Chapter 3
Three days flew by in a flash.
The massive Ocean's Heart cruise ship, a floating luxury palace, was docked at the harbor.
Victor took my hand and led me aboard. His touch was gentle, and I could feel a trace of sweat in his palm.
His phone buzzed every few minutes, like a death knell.
With each buzz, his frown deepened, the irritation on his face growing more obvious.
Finally, after I lost track of how many times his phone buzzed, he abruptly dropped my hand, his voice strained with forced calm.
"Hazel, I need to take an important call. Stay right here, don't go anywhere."
Without waiting for my answer, he marched off toward the depths of the ship, his retreat almost frantic.
I stood in place, the sea breeze ruffling my dress.
I pulled out my phone and opened the group chat, the one Victor wasn't in.
Inside, the group chat was on fire.
Chad: [Last chance to get in on the bet. Who wants to watch Ms. Grant jump into the ocean in a bikini?]
Brett: [Clock's ticking. Minimum buy-in is 330 thousand dollars.]
Trey: [I'm putting up my apartment downtown.]
Blake: [I'm throwing in the sports car I just picked up.]
Every message landed on me like something sharp, one after another, all the way down the screen.
I scrolled up, stone-faced, numb to it all.
But my finger suddenly froze.
It felt like an invisible hand had squeezed my heart, stopping it cold.
Chad: [Holy hell. Victor really handed Hazel's brother's matching heart to Lily as a favor?]
Brett: [Seriously? So they opened her brother up on the table, and the heart never came? Then that means...]
Trey: [Damn. I always figured Victor felt something for Hazel, and Lily says one word, and he gives away a heart they hunted for a year?]
Something in my head went off like a bomb.
Something in my head blew apart.
Everything went pitch black, black spots swarming my vision.
My brother.
He was eighteen, and he had those sharp little canine teeth when he smiled, and he always said, "Hazel, once I'm better, I'll be the one taking care of you."
On the day of his surgery, I waited outside that cold operating room for a full ten hours.
All I got was the doctor's exhausted, heavy face, his white coat splattered with bright red blood.
"Ms. Grant, I'm so sorry. There was an accident with the heart donation. We did everything we could."
At that moment, it felt like the sky was falling.
I sobbed until I couldn't breathe, and the whole world turned gray.
Victor rushed over, wrapped me in his arms, and held me tight as I trembled.
He kept whispering in my ear, "Hazel, don't be afraid. I'm still here for you. I'll protect you from now on. We'll have our own child. We'll build a new home together."
After my brother died, I was an empty shell.
Victor had clumsily made me soup, spooned it into my mouth, and talked me into swallowing it.
That warmth was what made me give up Arthur Lewis's prenup and stay with him.
It was pathetic.
It turned out that the man who had promised me a "new home" was the one who took away my brother's last chance at life!
The heart that was supposed to save my brother ended up as a token to win over his new lover!
I gagged.
A wave of nausea crashed over me, so intense it felt like the world was spinning.
I bolted into the nearest bathroom, hunched over the cold sink, puking so hard I thought I'd pass out, bile burning my throat.
Crying and puking, I was a complete wreck.
Hands shaking, I started opening every social app I could find, desperately searching for "Lily Lane."
I finally found her, buried in a corner of Twitter.
Posted a year ago.
It was the day my brother had his surgery.
She shared an update with a big, bright smile and a shot of a hospital bed.
Lily: [Did something really meaningful today! Gave a precious heart to an old man who truly needed it. Life goes on, love and peace!]
In the photo, there was a frail old man, at least eighty, with tubes running everywhere. The caption read: "Recipient: male, 80, homeless and unemployed."
The heart that should have gone into my brother's chest, young and strong, had ended up inside a dying stranger.
For what?
For Lily's phony "do-gooder" image?
Just because she tossed out a casual "need"?
I screamed.
A scream, raw and desperate, tore from my throat. I bit down hard on my arm, the metallic taste of blood filling my mouth, barely holding back the urge to destroy everything.
Victor!
How could he have dared?
How could he have done it?
My phone buzzed again.
It wasn't a message. It was a call.
A number I barely remembered flashed on the screen.
I picked up.
On the other end, a man's voice came through, low and intense, with the smallest tremor in it.
"Hazel."
He paused, like he was gathering his courage.
"I regret it."
"This time I want both of you, you and the baby."
His voice was sharp, almost crazed, with a determination that wouldn't take no for an answer.
I didn't answer right away.
I just slowly wiped the mess from my lips and the tears from my face.
The woman in the mirror had puffy, red eyes, but there was a cold fire burning in them.
"I'll do it," I said.
My voice was crystal clear.
"But I need you to do something for me."