Chapter 4
Emily couldn't bring herself to look me in the eye.
"Alex, it's just temporary—I'm only keeping it safe for you," she said.
I laughed, barely recognizing my own voice—it was so hoarse.
"What else do you want to take from me?" I shot back.
"You've got my blood, my mom, my company—are you after my life now too?" I added.
Her eyes welled up with tears.
"Please don't say that," she whispered.
I stared at her, my voice quiet and icy.
"Emily, if you're going to strip me of everything, why not just finish the job and take it all right now?" I said.
Emily's hand shook as she gripped the pen.
"Alex, just sign it," Emily said quietly.
"Emily, get everyone out of here first. Then I'll sign," I said.
The medical room fell silent.
Emily was caught off guard, like she never expected me to back down so suddenly.
Brian sneered.
"If you were just going to cave, why'd you let yourself get zapped?" he sneered.
I didn't even spare him a glance.
"I'm talking to my wife. Can the backup clown exit stage left?" I said.
Brian's expression soured.
Emily said quietly.
"Brian, you guys, please leave," she murmured.
Ryan immediately grabbed her sleeve.
"Emily, I'm scared," he said.
"What if Alex hurts you again?" he added.
I let out a cold laugh.
"Ryan, your condition is honestly a miracle," I sneered.
"I'm strapped to the bed, you're rolling around in a wheelchair with two bodyguards, and you're acting like I'm about to split your head open just by glaring at you," I added.
Ryan's face went pale.
Emily frowned.
"Ryan, can you wait outside for a moment? I won't be long," she said.
Ryan didn't want to leave, but he was still pushed out the door.
The door closed behind him.
Now it was just me and Emily left in the medical room.
She walked over with the documents, her voice softening.
"Alex, I know you've been through hell," Emily said.
"When we get off this ship, I'll go with you to visit your mom," she added.
I stared at her.
"Do you remember the first time we met?" I asked.
Emily froze for a second.
"Why are you bringing that up now?" she asked.
"Just answer me," I pressed.
She paused for a few seconds.
"It was next to the blood drive bus on campus," Emily replied.
"You felt lightheaded after donating, so I handed you a piece of candy," she added.
I let out a cold laugh.
"So you do remember," I said.
For the first time, I saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes.
"Alex, I do care about you, you know," she said softly.
"Did you buy that candy yourself?" I asked.
Emily's expression froze.
I stared her down, enunciating every word.
"Or was it Ryan who told you to hand it to me?" I pressed.
Emily's lips trembled.
"Why would you even ask me that?" Emily stammered, her voice shaky.
I just smirked.
"Ryan was on the volunteer list for the blood drive that day," I said.
"He knew about my rare blood type from the start," I added.
Emily's face went even paler.
"That's not true," Emily said, her voice trembling.
I raised my hand, signaling her to check the phone by the bed.
The landline in the medical room still had the call light on—it was still connected.
Emily whipped her head around.
A calm male voice came through the phone.
"Mr. Carter, the recording has been saved in real time," came the reply.
Emily's whole body went rigid.
"When did you make that call?" Emily blurted out.
I slowly sat up, checking my wrist.
Somehow, the belt was already loose.
"Before Brian zapped me with the stun gun, I managed to reach the emergency line in the communications room," I said.
"You all thought I was just after my phone, but I was actually dialing the captain's direct line," I added.
Emily stared at me, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"Were you just faking the whole time?" she blurted out.
I undid the strap from my other hand.
"Miss Lane, Ryan's not the only one who knows how to act," I said with a smirk.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside the door.
Brian's angry voice rang out.
"What the hell are you doing? Who let you in?" Brian barked.
Then, the captain barged in with a few uniformed crew members.
His expression was grim.
"Miss Lane, every word of that conversation has been recorded in the ship's log," the captain said.
"Forcing someone to give blood without consent, cutting off their communication, and threatening them into signing a property agreement—this isn't just a family issue anymore," he added.
Emily started to freak out.
"Captain, this is all just a misunderstanding," she said quickly.
"Alex is my husband. He's not himself right now—I was just trying to look out for him," she stammered.
I cut her off.
"Just now, you wanted me to sign a psych evaluation consent form," I said.
"And now, all of a sudden, I'm your husband again," I added.
"Emily, you really know how to play whatever part fits best," I sneered.
The captain turned to me.
"Mr. Carter, do you want us to call the coast guard?" the captain asked.
Emily's face drained of color.
"No!" she cried out.
She rushed over and clutched my hand.
"Alex, please don't call the cops," she begged.
"I can explain everything, really. I swear, I never wanted to hurt you," she added.
I looked at her.
"And what about the money for my mom's care?" I asked.
Tears streamed down her face.
"I wasn't really going to cut off the payments for your mom's care. I just wanted to scare you," Emily choked out.
"I was so desperate—Ryan almost got hurt, and I just lost my head," she added.
I looked down at her hand clutching mine.
That was the same hand that once wore the wedding ring I personally chose for her.
Now, that same hand just feels cold to me.
Outside the door, Ryan's voice cracked with panic as he suddenly called out.
"Emily, don't beg him!" Ryan cried.
"He did this on purpose! He planned everything from the start!" Ryan accused.
I turned to him.
"Ryan, looks like your breathing problem magically disappeared, huh?" I sneered.
Ryan's expression shifted instantly, and he grabbed his chest like he'd just been caught.
"I can't breathe because of you," he sputtered.
Brian tried to barge in, but the crew blocked his way.
"Alex, don't get too cocky," Brian snapped.
"Even if you got it all on tape, you still threw Ryan into the ocean. Nothing can change that," he added.
I nodded.
"Yeah, that's a fact," I shot back.
Emily clung to it like a lifeline.
"Alex, just say you got carried away and I can" she pleaded, her voice desperate.
I lifted my hand, cutting her off.
"Captain, before anything else, bring up the complete surveillance footage," I said.
The captain nodded.
"It's already been retrieved," he said.
The screen on the wall lit up.
On the screen, Ryan was standing by the railing, holding a glass and talking to me.
There was no sound on the surveillance footage.
But in the next moment, he climbed over the railing and jumped into the shallow pool himself.
Only after that did Emily rush over and slap me.
The conference room was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.
All color drained from Ryan Stone's face.
"No, it's just the camera angle!" Ryan stammered.
I looked at him.
"Go on, keep making stuff up," I said.
"I'm dying to hear how you'll spin your little medical miracle—turning your own jump into the pool into some kind of mind control trick from me," I sneered.
Emily stared at the screen, looking like she might collapse at any second.
"Ryan, why did you have to do this?" Emily's voice shook, barely holding back tears.
Ryan's lips quivered for what felt like forever.
"Emily, I was just terrified you'd leave me," he finally managed, his voice barely holding together.
I let out a cold laugh.
"Did you catch that, Emily?" I said.
"He's so afraid of losing you, he'd rather take me out first," I sneered.
"Alex, can we not call the cops for now, please?" Emily pleaded, her voice barely above a whisper.
Emily stood right in front of me, her voice trembling, almost begging.
The surveillance footage was paused right at the moment Ryan jumped in himself.
Everyone saw it.
But instead of asking if I was hurt, or why Ryan tried to frame me, her first reaction was just, "Don't call the cops."
She said, "Don't call the cops, okay?"
I looked at her.
"Why?" I asked.
Tears clung to her lashes.
"Ryan's health is fragile. He couldn't take the stress of an interrogation," she said, her voice shaky.
"And if this gets out, it'll ruin the Lane Family's reputation," she added.
I gave a cold laugh.
"There it is. That's what you really care about," I said.
She shook her head frantically.
"No, Alex, I'm not just worried about the Lane Family," Emily said, her voice trembling.
"I'm scared that if this blows up, we'll cross a line we can't come back from," she added.
I shot back.
"Is there even any way back for us?" I asked.
Emily's face drained of color.
Suddenly, Ryan slid out of his wheelchair and dropped to his knees.
"Alex, I messed up," Ryan choked out.
"I shouldn't have lost my head like that," he added.
"I just love Emily so much. Seeing you two celebrate your third anniversary it just hurt so much," Ryan said, his voice trembling.
As he spoke, he raised his hand and started slapping himself across the face.
Each slap echoed through the room, so loud it was almost theatrical.
"It's all my fault," Ryan choked out.
"Go ahead, hit me, yell at me, just don't blame Emily," he pleaded.
"Emily's innocent," he insisted.
As expected, Emily couldn't stand to see him like that and hurried over to pull Ryan back.
"Ryan, please, don't do this to yourself," she pleaded.
I watched the whole scene, couldn't even be bothered to care.
"Ryan, do you have a subscription for that whole self-slapping routine?" I sneered.
Brian gritted his teeth.
"Alex, Ryan's already on his knees. Isn't that enough for you?" Brian shot back.
I turned to him.
"Are you gonna kneel too?" I mocked.
Brian was totally shut down, left with nothing to say.
The captain said in a grave tone.
"Mr. Carter, the coast guard is already waiting at the dock," he said.
Emily was desperate.
"Alex," she called out.
She rushed over and grabbed my sleeve.
"I'm begging you," she pleaded.
"Consider this a favor I owe you," she added.
I looked down at her.
"What you owe me goes way beyond tonight," I said coldly.
Emily's gaze wavered.
I turned to the captain.
"Secure all audio recordings from the medical room tonight, the surveillance footage, and the blood collection records," I said.
"Once we dock, my lawyer will take over," I added.
The captain nodded.
"Understood," he replied.