Chapter 3

3

After my mother passed away, my father fell into a deep depression. He was hospitalized within a year. Caleb had hired the nurses and spent a lot of time there while I was busy.

Whenever I visited, Caleb was always there.

I used to be so moved by his dedication. I gave him even more career opportunities as a reward for his kindness.

Now, I realized my own driver was probably on Caleb's payroll too.

But it didn't matter. I was going to clean house soon enough.

My priority was making sure my father was safe.

When he was first admitted, it was just minor high blood pressure.

Caleb had insisted he stay in the hospital, and ever since then, his condition had only worsened.

I thought it was just old age and grief.

Now, I had a much more terrifying theory.

Standing by my father's bed, I realized how much weight he had truly lost.

Before, Caleb was always there making him laugh, and I didn't notice the effort it took for my father to stay awake.

My father had been in a coma for several days now.

And no one had notified me.

I was paying hundreds of thousands in medical bills every month, and I wondered how much Caleb was paying them to keep their mouths shut.

It was my money he was using to bribe them.

"Elara? What are you doing here?"

Caleb rushed into the room, slightly out of breath, carrying a lunch box.

Bringing food for a man on a feeding tube.

He was really committed to the act.

Caleb's eyes flashed with panic when he saw my father's skeletal state, but he quickly masked it.

"Babe, his condition took a turn for the worse recently. I didn't want to worry you while you were busy with the new project."

"By the way, why the sudden visit? Don't you have a big meeting today?"

He was testing me, watching my face carefully.

I suppressed my rage and spoke in my usual tone.

"Just wanted to see him. Besides, with you helping me, I have more free time."

Caleb relaxed and tried to lead me out of the room.

"Then let's go back so you can teach me. I want to be useful to you."

I turned to follow him, planning to go to the doctor's office once he left.

Suddenly, the heart monitor behind us started beeping frantically.

We both froze.

Nurses and doctors rushed in. I screamed at them to use the best medicine and the top surgeons to save him.

Outside the operating room, Caleb and I sat in silence.

He pulled me into his arms and patted my shoulder.

"It'll be okay, Elara. Just a scare. I'm going to step out for a cigarette."

I followed him silently to the rooftop. I heard him yelling into his phone.

"What the hell is wrong with you people! I told you not to let him die yet! Elara hasn't signed the papers. If he dies now, I have no leverage!"

"I don't care! I pay you enough money to handle this. Don't forget, we're in this together. If I go down, you're going down first, Mr. Vice Dean."

Caleb didn't expect me to follow him because he knew I hated the smell of smoke.

His voice carried across the roof, full of malice.

I quietly slipped away.

For money and for Mabel, this man was willing to play with a human life.

It was impressive, in a sick way.

When I got back to the room, my father had actually woken up.

I rushed to his side and took his hand.

Tears streamed down my face before I could even speak.

He smiled weakly and told me not to cry.

Caleb came back and put on a show of wiping my tears away.

My father looked at us and whispered, "Take care of Caleb. Live a good life together."

Caleb squeezed out some crocodile tears. "Don't worry, sir. I'll cherish your daughter forever."

I screamed internally.

He certainly was cherishing a Thorne daughter. Just not me.

My father eventually got tired and sent us away so he could rest.

In the car, Caleb and the driver exchanged a look in the rearview mirror.

I closed my eyes, pretending to be exhausted.

Neither of us spoke for the rest of the trip.

As soon as I stepped out of the car, my phone buzzed.

It was a notification from the hospital.

My heart sank as I opened the message.

"Miss Thorne, we are sorry to inform you that Mr. Thorne's heart stopped. We tried to resuscitate him, but he is gone. Our condolences..."

A wave of grief and fury crashed over me.

I gripped my phone so hard my knuckles turned white.

Looking at Caleb's calculating face, I wanted to smash his teeth in.

But that would be too easy.

I got back into the car and told the driver to go to the office.

I saw Caleb trying to follow me in the mirror, but he stopped when his phone rang.

I didn't look back.

At the office, I hired a private investigator to look into everything that happened during my father's hospitalization.

None of the people who killed my father were going to escape.

The investigator was fast. By that evening, I had the files.

Mabel's name appeared everywhere in the reports.

I wasn't even surprised.

The next day, I went to the family estate to pack my father's things.

I had just finished when Mabel appeared out of nowhere. She kicked over the box I had packed.

Files and photos scattered across the floor from the second floor down to the foyer.

"You're so heartless, Elara. The old man just died and you're already hovering over his documents like a vulture."

"You only care about money. No wonder our parents always thought I was the disappointment."

"But look at you, rushing to claim the inheritance. They got what they deserved for favoring you."

She sneered at me. "What's the point of all this money anyway? You're so busy counting it that you didn't notice your fiancés both preferred me..."

I looked at her arrogant face and interrupted.

"Mabel, did Caleb tell you I haven't signed that agreement yet?"

"And did you really think you could swap my father's medication for an experimental drug without leaving a trace?"