Chapter 3

Ava drove her rattling old car, tears blurring the road.

She had fled the estate, needing to escape the crushing weight of Liam's rejection.

The cake, her last desperate offering, discarded like trash.

Her heart felt like a lead weight in her chest.

Suddenly, a figure darted into the street.

Chloe Vance, dressed in jogging attire, seemingly out of nowhere.

Ava slammed on the brakes, her tires screeching on the pavement.

She swerved, but it was too late.

A sickening thud.

The car lurched to a stop.

Ava stared in horror. Chloe lay on the ground, moaning.

"Oh my god, Chloe!" Ava fumbled with her seatbelt, hands shaking.

She rushed out. "Are you okay?"

Before Chloe could answer, Liam's black SUV screeched to a halt beside them.

He must have been following Ava. Or Chloe.

He leaped out, his face a mask of fury.

"Ava! What have you done?"

He knelt beside Chloe, his voice frantic. "Chloe, darling, can you hear me?"

Chloe groaned, clutching her side. "My... my stomach. She hit me, Liam. She tried to kill me."

"No! I didn't! She ran out!" Ava cried, but Liam wasn't listening.

He glared at Ava, his eyes blazing with accusation.

"You venomous snake! First my family, now you try to kill the one person who brings me any comfort?"

He scooped Chloe into his arms.

"You'll pay for this, Ava. I swear you will."

He gently placed Chloe in his SUV and sped off towards the hospital.

Ava was left standing there, trembling.

The police arrived, summoned by a bystander.

She stammered through her explanation.

Later, at the hospital, Liam cornered her.

His security guards flanked him, ensuring she couldn't leave.

"If anything happens to Chloe," he hissed, his face inches from hers, "I will personally ensure your life is a misery so profound, you'll beg for death."

She was forced to wait in a sterile corridor, under guard.

Hours passed.

Finally, Dr. Ramirez, the ER doctor, approached Liam. Ava strained to hear.

"Mr. Walker, Ms. Vance has significant internal injuries. One of her kidneys is severely damaged. She needs a transplant, urgently."

Liam's head snapped towards Ava.

A cold, predatory glint in his eyes.

"A kidney?" he repeated, his voice dangerously soft.

Dr. Ramirez nodded. "We need to find a match immediately."

Liam looked at Ava. "Test her."

"Mr. Walker, we can't just-"

"She's my wife," Liam cut in, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Test. Her."

Ava felt a chill crawl down her spine.

She was a match. Of course, she was. The universe had a sick sense of humor.

Liam approached her, a consent form in his hand.

"Your parents took my family," he said, his voice devoid of emotion.

"The least you can do is save the woman I care about. Sign it."

Ava stared at him, her mind numb. "Liam, please..."

"Sign it, Ava. Or I'll make your remaining days, however few they may be, an even greater hell than they already are. I'll make you wish your parents had taken you with them."

His eyes were like chips of ice.

She remembered a time, long ago, when she'd cut her hand badly in their kitchen.

Liam had panicked, rushing her to the ER, his face etched with worry, his touch gentle.

He had held her hand, whispering reassurances.

That Liam was gone. This man was a stranger, a monster of his own making.

Her hand shaking, she took the pen.

The cold metal of the pen felt like a shackle.

She signed her name, her kidney, her future, away.

As they prepped her for surgery, she saw Liam through a gap in the curtains, his hand gently stroking Chloe's hair as Chloe lay in the adjacent bay.

The man who once vowed to protect her was now carving her up to save another.

The irony was a bitter pill.