Chapter 5
When Xavier arrived with the doctor, I was barely hanging on.
My stomach had been sliced open while I was still awake, and my face was slashed and bloody.
His reddened eyes landed on me, lying in a pool of blood. His pupils shrank sharply.
“Who allowed you to touch her?”
He roared in fury and kicked over the nearest subordinate. Then, he aimed his gun at his subordinate’s head.
His subordinate couldn’t understand what had gone wrong and was trembling violently.
“Boss, it was Ms. Noella’s order.”
Bang!
The gunshot echoed sharply in the confined space.
“Get out!”
Xavier shoved the doctor aside and reached for my neck, his fingers shaking.
When he felt the weak pulse, he yanked the nearest doctor by the collar.
“Save her! If she dies, so do you!”
The doctors rushed in, panic filling their faces.
As metal tools clanged together, I turned my blurry gaze toward Xavier’s twisted expression.
“Estella…”
He gently touched my torn face, his bloodstained hand trembling. His voice cracked. “You must hold on!”
I gave him a crooked smile.
How ironic. The one who pushed me into hell now looked like he was breaking.
The strong smell of disinfectant stung my nose.
***
Xavier stared at the flashing red light above the operating room door, swallowing hard.
His shirt, still soaked in her blood, felt like needles against his skin.
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Chapter 5
Every breath brought a heavy, throbbing ache to his chest.
Suddenly, memories came rushing back. Things he had once ignored now stood out clearly.
Estella always left a light on for him at night.
When he had a stomachache, she silently prepared him warm oatmeal.
She even practiced tying a tie just to match how he liked it done.
All those quiet, caring moments now played over and over in his mind.
That was when he finally realized that love had been growing in the little things.
Standing outside, Xavier pulled out his phone. His voice cracked as he spoke.
“Find out which Lopez twin has a birthmark on their back.”
A short while later, his phone buzzed.
The reply from his men hit him like a punch.
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“Boss, it’s confirmed. Estella had a red birthmark when she was born. We checked with the doctor and nurse from back then.”
Static cut through the rest of the words. Xavier clenched his fists, nails digging deep.
The memory seemed to shatter open.
The sharp scent of disinfectant suddenly turned foul. He staggered and grabbed the wall to steady himself.
He remembered the baby, the one he had gouged out and was supposed to be his.
Estella’s screams from earlier echoed in his ears like crashing waves.
He staggered into the operating room, only to find her lying there palely. Blood seeped through the bandages around her belly.
A doctor tried to hold him back but failed.
No one dared to provoke him in his furious state.
The heart monitor gave a sharp, continuous tone, and the doctor’s coat was already stained red.
He shouted, “She’s Rh–negative, AB type! Contact the blood center immediately! Find her relatives–call them now!”
Xavier’s bloodshot eyes swept across the blood–stained wall as his shaking hand reached for the phone.
About ten minutes later, the three members of the Lopez family were dragged in, nearly falling over.
Faye, used to Xavier’s usual politeness, looked dissatisfied and complained.
“Xavier, look how your people are treating me!”
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Chapter 5
Noella kept up her usual fragile look and gently held onto his arm.
“Xavier, what’s going on?”
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