Chapter 4

I turned to the smug Dr. Sterling, my voice cold.

"I am Dr. Ava Miller, lead consultant in cardiac surgery. I can't complete tomorrow's surgery. You'll have to find another surgeon."

"You may inform Dr. Peterson yourself."

Chloe and Daniel looked confused. They had no idea what I was talking about.

Dr. Sterling let out a derisive snort. "Do your homework before spinning tales. No Lead Consultant is that young."

Chloe spat on the ground, panting as she mocked me.

"Ava, you barely scraped through vocational school. Your degree is lower than mine. Who are you trying to fool?"

The air hummed with their ridicule, sharp and mocking. Then, cutting clean through the noise, a middle-aged woman's voice rang out.

"Lead Consultant, my foot! Ava is just a country bumpkin!"

The sharp voice attracted everyone's attention.

It felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over my head, and I froze in place.

My voice came out strangely hoarse, "Mom?"

Mom rushed to Chloe's side, her glare cutting toward me like a blade.

Chloe instantly buried herself in Mom's arms, sobbing.

"Aunt Susan, you have to help me!"

Watching Mom soothe her was a fresh twist of the knife.

My mother had always put my uncle's family first.

Since we were children, Chloe got first pick of everything.

Later, she even blocked me from attending proper high school, steering me into a vocational track instead.

"What's the point in wasting money on your education? Let Chloe go to university instead!"

She used my tuition money to pay for Chloe's college diploma.

My father, who had divorced Mom long ago, found out and arranged for me to study abroad.

But while I was studying overseas, Mom never contacted me; she didn't even know I was abroad.

Now, to protect Chloe, she was pointing her finger at me, cursing me, trying to nail me to the pillar of shame.

"Ava, after all these years, you've learned to lie!"

"You only have a vocational certificate, stop pretending!"

"You've always been jealous of Chloe. Now that she's found a good husband, you're trying to seduce Daniel!"

With that, she cast a satisfied look at Daniel.

"Luckily, you truly love Chloe and weren't swayed by Ava, that vixen."

The crowd gasped, completely believing Mom's words.

"Even her own mother says that about her, she really must be a home-wrecker."

"And she was acting so righteous just now? Where did she get the nerve?"

"I almost fell for it. Should someone like her be selling herself? How much for an hour?"

My eyes were red-rimmed when I met my mother's gaze, but hers only hardened in return.

She leaned in close, whispering a warning.

"Serves you right. Who told you to come here as a self-funded intern? I already pulled strings to get Chloe a position, but because you were here, they turned her down!"

Each word was a blade, twisting deeper.

So she knew. She had helped Chloe destroy me.

And because she was my mother, everyone would believe her.

At that moment, I was truly exhausted.

"You conspired to ruin me," I said, "for a junior internship?"

"You're not my mom. I'm cutting ties with you!"

But Mom pushed me hard, muttering non-stop.

"Cut ties, then! I'd be ashamed to claim a daughter like you anyway!"

With a sharp shove, she sent me stumbling back. I hit the floor hard.

Suddenly, Dr. Peterson's respectful voice came from behind me.

"Dr. Miller? Are you all right?"