Chapter 3

Kyle didn't take the medicine.

He stared at my face and suddenly sneered, "Lila, you're so scheming. You made yourself look this messed up on purpose to make Sophia feel guilty, didn't you?"

I tried to explain that I couldn't see, that I'd fallen.

But he wasn't interested in listening.

He slapped the pill box out of my hand.

"It's too late. Sophia's asleep," he said.

The box rolled across the floor, and he stomped on it, crushing it under his foot.

"Come in and sign this," he said.

He turned and walked into the living room, picked up a mate bond termination agreement from the coffee table, and tossed it to me.

It was a mate bond termination agreement.

The words blurred and warped before my eyes.

Kyle and I were mates.

Three years ago, to avoid pressure from the former Alpha of Connor Pack, we hid our mate bond. There was no mating ceremony, no ring, but this contract.

"Sophia's back, so it's time for you to step aside," Kyle said.

He lit a cigarette, his face cold and distant through the haze, like he was a total stranger. "As compensation, your 27-million-dollar debt is gone. Riverside Villa is yours."

I was stunned.

That debt of 27 million dollars had chained me for five years, and like that, it was gone.

If this had happened before, I would have cried and begged him not to kick me out.

But at this moment, all I felt was relief.

I picked up the pen, my hand shaking uncontrollably.

The tumor was pressing on my motor nerves. I could barely grip the pen.

"Hurry up and sign it. Don't drag your feet," Kyle snapped impatiently. "What, you want more? Lila, don't be so greedy."

I gripped my right wrist with my left hand, struggling to steady the tremors.

With shaky hands, I scrawled my name: Lilla Moore.

My signature looked as messy as my life.

"I don't want Riverside Villa," I said.

I set the pen down, my voice barely above a whisper. "Mr. Connor, can you give me the money instead? I want to pay for my mom's care for the next ten years."

Kyle's hand, holding the cigarette, froze for a second.

He obviously hadn't expected me to be this blunt, especially not that I'd ask for money.

"Fine," he said, shooting me a complicated look before his eyes turned cold and mocking. "Typical. All you care about is money."

He pulled out his checkbook, scribbled an amount, tore off the check, and tossed it onto the floor.

"Take the money and get out of my sight. Don't let me see you again," he spat.

I bent down and picked up the check.

This time, I didn't thank him like I used to, all pitiful.

I carefully folded the check and tucked it into my pocket.

Then I slipped the moonstone bracelet off my wrist.

Kyle bought it for me five years ago, drunk and stumbling, from a street vendor. It cost two dollars.

I'd worn it for five years, and the cord was so worn that it had turned pale.

I set it down on the coffee table, next to the mate bond termination agreement.

"Kyle Connor," I said.

It was the last time I'd called him by his full name.

"Hope you and Sophia grow old together, and may your family line end with you," I said.

Kyle's head snapped up, his eyes blazing with fury. "What did you say?"

I turned and walked out without looking back, not giving him a chance to explode.

As I stepped out of the villa, the first rays of morning sunlight broke through the clouds.

I raised my hand to shield my eyes.

It was blinding.

And it felt so free.

After leaving the villa, I went straight to the healing den.

I wasn't there to see a healer. I needed a prescription.

The painkillers didn't work anymore. I needed something stronger, like Demerol.

The healer who wrote my prescription was Tristan Sharp, a top brain specialist and my old classmate from Senior Academy.

"Lila, your brain pressure is off the charts," Tristan said, frowning at my latest CT scan. "The tumor's pressing on the part of your brain that controls speech. Are you having trouble speaking?"

I nodded, trying to speak, but my tongue felt twisted, and all I could manage were slurred, unintelligible sounds.

After a few seconds, I finally choked out a few words. "Give me... the medicine."

Tristan's eyes were rimmed with red. "Please, stay in the hospital. Even if it's for your last days, let me be the one to look after you, okay?"

I shook my head.

I wanted to die with dignity.

I didn't want to be hooked up to tubes, or have my head shaved, or not recognize myself in the mirror.

"I... need to... see my mom," I barely got the words out.

Clutching the medicine, I turned down Tristan's help and slowly made my way out of the examination room.

The hallway of the healing den was bustling with people coming and going.

Suddenly, I caught sight of a familiar figure.

It was Kyle. He was carrying Sophia, frantically calling for a healer.

Sophia had a tiny cut on her arm, probably from a piece of paper, but Kyle was panicking like it was a life-or-death emergency.

My first instinct was to duck out of sight.

But my legs wouldn't move. I was frozen in place.

Kyle caught sight of me.

He paused for a second, his eyes locking onto the bag of medicine in my hand.

The clear bag was filled with colorful pill boxes, plus one white bottle that caught the eye.

It was a strong painkiller, but the packaging was almost identical to that of birth control pills.

His face darkened instantly, and he strode over to me.

"Lila, you're so damn cheap," he spat.

He snatched the bag of medicine from my hand and, without looking, tossed it into the trash.

"You signed the mate bond termination agreement, and now you're already buying birth control pills? What? Can't wait to jump into bed with a new mate?" he sneered.