Chapter 3

Julian said nothing.

As my fiancé, his silence was a clear declaration: he was standing firmly on Serena's side.

A nurse stepped out to ask for the emergency deposit.

When I pushed myself up, my knees buckled, and I nearly collapsed to the floor.

Julian reached out to catch me.

I pulled away, avoiding his touch entirely.

The bill came out to five thousand eight hundred dollars.

I had the money in my account.

I had saved it penny by penny, intending to buy Grandma a lightweight wheelchair after getting married, and to patch up the leaking roof of our old house.

Julian stepped forward and handed over his credit card.

"Put it on mine."

I stared at him.

"Keep it."

His brows knitted in frustration.

"Evelyn, this isn't the time to act petty."

A bitter laugh slipped past my lips.

"I'm not acting petty."

"I just refuse to let my grandmother’s survival owe a single dime to you."

His face darkened, cold and offended.

"Do you really have to make everything sound so vile?"

Just then, the double doors of the trauma room swung open.

The doctor pulled down his surgical mask.

"We managed to stabilize her for now, but her condition remains critical. We need to keep her under close observation tonight."

My whole body went slack with relief, tears burning behind my eyes.

Martha held onto my arm, whispering over and over:

"She's alive. Thank God, she's alive."

Once Grandma was moved to the ICU step-down unit, I sat beside her bed, holding her frail, cold hand.

It took hours for her to open her eyes.

When she finally did, her gaze drifted straight to my hair.

"The... the papers? Did you get them?"

Tears surged into my eyes, but I swallowed the sob down.

"No, Grandma. We didn't."

Grandma drew a faint, rattling breath.

"Good... that's good."

I froze.

She turned her head slightly to look at me, her voice frail as paper, but crystal clear.

"Evie, Grandma has lived a long life. I know when a man's heart is warm and when it's cold."

"A man who makes you wait forever... isn't a home."

I clamped a hand over my mouth, hot tears splashing onto the back of her hand.

Grandma raised a trembling hand with immense effort, brushing her fingertips against my cheek.

"Never treat yourself like a cheap admission ticket just to have somewhere to belong."

Julian’s mother, Eleanor Vance, showed up that evening.

Dressed in an elegant wine-red dress, she didn't cast a single glance at Grandma in the bed. Her eyes locked straight onto me.

"Evelyn, I heard you made quite an ugly scene at the diner today."

I sat by the bed, motionless.

Eleanor sighed, sounding terribly disappointed.

"A wedding date can always be rescheduled. Serena just went through a terrible divorce, poor thing. It's only natural for Julian to look out for her."

Martha couldn't hold her tongue any longer.

"Natural? Stealing a girl's phone and her ID on her wedding day is natural?"

Eleanor’s face instantly chilled.

"This is Vance family business. Outsiders should know their place."

I stood up.

"Mrs. Vance, Julian and I are over. There is no Vance family business involving me."

She looked at me as if I had lost my mind.

"Evelyn, stop throwing tantrums."

"You've been attached to Julian for seven years. Everyone in our circle already considers you part of the family."

Looking at her polished face, my mind flashed back to the two years she spent bedridden with illness.

Julian was always "too busy with work."

I spent my days looking after Grandma, and my nights at the Vance estate, sponging Eleanor down, brewing her herbal broths, and washing her soiled sheets.

Back then, she held my hand, tears in her eyes:

"Evelyn, you'll be just like my own daughter."

Then Serena returned.

The first time Eleanor saw Serena, she praised her impeccable manners and high-society charm.

Turning around to see me coming out of the kitchen with groceries, all she said was:

"Evelyn, watch your greasy hands. Don't ruin the Italian leather couch."

I was never a daughter to her.

I was just useful, unpaid labor.

Eleanor pulled a folded legal document from her designer bag.

"I'm not going to force you."

"Just sign this statement. Say that you felt unwell today and decided to postpone the wedding yourself. Don't let rumors spread that Julian wronged you."