Chapter 3

It was Natalie. She was my junior back when Austin and I were first starting the company.

Her parents were deaf-mute, and she had a disabled younger brother. Her entire family relied on her income.

Seeing that she was honest and hardworking, I had mentored her personally and helped her secure her position in New York.

Even after I left the company, she always remembered my kindness.

"Chloe," seeing how disheveled I was, her eyes instantly welled up with tears. It took her a long moment to speak. "You need to run. Now."

I frowned. "Why?"

She wrung her hands, seemingly making a massive decision. She grit her teeth. "Mr. Vance's assistant came to the office this morning. He told Austin that the wedding with Tiffany has to be postponed."

"Apparently, Tiffany's grandmother was in a terrible car accident. She needs an immediate blood transfusion. She has AB-negative blood---the rarest type. The hospital has no stock, and she's on life support."

"If her grandmother dies, the family will be in mourning, and they can't hold a wedding for a long time. Without the wedding, Austin's company won't get the funding."

"But Chloe, you..."

Her face went pale, unable to finish her sentence.

Ah. I had AB-negative blood.

I closed my eyes. "Don't worry. I won't agree to it. They can't exactly kidnap me and force a needle into my vein."

"But Austin said the company can't wait. He said even if he has to drain his own blood, he'll save her! Right now, he ordered me to bring you to the hospital by any means necessary!"

How pathetic. Austin was so desperate that he was willing to trade my life for his company.

But if Natalie let me go, she would lose her job. Her entire family would starve.

New York was too small, and I had no money to run away.

I let out a bitter laugh.

"It's fine. Take me there."

Despite their protests, they couldn't change my mind.

Leaning against the car seat, I felt completely drained. My stomach was so numb that I couldn't feel the pain anymore. The cold sweat had dried, leaving my back freezing.

Tears silently rolled down my cheeks.

This was the man I had planned to spend the rest of my life with. I loved him with all my heart for eight years, and this was my reward.

I stared at my phone, a mixture of grief and hatred bubbling up inside me.

Mom, I'm sorry.

I have to break my promise for the second time...

For the past few years, whenever we went out to dinner, Austin was always late. Who would have thought he would be waiting at the hospital entrance so early today?

Seeing me arrive, he let out a sigh of relief. Just as he was hesitating on how to speak, Tiffany rushed out from behind him, her eyes red.

She grabbed my sleeve like a maniac and dragged me inside, screaming hysterically, "Quick! Take her straight to the operating room!"

"Tell the doctors to take as much as they need! As long as my grandmother is saved, I don't care if she drains to death!"