"Miss Jessica, she... she slit her wrists. There was so much blood..."
The next second, the engine roared to life, and Timothy floored the gas pedal.
The car shot forward at breakneck speed.
Jessica instinctively gripped the handle above her window, knuckles white.
Timothy didn''t stop for a single red light, weaving recklessly through traffic, barely dodging other cars. Jessica was tossed in her seat, her head spinning, the world outside a blur.
Timothy''s lips were pressed into a thin, grim line, his face ashen.
Jessica wanted to tell him to slow down, but no words woulde her voice was lost somewhere inside her.
Her stomach churned violently.
She squeezed her eyes shut, brow furrowed in pain.
But Timothy didn''t notice. All his focus was on the road ahead.
Finally, they arrived home.
An ambnce was already parked in front of The Gilded Whisper Estates.
Before the car had even stopped moving, Timothy had flung the door open and bolted out.
Jessica had never seen Timothy-always so measured andposed-so shaken before.
So even the calmest people can lose control...
Jessica''s mouth filled with a bitter taste. She snatched some tissues, stumbled out of the car, and half-ran, half-staggered to the nearest trash bin.
Only after she''d emptied her stomachpletely did she feel even a little relief.
She wiped her lips, turned around and saw Timothy carrying She out of the house in his arms, her clothes stained deep red with blood.
Their son trailed behind, his face streaked with tears.
Father and son climbed into the ambnce together.
The siren wailed as it sped off into the distance.
Mabel, their housekeeper, spotted Jessica.
"Ma''am..."
Mabel''s heart clenched with worry as she hurried over.
But Jessica suddenly copsed, crumpling to the ground.
"Ma''am!"
Mabel rushed to her side, lifting Jessica''s upper body with trembling hands.
"Ma''am? Ma''am?!"
When Jessica didn''t respond, Mabel fumbled for her phone and dialed Timothy''s number.
"Sir, it''s bad-ma''am has fainted!"
Timothy sounded irritated. "She just got home from the hospital. Her wounds were already treated. That little injury can''t possibly make her pass out."
"But sir, she really-"
He cut her off. "Stop bothering me with these trivial things!"
The line went dead.
Mabel could only sigh in frustration and dialed for an ambnce herself.
How could he call this a trivial matter when ma''am had fainted right before her eyes?
It was infuriating.
All of this was She''s fault.
Mabel nced down at her phone, seeing the gossip online: pictures of Timothy,
arm around She''s shoulders, telling reporters that She was his aunt.
But the way he looked at her-no nephew looked at an aunt that way.
At least the ambnce came quickly.
Mabel went with Jessica to the hospital.
Jessica was wheeled straight into the ER, while Mabel paced anxiously outside. She remembered how kind Jessica had always been to her. When Mabel''s husband needed surgeryst year, Jessica had given her a generous sum and a month of paid leave. Mabel had tried to repay her with her sry once she returned, but Jessica wouldn''t hear of it-she told her to keep the money for her husband''s medical bills.
Jessica wasn''t much of a talker, but there was nothing else wrong with her. She had a good heart.
As for Timothy... and their son...
Mabel sighed heavily.
Over half an hour passed before Jessica finally woke up in the ER.
The same doctor from herst hospital stay came in to check on her.
"Ms. Greene, I strongly rmend you stay in the hospital. Fainting like this is a sign that your condition is getting worse. If you cooperate with treatment, there''s still hope. We''ll try to find a donor and schedule the surgery if things improve." She remembered what the doctor saidst time: for her illness, treatment had to begin with chemotherapy.
But some patients never make it through chemo at all.