Chapter 1

After my family went bankrupt, my parents died in a crash, and my brother, Lucas Larson, had a heart attack.

I begged my fiancé, Ethan Sawyer, for a loan to help fund Lucas's transplant.

Instead, he publicly called off our engagement and married Rachel Summers.

In my deepest despair, Michael Grant proposed. He had his family's private hospital provide top surgeons for my brother.

I was moved to tears, praying only for the surgery's success.

But after the transplant, Lucas rejected the new heart and died.

Michael married me, vowing to love me forever and be my new family.

Three years later, I overheard him and a doctor.

The doctor said, "Mr. Grant, what if your wife finds out you diverted her brother's matching donor heart to Ms. Summers's brother three years ago? That's intentional harm."

Michael replied, "Should I have let Rachel grieve instead? I'd do anything for her.

"As for Wendy, I promised to be her family. That's my compensation."

Tears blurred my vision.

His years of kindness were built on a lie and compensation.

And his compensation even hid another purpose.

*****

I stood in the hospital hallway, my eyes red and swollen from crying. A nurse walking by noticed.

"Mrs. Grant, your eyes look really red. Are you okay?" the nurse asked.

This was the private hospital fully owned by the Grant Group, the same hospital where my brother Lucas had his heart transplant back then.

Back then, the Larson Group was taken over by the Summers Group and went bankrupt. My parents were taking Lucas to the hospital when, on the way, they got into a car accident.

My parents died instantly, and the shock triggered Lucas's heart condition. He needed a transplant right away.

The donor heart had already been arranged, but after the bankruptcy, we couldn't afford the surgery.

My fiancé, Ethan, who was supposed to marry me for the sake of a business alliance, suddenly called off our engagement right at that moment and refused to lend me a single cent.

Michael was the only one who stepped in, covering the medical bills and transferring my brother to this private hospital.

He told me the doctors here were the best in the world, with extensive experience in heart transplants, and that they would surely save my brother.

But the moment Lucas was wheeled out of the operating room after the transplant, he had a severe rejection reaction.

I'd never forget that day; my parents' bodies were shattered by a truck, and my brother lay on a hospital bed, his face pale and lifeless, his heart stopped, and he died right in front of me.

Michael handled everything after my family passed, and he promised he'd marry me, love me forever, and be there for me like the family I lost.

I thought he was the light in my darkest days, the hope I clung to for the rest of my life.

But now I finally saw that the light I thought Michael brought into my life was nothing but an illusion.

From start to finish, he only ever cared about Rachel.

"Wendy, why are you here? Are you done with your check-up? Your eyes look so red and swollen," Michael asked, his voice full of concern.

He pulled me into his arms, trying to comfort me by blowing gently on my swollen eyes, his touch tender and worried.

I froze for a moment, then gently pushed him away.

Lowering my gaze, I said, "A bug flew into my eye just now. I rubbed it for a long time before I could get it out."

Michael gave me that soft, doting look and playfully booped my nose.

He said, "You goof, there are doctors everywhere here. You could've just asked one of them to help you out.

"Oh, did your test results come in? Let me see your heart report."

The doctor standing nearby handed over a report and said, "Mrs. Grant's, oops, wrong one; here's yours. Your heart looks perfectly healthy, no problems at all."

The doctor hurriedly pulled back the report, but I caught a glimpse of Rachel's name printed on it.

A sudden chill ran down my spine, a sense of dread creeping over me.

Wait, did Rachel get her heart checked at this hospital, too?

Michael was really focused on my test results, especially the part about my heart.

Out of nowhere, I felt a cold shiver.

Then it hit me.

Heart problems ran in the Summers family.

"Dr. Lane, does this data match the other one?" Michael asked, his voice low and urgent.

Dr. Lane just gave a vague, noncommittal hum.

Michael let out a sigh of relief, like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Pretending to be curious, I asked, "Is something the matter? Is there a problem?"

Michael visibly relaxed, a smile spreading across his face.

"Looks like the doctor says you're perfectly fine. I can finally breathe easy. Just stay here and rest for a while, okay? I need to have a quick word with the doctor," he said.

I gave a bitter smile.

Relieved?

What was he really relieved about?

Only he knew what was really going on.

After they left, I went straight to the hospital's records room.