Chapter 4 4

The sharp, sterile scent of hospital bleach mixed with the bitter aroma of black coffee dragged Emaline back to consciousness.

Her eyelids felt like sandpaper as she forced them open. The heavy fever that had boiled her blood the night before had broken, leaving her body hollowed out and weak. She stared at the ceiling for a moment, orienting herself.

She turned her head.

Daxton was sitting casually on the beige leather sofa by the window. He was holding his phone out in front of him, the bright ring light attached to the back of the device blindingly harsh in the dim hospital room.

Emaline tried to push herself up. The hospital bed let out a loud, metallic squeak.

Daxton's eyes darted to her. A wicked, brilliant smile spread across his face. He adjusted the angle of the phone, pointing the camera directly at himself.

"Look at that, everyone," Daxton said, his voice dripping with theatrical charm. "Our resilient Sleeping Beauty is finally awake."

Emaline's stomach dropped. She looked at the screen of his phone. The tiny red LIVE icon was flashing in the corner. The viewer count at the top of the screen was spinning like a slot machine, already passing one hundred thousand.

He was broadcasting on Instagram Live.

Fury spiked through Emaline's veins. She grabbed the plastic water pitcher from her bedside table and hurled it directly at Daxton's head.

"Turn that off!" Emaline snarled, her voice raspy but vicious. "I don't need your pathetic PR stunts!"

Daxton caught the pitcher effortlessly with his free hand. He tapped the screen, muting the microphone. He stood up and walked over to her bed, his expression suddenly hard and calculating.

"This isn't a stunt, Emaline. It's a weapon," Daxton whispered fiercely. He turned the screen toward her.

The comment section was a blur of rapid-fire text.

Clayton Caldwell is a monster.

He left her to die!

Justice for Emaline!

"Clayton controls the media," Daxton said, his blue eyes locked onto hers. "He froze your money. He's trying to erase you. This is the only way to break his narrative. You need the public on your side."

Before Emaline could process the strategy, a loud crash echoed through the room.

The heavy wooden door of the VIP suite was kicked open with brutal force.

Ambrose Garrett, Emaline's older brother and the Chief of Neurology at Mount Sinai, stormed into the room. His white lab coat flared behind him. His face was twisted in an ugly sneer of absolute rage.

Ambrose marched straight toward Daxton, pointing a manicured finger at his face.

"You shameless, low-class actor," Ambrose spat, his voice echoing loudly in the room. "Turn off that camera right now. You are dragging the Garrett family name through the mud!"

Daxton didn't flinch. He smoothly lowered the phone, holding it at waist height. The lens was perfectly angled to capture Ambrose's red, furious face. With a subtle swipe of his thumb, Daxton unmuted the microphone.

Ambrose turned his back on Daxton and loomed over Emaline's bed. He looked down at his sister. There was no relief in his eyes that she had survived the night. There was only deep, bitter resentment.

"Stop this embarrassing circus, Emaline," Ambrose commanded, his tone dripping with disgust. "You survived. You're fine. Now sign the divorce papers and get out of Clayton's life."

Emaline felt a physical coldness spread from her chest to her fingertips. She stared at her own flesh and blood.

"I almost died on that operating table yesterday," Emaline said, her voice eerily calm. "And you call it a circus?"

Ambrose waved his hand dismissively, as if her near-death experience was a minor inconvenience. "Crista had a severe panic attack because of your little stunt. She is terrified. The only way she will feel safe is if you completely step aside and disappear."

The words hung in the air. Through Daxton's phone, over a hundred thousand people heard a brother prioritize his adopted sister's panic attack over his biological sister's life. The live chat exploded into a frenzy of outrage.

Emaline let out a dry, hollow laugh. "So, my life is worth less than Crista being startled by a thunderstorm?"

"You owe her!" Ambrose roared, slamming his fist onto the metal railing of Emaline's bed. "You pushed her down those stairs five years ago! You ruined her legs! You will spend the rest of your miserable life paying for what you did to her!"

At the mention of the stairs, the phantom pain in Emaline's amputated left leg flared so violently she almost vomited. Her fingers dug into the mattress, her knuckles turning bone-white.

They all believed the lie. They all thought she was the monster.

Emaline took a deep, shuddering breath. She looked Ambrose dead in the eye. The last shred of familial love inside her withered and turned to ash.

"I already had my lawyer secure the ER security footage and your precious CEO's signed Refusal of Treatment form. It is airtight evidence of medical neglect and attempted murder," Emaline said, her voice ringing out clear and sharp.

She looked past Ambrose, staring directly into the lens of Daxton's phone.

"I want ten percent of the Caldwell Group shares. That is my price for not handing the evidence over to the District Attorney. If Clayton refuses, I will see him in criminal court."

Ambrose's jaw dropped. The sheer audacity of her demand left him momentarily speechless. Then, his face turned purple with rage.

"You greedy, psychotic bitch," Ambrose hissed. He raised his hand, aiming a vicious slap at Emaline's face.

Before his hand could descend, Daxton moved.

Daxton's hand shot out like a viper. He clamped his fingers around Ambrose's wrist. He squeezed. Hard.

Ambrose let out a sharp cry of pain, his knees buckling slightly as Daxton applied agonizing pressure to his median nerve.

Daxton looked directly into the camera, his cynical smirk returning. "And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the famous elegance of the New York elite."

Daxton shoved Ambrose backward. Ambrose stumbled and crashed onto the leather sofa. Daxton casually tapped the screen, ending the live broadcast.

The room plunged into a suffocating silence.

Ambrose scrambled to his feet, humiliated and furious. He pointed a shaking finger at Emaline.

"If you dare go after those shares, the Garrett family will destroy you. You won't be able to show your face in this city again."

Emaline didn't blink. She pointed toward the open door.

"Get out," she whispered, her eyes dead. "I have nothing left for you to take."

Ambrose sneered, turned on his heel, and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Emaline's rigid posture instantly collapsed. She sank back into the pillows, her chest heaving as she fought back a wave of nausea.

Daxton walked over to the bed. He looked down at her pale, sweating face. The smirk was gone. In its place was a look of dark, thrilling satisfaction.

"Well," Daxton murmured, his eyes gleaming. "The game just got very interesting."