Chapter 4

Lily POV

I spent the entire night in the hospital bed.

The IV dripped steadily, as if counting down the twenty years of my youth that had already slipped away.

I stared silently at the pale ceiling. The tears that had fallen from the corners of my eyes had long since dried into the pillow, leaving two hard trails on my skin.

Memories replayed in my mind like an uncontrollable film.

I remembered being seventeen, when I accidentally cut my index finger with a utility knife. It had only drawn a tiny bead of blood.

Julian had turned pale with worry. He ran three blocks in the middle of the night to buy me a bandage, held my hand, and blew on it for a long time.

His voice had trembled.

“Lily, let me handle things like this from now on. I can’t stand seeing you get hurt.”

But now, after being forced to eat rotten food and developing gastroenteritis, I had curled up in bed in agony while he coldly told me over the phone:

“It’s only gastroenteritis. Why are you being so cruel?”

Love and indifference could change so quickly.

The next morning, sunlight poured through the hospital blinds.

I pulled the needle from the back of my hand and forced my weak body upright. Then I picked up the phone beside my bed and made a call.

“Professor Smith, hello. This is Lily Bennett.” My voice was hoarse but strangely firm. “About the offer you sent me earlier—I’ve decided to accept it. Yes, I’ve prepared all the paperwork. I’ll be in London to start in one month.”

After hanging up, I looked at the morning light outside the window and released a long breath.

This one month would be the final countdown to my life in this place I had once called home.

Around noon, the ward door opened quietly.

Nora walked in alone.

She had changed into an old, faded shirt. In her hands was a pink thermos.

Without Ethan or Julian present, the timid look on Nora’s face had faded slightly. In its place was a subtle confidence.

“Lily, are you feeling better?” She walked to my bedside with red-rimmed eyes, her voice soft. “I know you’re still angry with me. I felt so guilty last night that I couldn’t sleep. I went out early this morning and bought the best ingredients. I made soup for you myself.”

I leaned against the headboard and looked at her coldly.

I felt a visceral disgust toward this woman now, but the weakness brought on by gastroenteritis left me without the energy to even lose my temper.

When Nora saw that I didn’t refuse, she carefully unscrewed the lid of the thermos and poured out a steaming bowl of soup.

She held it in both hands and offered it to me, her posture humble to the point of submission.

“Try a sip. If you drink even one sip, that means you forgive me, okay?”

I stared at the bowl.

My stomach churned faintly, but hunger and weakness had dulled my thoughts.

I didn’t want to argue with Nora anymore. I only wanted to get rid of her as quickly as possible.

So I took the bowl without expression and forced myself to swallow a small mouthful.

The moment the soup touched my tongue, I frowned.

The meat tasted strange.

I was about to set the bowl down when I noticed Nora standing beside the bed.

The corner of her mouth curved into a strange smile.

It was the malicious smile of a victor.

“Does it taste good?” Nora’s voice suddenly changed. The timid, delicate tone was gone. In its place was a sick, almost cheerful lilt.

She leaned closer and whispered in a voice only the two of us could hear.

“Do you know what it is?”

My heart clenched.

An ominous premonition slithered up my spine like a poisonous snake. I raised my head and stared at her.

Nora’s smile deepened.

Slowly, she added, “It’s the meat from your little white rabbit.”

Clatter—

The bowl slipped from my hands and smashed against the metal cabinet beside the bed, breaking into several pieces.

Scalding soup splashed across the back of my hand, but I couldn’t feel the pain.

“What did you say?” My entire body trembled, and fear warped my voice.

“Your little Snowball.” Nora watched my face turn deathly pale, her eyes glittering with the pleasure of revenge. “Ethan said he was old and useless. He was shedding fur and losing teeth everywhere. I told Ethan rabbit meat was good for your health. You’re weak from being in the hospital, so it was perfect for making soup. He even praised me for being considerate.”

Boom—

Something exploded inside my head.

Snowball used to nuzzle my palm when I was sad. When I was happy, he would hop around me in circles.

He was old now and couldn’t jump very well anymore, but he was family.

And now…

“Ugh—!”

I lunged over the side of the bed and began vomiting violently.

I shoved my fingers down my throat, desperately trying to force out the mouthful of soup I had swallowed.

Tears, mucus, and stomach acid mixed together.

“You’re an animal… You’re a monster!”

I collapsed onto the floor, my entire body shaking violently. My eyes were bloodshot as I glared at Nora with enough hatred to kill her.

But Nora only looked at me coldly.

“Lily, you forced me into this. Who told you to have so much and still refuse to give me one room? Don’t worry. This is only the beginning.”