The spat ttered from Mrs. Hill''s hand. She stumbled over to Hannah, her hands trembling as she gripped her shoulders. "What... what did you say? Xenia hit someone? That''s... that''s impossible. She''s been a good girl her whole life. She would never..." Her voice trailed off as her eyesnded on the bandage wrapped around Hannah''s forehead.


    "I think she was being threatened," Hannah said evenly, briefly exining how Xenia had framed her and then tried to run her over.


    Mrs. Hill''s mind went nk. She staggered back against the wall, her face ashen. “So that''s it... that''s how she suddenly got all that money for her brother''s treatment. She told me she found a great job with a generous boss. It turns out she was just being someone''s attack dog."


    Attack dog? The term struck Hannah as odd.


    "What are we going to do now?" a young man''s voice cried out from inside. "She''s in jail! How are we going to pay for my surgery? The doctor said they were close to finding a kidney for me! I was about to get the transnt!"


    Xenia''s brother, Zack Hill, stormed out of the apartment.


    "You!" he shouted, pointing a finger at Hannah. "You''re fine! Can''t you just talk to the police and let my sister go? Just tell them you hit a tree or something, not that she hit you!"


    "Yes, yes, please!" Mrs. Hill scrambled to her feet and dropped to her knees before Hannah, her hands sped in prayer. "Please, let my daughter go. My son needs his transnt. We need the money!"


    Looking at the mother and son, Hannah realized something was deeply wrong with this family. Her mother called her an attack dog, and her brother only cared about us surgery fees. They were so selfish they didn''t care that their daughter and sister had resorted to criminal acts for them; they just wanted her out so she could keep earning.


    If Xenia knew what they were really like, would she still be willing to sacrifice her future for them?


    "It''s gone too far. Nothing I say can change anything now," Hannah said. "Xenia was desperate enough to listen to that person and try to kill me. A deal was made."


    "But when I saw her at the station today, I told her you''d been kicked out of the hospital. She waspletely stunned. She said that wasn''t supposed to happen."


    The mother and son exchanged a look, the meaning of her words slowly sinking


    in.


    "This is just my guess," Hannah continued, "but whoever hired her probably promised to cover all your future expenses. That''s why Xenia was willing to sacrifice herself. But they lied. Not only did they cut off the money, they had you thrown out of the hospital."


    Zack stared nkly for a second, then exploded. "Damn it! That bitch went back on her word! Son of a... He grabbed a stainless steel basin and hurled it to the ground. "Who was it? Who? My sister went to jail for me, and she''s not paying? I''m going to find that person and kill them!"


    Mrs. Hill, sobbing, begged Hannah to tell them who had deceived them.