Chapter 3

I went straight to the hospital with the bank card Tristan had thrown at me.

Cedric was still my son. I'd carried him and brought him into this world.

With my mother gone, he was the only family I had left.

No matter how deeply he'd hurt me, I couldn't bear the thought of him growing up without a mother.

The doctor said the damage to my hand was permanent. But if I received treatment immediately, there was still a chance of saving my life.

I clutched the bank card.

Tristan had once told me it was too dangerous for me to work. He'd made me quit my job so I could stay by his side.

He'd covered my mother's medical bills, too.

But he'd wanted proof that I wasn't with him for his money. So he'd never given me anything beyond what he considered necessary.

Now I stood at the hospital payment desk, holding the bill and trying to figure out the card's PIN.

My birthday. Tristan's birthday. Cedric's birthday.

None of them worked.

The people behind me were growing impatient. I had no choice but to call Tristan.

It rang more than a dozen times before someone finally answered.

But it wasn't Tristan.

It was Mandy.

"Tristan just took care of me. He's exhausted and asleep now."

"You're a woman he's already discarded. Have some dignity and stay away from him."

She hung up and blocked my number.

I let out a tired breath. Almost on a whim, I entered Mandy's birthday.

The PIN worked.

I closed my eyes and forced back the tears.

The cashier glanced at the screen and frowned.

"Ms. Hale, you've been trying that card forever. It only has ten cents on it!"

"Find someone else to borrow money from. You're holding up the line!"

I stepped aside as the cashier's complaints followed me. My whole body was trembling.

When Tristan brought Mandy home, he'd given her a billion dollars so she'd never have to worry about money.

But the card he'd given me for my life-saving treatment had only ten cents on it.

My hands shook as I called Cedric.

"Sweetheart, could you ask your dad for money to pay for my treatment? Mom might not have much time left..."

I couldn't finish before Cedric cut me off.

"Mom, aren't you embarrassed?"

"If you're dying, how do you still have enough energy to call me and ask for money? At least make your lies believable!"

Before I could explain, Mandy called his name in the background.

Cedric immediately hung up.

I lowered my head and let out a bitter laugh. Then I snapped the bank card in half and threw it into the trash.

If Cedric no longer wanted me as his mother, I no longer cared what happened to me.

I walked out of the hospital into the bright sunlight. The light hit my eyes, and I had to lean against a wall to steady myself.

I started coughing again and again. Dark blood collected in my palm.

Before I could straighten up, someone hit me from behind.

A sack was pulled over my head, and I was dragged away.

When I woke up, I was in an abandoned warehouse, tied to a chair with a gag over my mouth.

Mandy stood in front of me.

She held the dagger I'd given Tristan, its point resting against my cheek.

"You little bitch! Who do you think you are, trying to take my man?"

"Tristan told me everything. He only slept with you because he needed you to absorb his bad luck!"

"And the only reason he wanted a child with you was that the baby could take some of that bad luck away!"

"You're nothing but a plaything. I'm the one who's going to be Mrs. Voss!"

The blade sliced my cheek.

"You've served your purpose, and you still think you can seduce Tristan?"

"If you want male attention so badly, I'll make sure you get plenty!"

Mandy straightened and stepped aside, revealing more than a dozen burly men behind her.

They stared at me with cold, hungry eyes, slowly closing in.