Chapter 5

Charlotte woke up in a hospital bed. Not as a doctor, but as a patient. Again. The irony was a bitter pill. Her ribs were broken, her lung was punctured, and her right hand-her surgeon' s hand-was shattered.

Hector Park had saved her life. He had stayed until she was stable, leaving his card with a simple note: "If you need anything."

Barbara was by her side, her face a mixture of grief and fury. The police had been by. The case was closed. Lack of evidence. The penthouse' s security cameras had mysteriously malfunctioned. The driver of the car, Hector, was the only witness, and his testimony was deemed unreliable due to his business rivalry with Everett.

It was a perfect stitch-up. Everett had erased it all.

A few days later, a glossy invitation arrived. It was for a gala celebrating Kaylynn's securing of the grant. The one she' d destroyed their family for. A handwritten note was tucked inside.

Come. Or the video of Julianne finds its way to every news outlet in the country.

She had no choice.

The gala was a glittering affair, a monument to Everett' s power and Kaylynn' s ambition. Charlotte walked in, a ghost at the feast, her arm in a sling, her face pale.

The whispers followed her. "That's her." "The surgeon who tried to trap Everett Spears." "The homewrecker."

Kaylynn took the stage, radiant in a diamond necklace that Charlotte recognized as one Everett had given her on their first anniversary.

"I want to thank Everett for his unwavering support," Kaylynn cooed into the microphone. "And I want to clear up a rumor."

She gestured to the large screen behind her. A picture of Charlotte and Everett appeared-a candid shot from years ago, laughing together on a beach.

"This woman," Kaylynn said, her voice dripping with venom, "has been stalking my fiancé. She claims they were married, a pathetic lie to try and get her hands on his fortune."

The screen changed. A new image appeared. It was a marriage certificate. Bearing the names Everett Spears and Kaylynn Cline.

The room gasped.

Charlotte stared, her heart turning to ice. It couldn't be. Their marriage... it was real. She had the license, the photos, the memories.

Kaylynn laughed, a triumphant, ugly sound. "Oh, don't look so shocked, Charlotte. The one he gave you was a fake. Did you really think the Spears family would let him marry a nobody like you?"

Her words were a physical blow. The entire foundation of her life crumbled into dust. The love, the promises, the family they had built-it was all a lie. A cruel, elaborate game.

"He was just playing with you," Kaylynn sneered, stepping down from the stage. She leaned in close, her breath hot and foul. "And now, the game is over."

The last thread of Charlotte' s control snapped. She swung her good hand, slapping Kaylynn across the face.

Kaylynn stumbled back, a hand to her cheek, a shocked expression on her face. Then, she crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

The next thing Charlotte knew, she was in a cold, dark basement. Everett stood before her, his face a thunderous mask of fury.

A phone was thrust in her face. It was a live video call. Barbara was in Julianne's hospital room, crying. A man stood over Julianne's bed, his hand on the switch of her ventilator.

"Apologize to Kaylynn," Everett's voice was a low growl. "Or I'll have him pull the plug."

"Everett, please," Charlotte sobbed, falling to her knees. "Don't. She's all I have left."

"Apologize."

"I'm sorry," she choked out, tears streaming down her face. "I'm so sorry." She slapped her own face, again and again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"On your knees," he commanded. "Beg."

She knelt, the cold concrete biting into her skin. "Please... I'm begging you."

Kaylynn, who had miraculously recovered, stepped forward, a malicious glint in her eye. She put a hand on Everett's arm. "Darling, that's enough. You're scaring her."

He looked down at her, his expression softening instantly. "You're too kind, Kaylynn."

On the phone screen, the man's hand moved away from the ventilator.

Charlotte collapsed, a trembling heap on the floor.

Everett looked down at her, his eyes cold and distant. "Kaylynn is a brilliant scientist. You are a surgeon. Her hands create the future. Your hands just... cut things."

He nodded to Kaylynn. "She hit you. It's only fair you return the favor." He picked up a heavy-looking trophy from a nearby shelf-an award for humanitarianism-and handed it to her.

"Break her hand," he said. "The one she uses to operate."