I take full responsibility.”

Suddenly, a frantic scream echoed deep inside my mind.

“You can’t let him draw your blood! I can only preserve your physical body for twenty-four hours! You are already severely injured. If they drain your blood now, you will dissolve into ashes at any given moment! Stop him, Luanne!”

However, my arm was already pinned down against the freezing metal table by Greg’s powerful grip.