Chapter 5

The emergency room was a blur of bright lights and frantic voices. They pulled Ivy from my arms and rushed her into a trauma room. I was left standing in the chaos, covered in her blood and my own, my world shattered into a million irreparable pieces.

A doctor, a kind-faced woman with tired eyes, came out a few minutes later. Her expression told me everything I needed to know before she even spoke.

"I'm so sorry," she said gently. "We did everything we could. She's gone."

"No," I whispered, shaking my head. "No, you're wrong. Check again."

I tried to push past her, to get to Ivy, to will her back to life with the sheer force of my love. But a nurse held me back firmly.

"There's nothing more we can do," the doctor said, her voice filled with pity.

The fight went out of me. I collapsed onto a nearby chair, a hollow, echoing scream trapped in my chest. It was my fault. I hadn't protected her. I had failed her.

A new feeling began to smolder in the pit of my stomach, hot and black. It wasn't just grief. It was rage. Pure, undiluted hatred. They would pay. Kaitlin. Kyle. And Hayden. They would all pay.

I pulled out my spare phone, the one I kept for emergencies, and dialed 911.

"I want to report a murder."

But before I could say another word, a hand clamped down on my shoulder. It was Kaitlin Russo.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said, her voice a soft, venomous whisper.

"You," I snarled, my grief momentarily eclipsed by my fury. "You did this."

"I did nothing," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "But if you make a fuss, I can't guarantee your brother's safety. Accidents happen in hospitals all the time. Especially to patients who are already... compromised."

The threat hung in the air, cold and sharp. Ezra. He was still a patient at Hayden's hospital. Still vulnerable.

The rage I felt was a physical force. It clawed its way up my throat, and I lunged at her, my hands closing around her slender neck. I wanted to squeeze the life out of her, to see the arrogance drain from her eyes.

"Charlotte!"

Hayden's voice was a whip crack. He pulled me off her, his grip like iron on my arms. Kaitlin stumbled back, gasping for air, a look of faux terror on her face.

"She's insane, Hayden!" she cried. "She tried to kill me!"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Hayden yelled at me, his face contorted with fury.

"She's dead!" I screamed, pointing a shaking finger at the trauma room. "Ivy is dead! Your monster and his friends killed her!"

Hayden's face went pale. "Dead?" He looked genuinely shocked, as if the thought that his actions could have real, fatal consequences had never occurred to him.

Kaitlin and Kyle, who had followed her in, immediately began to deny everything. "She's lying! The girl had a fit or something! It had nothing to do with us!"

Just then, the kind doctor returned. "We've reviewed the preliminary report," she said, looking deeply uncomfortable. "It appears your sister had a pre-existing heart condition. The cause of death seems to be cardiac arrest."

Hayden had already gotten to her. In the space of minutes, he had bought the report, bought the doctor, bought the truth.

"You see?" Kaitlin said, clinging to Hayden's arm. "It was a natural death. Charlotte is just hysterical."

Hayden looked at me, his eyes cold and hard. "I think you've caused enough trouble for one night." He gestured to the two security guards who had materialized at his side. "She's overwrought. Take her to a quiet room to calm down. Restrain her if you have to."

I stared at him, my heart turning to stone. He wasn't just covering for them. He was punishing me for daring to speak the truth. He was burying my sister under a mountain of his lies.

As the guards dragged me away, Kaitlin leaned in close to Hayden, a triumphant smile on her face. "I don't feel so well, Hayden," she murmured, placing a delicate hand on her stomach. "I think the stress might be affecting the baby."

The baby. Their baby. The child conceived from my pain, nurtured by my tears.

The world swam before my eyes. I felt a surge of bile rise in my throat, and I retched, vomiting onto the pristine hospital floor.

The last thing I saw before I fainted was Hayden's face, a mask of deep concern directed not at me, but at the monster carrying his child.

I woke up in a different hospital room. Hayden was asleep in a chair beside my bed. He looked exhausted, his usually perfect hair disheveled, his expensive suit rumpled.

He stirred as I sat up. "Char," he said, his voice raspy. "How are you feeling?"

He tried to sound sincere, but I could see the cold calculation in his eyes.

"I've been a fool, Char," he said, moving to the edge of my bed. "Kaitlin... she's not you. It was just a fling. A mistake. It's you I want. It's always been you."

I almost laughed. He thought he could just erase everything with a few pretty, empty words.

My silence seemed to agitate him. "I'll get rid of her," he promised, his voice earnest. "I'll send her away. We can go back to how things were."

I looked at him, my face a blank mask. I had to play his game, for Ezra's sake.

"I need to see Ezra," I said, my voice flat. "I want to transfer him to another hospital. A better one."

He seemed relieved by my practical request. "Of course. Anything. I'll make the arrangements immediately." He didn't question my motives. In his arrogance, he believed he had won. He believed I was still his to control.

He left to make the calls. A few minutes later, his assistant came running in, his face pale.

"Mr. Bridges," he stammered. "It's Ezra Tucker. He's... he's gone. He's not in his room."