Chapter 3

The man who once swore to protect me from all harm would not even spare me five minutes to explain.

I stared at the massive wedding portrait in the living room before taking it down.

It was a portrait of Chance holding me tenderly.

Tears streamed down my face. I could not believe how unworthy all those years of love had been.

I smashed it with a hammer, strike after strike. It tore and vanished slowly like fragments of my memory.

"Nora, you're the one I love most in this world. I'll only ever love you. We'll be together, till death do us part," he had vowed.

What a laughable vow.

What a laughable love.

All of it, nothing but empty words.

Chance looked angry when he came back.

He grabbed my hand without warning and dragged me to the door. He said, "You're coming with me to the hospital."

"For what?" I asked.

I struggled to pull away, but he slammed me against the entryway cabinet.

"Jenny needs surgery. Your heart is a compatible match."

I froze, unable to register the fact that he wanted my heart.

"Are you out of your mind, Chance? I am your wife!"

"Ex-wife."

He pushed me away and took out a document from his suit.

"You'll do the paperwork tomorrow, and sign the organ donation agreement while you're at it," he said.

The words were printed in bold on the cover, 'Voluntary Heart Donation Application.'

The signature space for the first party was filled with Jenny Young's name. The signature space for the second party was left blank, waiting for me to take the bait.

My reflection in the glass showed how pale I was, like I was a corpse.

We had been married for eight years. I had spent the best years of my life in the Hart household to repay what I owed.

The day I carried my suitcase into the villa, I had learned how to take care of him, leaving a night-light on when he came home late from social dinners.

The fingers that had once been able to play world-class music were coated with kitchen grease.

I had done all of that.

It seemed that to Chance, I was not only a toll to repay debts, but also a 'living warehouse' from which organs could be harvested at will.

He knew that Jenny did not come back because she loved him, but he still wanted to give her my heart?

"And if I don't sign?" I asked.

He scoffed and took out his phone to play a video.

I then saw it: my parents pinned to the ground by several men in black. My mother had hair matted with blood, and my father's glasses lay shattered at his feet.

"I can make them stop anytime for the money they owe," he said.

He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at the brutal scenes.

"You don't have a choice, Nora," he said.

My body trembled with rage.

My parents were finally able to live a normal life after so many years, yet they were dragged into this nightmare!

"Chance Hart, you brute! It was your grandfather who saved me back then! How could you do this to them?!" I yelled.

He looked at me coldly, his gaze indifferent.

He knew where my softest weakness lay the whole time.

Mr. Hart had used that debt to bind me to his side back then, and Chance had used my parents' lives to force me to give up my heart.

"Alright," I said with an abrupt laugh, my tears spilling, "I'll sign."

I added, "But I want to see my parents first."

Chance squinted and stepped closer to kiss my forehead.

"That's better. I'll remarry you once Jenny's recovered," he said.

He took out his car keys and said, "Be back in half an hour, and don't try anything."

The rain grew heavier. I sat in the back seat and looked at the side of his face.

The man I had spent my youth loving was as cold as ice at that moment.

The car passed through an intersection. I suddenly lunged forward and grabbed the steering wheel.