Chapter 3

3

"I was wrong, Claire."

"I was just so scared that day. I thought you were actually going to kill someone. I lost control and hurt you."

"Hit me. Please, just hit me."

Gabriel was kneeling by my hospital bed. He held my hand and used it to slap his own face repeatedly.

He sounded so sincere, as if he were still that devoted husband who loved me more than anything.

I turned my head slowly. I looked at him with a gaze that was almost a plea. "Gabriel, tell me the truth. How did our daughter really die?"

His face changed instantly. "The police said it was an accident. If you don't believe me, don't you believe the police?"

After I found out about the heart donation, I used my last bit of strength to call the cops.

The investigation results were exactly what Gabriel said. Accidental death.

But I couldn't bring myself to believe it.

How could it be such a coincidence? My daughter died the day before Courtney's daughter needed a transplant.

"Claire." My mother's voice broke the awkward silence between Gabriel and me.

The tears I had been holding back started falling again.

"Mom," I choked out.

After my parents divorced, my mother took me with her when she remarried. From that day on, all the motherly love that belonged to me went to Courtney.

Since the engagement party disaster, I hadn't seen her in years.

But at this moment, I just wanted a shoulder to cry on.

Before I could even feel the warmth of her hug, her words made me freeze.

My mother held her granddaughter's hand and leaned in close to me.

"Claire, dear, don't be so sad."

"I've been thinking. Since Chloe has your daughter's heart, she's basically half your child now. Raising Chloe will be like raising your own baby."

"Your sister isn't in good health, and her husband is busy. As a sister, you should help out."

I thought I was hearing things.

My own mother didn't offer a single word of comfort after I lost my child. Instead, she wanted me to raise the child of my enemy.

"What enemy? She's your sister."

Hearing my protest, my mother's face immediately soured.

Gabriel looked even more annoyed. "Claire, the child is innocent."

Innocent?

Her daughter got a new life while my child was rotting in the ground.

How was that innocent?

I had never been so sharp in my life. "Fine. Give me her heart back, and I'll take care of her."

"Claire!"

Gabriel snapped. He slammed his water glass onto the floor, shattering it. "How much longer are you going to act like a spoiled brat!"

"Courtney and Chloe did nothing wrong! You're a mother too. Why can't you show some empathy?"

Courtney, who was hiding behind my mother, couldn't take it anymore. She started sobbing uncontrollably. "It's my fault, Claire. I shouldn't have used your baby's heart to save mine."

"I'll die. I'll go die for your baby! Just please stop cursing my daughter!"

She suddenly bolted toward the window. For a moment, the hospital room was pure chaos.

The screaming and cursing filled my ears.

I lay back on the bed, laughing and crying at the same time.