Chapter 1

I was slipping in and out of consciousness. The glass in my back was about to take the last of my life.

Derek had shoved me away with all his strength.

I had nothing left. I lost my balance and hit the cold marble hallway floor.

Something tore in my back with a dull, wet sound.

The impact drove the glass in my back deeper into my organs.

"It hurts so much—"

I curled up in a pool of blood. The surgical lights overhead blurred, and then everything went dark.

"Nurse..."

A nurse at the station glanced at me, then looked down and went back to typing.

"Please, help me up. Get me a doctor..."

No one answered. Some were touching up their makeup. The others turned away and put on headphones.

"Nurse..."

"Princess, get up and find yourself a seat in the waiting area!" one of them finally said, unable to hide her irritation.

"Dr. Hart made it crystal clear. Anyone who gives you special treatment because you're her daughter will be punished under the family rules!

"Last week, Dr. James Allen gave you a glass of water during your premarital checkup. The Chief sent him to guard corpses in the morgue for 'trying to climb the social ladder'!"

I froze.

James had only given me the water because he saw that my blood sugar was low.

My mother's so-called "absolute impartiality" had ruined someone's career.

I opened my mouth to explain.

But the movement pulled at the wound in my back. Blood rose in my throat, and cold sweat soaked my clothes.

The nurses kept up their snide remarks.

"Dr. Hart may be strict, but even the Don can't fault her for being fair!"

"Seriously. She'll punish an attending physician without a second thought. If people like us mess up, we might be working the street in the red-light district tomorrow!"

Another nurse lowered her voice and smiled. "Besides, the Don made her chief with a single word. The council's been waiting for her to slip up.

"The harder she is on her own daughter, the more loyal she looks. We're just helping her put on a show for the council."

The floor was icy beneath me, but the blood pouring from my back was warm. I breathed faster and faster, yet my mind was strangely clear.

It was adrenaline. I knew I was burning through the last of my strength.

Once it was gone, I'd die right here.

I dug my nails into the gaps between the floor tiles and tried desperately to push myself up.

But each time I tried, I fell back to the floor, weaker than before.

"Oh my God!"

A young gang member in the waiting area pointed at me and covered his mouth.

"What's going on? There's blood all over the floor under her..."

The nurses finally looked alarmed, but they kept passing the responsibility around. None dared to come over.

"You go, you go—"

"I'm scared..."

Finally, Lucy, a student nurse, rushed over.

The moment she touched my back, her face went white.

"God... there's something under here..."

She pressed lightly with her fingers, and I gasped in pain.

"There's something hard under her skin..." Lucy's voice shook.

"This isn't a scrape. There's something stuck in there... Is she bleeding internally?"

She jumped up and stumbled toward the emergency room doors.

Her frantic pounding echoed down the hall.

"Dr. Hart! Please come out and look at Evelyn!"