Chapter 1

My husband, Charles Finn, was a master in cardiothoracic surgery, famous for being utterly selfless.

Both I and his junior, Sophie Young, had heart problems, but whenever it came to medication, he always prepared it ahead of time for her.

When complications left me in unbearable pain, and I passed out, Sophie smashed the only life-saving medicine I had left.

When we both had an attack, Charles rushed to arrange a private room for her in the middle of the night, leaving me alone in the hospital hallway, getting an IV drip.

Everyone praised Charles for being selfless and magnanimous, saying he was the kind of person everyone should look up to.

After waiting three years for a heart transplant, I finally got a donor.

I begged Charles to perform the surgery for me.

But he stayed silent for a long time.

Charles said, "Lily, let Sophie have this one last chance.

"She passed out yesterday. We can't afford to wait any longer.

"I've looked at your test results. Your condition isn't that bad. Don't be difficult. After this, I'll make it up to you."

All my desperate begging only ended with him locking me alone in a single-patient room.

I counted my own heartbeats. Blood rose in my throat.

Charles, there was no after for us anymore.

*****

I was retching, my chest wracked with pain, and pink foam kept bubbling up at the corner of my mouth.

I quickly realized something wasn't right.

They said one became one's own doctor after being sick for so long. I'd had heart problems for over twenty years, so I knew exactly what these symptoms meant.

This wasn't like any episode I'd had before.

This was a sign my heart was about to give out.

I struggled to crawl to the door and started pounding on it. "Charles! Open the door. Something's wrong with my heart. Please, help me."

Through the cold glass of the hospital room door, I caught a trace of hesitation in Charles's eyes.

But the next second, he glanced at the caller ID on his phone and shook his head at me. "Lily, you can't be so stubborn. This heart is also a match for Sophie, and her situation is more critical than yours."

Sophie.

That name was like a nightmare.

Ever since his junior, Sophie, moved into Charles's private hospital three years ago, any medical resources I needed always had to come after hers.

The official reason was always that her condition was more serious, and I couldn't expect Charles to bend the rules because I was his wife.

Seeing my face turn pale, Charles finally comforted me softly. "Just let her go first this one last time. Once the heart transplant is done, I promise you'll be my priority from now on."

Hearing that promise, without thinking, I let a sarcastic smile slip across my lips.

If he'd said this three years ago, I might've believed him.

But in these three years, I had already given in too many times.

The pain in my chest was so intense that I couldn't speak.

I leaned against the window, tears forced out by the pain streaming from the corners of my eyes. "Charles, it hurts..."

My words came out in broken fragments, and vomit kept rising in my throat.

In the mirror across the room, I saw a woman looking utterly wretched.

It was a sharp contrast to Charles, standing outside in his pristine white coat.

Seeing me in that state, a flicker of concern flashed in Charles's eyes, but it vanished instantly, replaced by cold scorn. "Lily, quit faking it. I've already looked over your test results; everything's fine. You're nowhere near needing a heart transplant."

He looked at me like I was some clueless kid. "Don't be stubborn. We need to give this chance to someone who actually needs it.

"After the surgery, I'll have Sophie apologize to you."

I shook my head in the hospital room, biting my tongue to keep myself conscious.

My heartbeat was irregular, and my temperature was dropping.

"Charles, forget the surgery. Call a doctor for me, please?" I pleaded.

Charles opened his mouth.

Suddenly, his phone rang again.

"Charles! Sophie is calling you." That was the ringtone Sophie had made for him. The first time I heard it, I ended up fighting with him over it.

Charles waved his hand impatiently. "Lily, when did you get so childish? Why are you acting jealous like a kid?"

Through the glass, I couldn't hear what he was saying on the phone.

All I could see was the gentle warmth in his eyes, the way they curved into smiling slits.

Charles said, "Sophie, I'm coming right now. Wait for me, okay? Once the surgery's over, you'll be healthy again."

He spoke to her like she was a little kid.

All these years we had been married, Charles had never used that tone with me.

I was sprawled on the cold hospital floor, the pain in my body and soul so intense that I couldn't take it anymore.

Tears burst from my eyes.

Charles and I were childhood sweethearts. Everyone used to say he studied medicine to heal me.

I was so touched that I followed him to a distant city and married him.

Later, he became the famous Mr. Finn, so sought-after that his office was piled high with banners from grateful patients.

Charles opened his own private hospital.

I was always second to someone else in Charles's world.

I stared straight into his eyes, forcing out each word. "Charles, I have a question for you."

Vomit burned my throat, but I forced myself to keep my voice steady. "If I end up dead because of you, will you ever feel any regret?"

He froze.

The very next second, anger swept across his face, wiping out any trace of hesitation. "Lily, cut the act!

"I'm a doctor. I've gone through every single one of your test reports; there's nothing wrong with you. All this is for show."

He clenched his jaw. "I trust our hospital's diagnostics. You're such a good actress. I can't believe you managed to fool me all these years.

"Forget about the surgery. What you really need is a shrink!"

I looked at him, and a bitter smile crept across my face.

So that was it.

Charles never realized that my test results first showed something was wrong three years ago.

That was the same year his protégé, Sophie, joined his private hospital because of him.

All the pain I had suffered these years, he dismissed it as melodrama, like I was faking it.

That explained everything.

The doctors said my heart failure would take at least five years to reach this point, but in three, I was already barely hanging on.

I was too exhausted to fight anymore.

It was Charles who finally relented. "Lily, the floor's cold.

"I'll get one of my colleagues to check on you. When you're done lying there, get up, and stop bullying a sick little girl."