Chapter 3

"Your dad… is dead," I squeezed out.

She scoffed furiously. "You want him dead so badly that you can inherit the 30% of the company shares he promised to leave to his son-in-law, huh?"

"I—" I could no longer breathe.

She suddenly kicked me in the abdomen before summoning the bodyguards waiting outside.

"Smash everything in this room!"

"No! Victoria!" I cried out and lunged forward, but two bodyguards pinned me down.

They picked up Dad's heart monitor, vital-sign monitors, and other medical equipment and threw everything onto the floor.

Dad let out a scream as the bodyguards dragged him straight out of bed. They tore apart the sheets and blankets as well, ripping everything to shreds and tossing them onto the floor.

"Dad! Victoria! My dad has osteoporosis! He's old and can't take this kind of treatment! Tell them to stop!"

My arms strained painfully as I struggled against the bodyguards, but I still couldn't get anywhere near Dad, who had been dumped onto the floor.

Victoria looked at Dad. For a moment, there was a flicker of remorse in her eyes. But when she saw Lawrence's memorial portrait lying shattered on the floor, her eyes reddened with fury again.

"You had no issue with cursing my dad, didn't you? I guess you do know that you should be joking around with a person's dad's life, huh?"

"I didn't lie to you, Victoria!"

But she only looked even more enraged.

"I'm taking back the demolition compensation. Let's see whose dad dies first!"

"Victoria!"

I tried to grab her, but she shoved me to the floor without mercy. The door slammed shut in my face.

I scrambled back to Dad and helped him up.

"Dad! Dad! Open your eyes! Don't scare me!"

With trembling hands, I called 911.

…

"The patient is in critical condition. He needs surgery immediately. You need to settle the payment as soon as possible, Mr. Jamison," the doctor told me.

When I received the printed bill, my hands trembled as I stared at the amount. It was even more than the cost of Lawrence's surgery.

Cold sweat broke out across my forehead.

I couldn't afford to cover the amount with my savings. And Victoria had taken back the demolition compensation.

I had no choice but to call Victoria, only to realize my number had been blocked yet again. My only option was to go to the company.

At the office, Victoria was in the middle of the celebratory party she'd organized for Simon. I, her lawfully wedded husband, dropped to my knees with a heavy thud right in front of him, in full view of everyone.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Richards. My dad is the one who's in critical condition right now. Please, Ms. Richards, I'm begging you. Have mercy and give me the money to save his life!"

I even bowed low and practically prostrated myself before them.

Everyone stared at the scene in stunned silence. I was Victoria's husband, yet I was kneeling on the floor.

Meanwhile, Simon, her personal assistant who had only joined the company a few months ago, was standing there, dressed in designer clothes, casually draping an arm around Victoria's waist.

"Eli," Victoria called out to me, her voice imperious. "I already gave you the money for your dad's medical bills. When you refused to accept it, I went out of my way to give you an even larger demolition compensation payout to make up for it.

"However, not only did you not show any gratitude, but you even cursed my dad to die. I won't be giving you any more money."

I raised my head, fighting back tears, and handed her the medical report from the doctor.

"Ms. Richards, my dad's surgery must be conducted in one hour. If we miss that window, it'll be too late to operate on him!"

After seeing how serious his condition was, Victoria froze in shock.

"Huh? But your dad's condition isn't that serious at all." Simon suddenly took the report from her. "My dad went through the same thing, Mr. Jamison. The doctor said he just needed some bed rest."

"My dad has gotten an infection from the bone damage! He needs emergency surgery, and it can't wait!" I insisted.

"Oh, come on. I'm sure the hospital must've just exaggerated things just to get more money from you. If you don't believe me, I can call my dad right now. He chose the conservative treatment and stuck to bed rest back then, and now, he's as healthy as a horse. He even goes hiking!"