Chapter 3
It was supposed to be their home, but Edric barely ever came back.
When he did show up, it was only to force her into donating blood for Nina
She pushed open the door, and of course, it was silent
To marry him, she’d sacrificed everything–her career, her future. She even missed her traditional medicine cenfication exam
After they got married. Edric kept saying a wife should stay at home and be obedient.
So she did. She gave up a high–profile job at a prestigious hospital, tossed aside her professional title, and settled for being a simple assistant at a small clinic near home.
She forced herself to learn stuff she hated–cooking, cleaning, all those stupid chores
She spent all day in the kitchen, then waned up late every night in the living room, only for him to never show up Each time, she was left alone. sinking deeper into despair.
She’d faded, just like the stain at the bottom of the kitchen sink.
Meanwhile. Edric was either having candlela dinners with Nina or staying at the hospital, turking her into bed.
Now? She was done. She wasn’t going to keep humiliating herself for that jerk anymore
Tala walked into the dining room, where the maid had left the same old bowl of sweet, sticky soup. It was the same damn thing every night.
In the past, after donating blood until she was pale as a ghost, Eric had noticed. Then the soup appeared–every day after that
She thought that maybe, just maybe, her sacrifice would finally get his attention.
Bur Edric had said, “Nina needs fresh, healthy blood”
To him, she was nothing but a walking blood bank.
And still, she’d been spid enough to put up with that humiliation, drinking the soup every time, hoping he’d notice her
Suddenly, Talu remembered something. She went to the kitchen, grabbed a small jar, filled it with some of the soup, and then dumped the rest down the drain. She couldnt stand that sugary, goory mess.
She turned on all the lights, filling the house with brightness, and headed upstairs. She set up a medicinal bath, sinking into the warm water, letting it wash away the coldness from her body.
In the mirror, her pale fare stared back at her. Less t
than a year since she
since she married Edric, and she’d already been reduced to this.
“What the hell was I thinking, loving him I should’ve loved myself, she thought
She picked a lullaby her mom used to love, letting it play sofily in the background. She opened the wardrobe and saw something that made her stop dead
Three–quarters of it was filled with clothes for Edric. Her own clothes were shoved into the corner.
Shiny sequins, pearls, and glitter–clothes picked out to match Edric’s taste, Cr, more likely, Nina’s,
Talia shook her head, “How foolish”
She ripped all the men’s clothes of the hangers and threw them in the trash.
Then she grabbed a suitcase and quickly packed a few things–clothes from before the wedding some personal items, and important documents
Opening her vanity drawer, she found a pile of yellowed paper cranes. Every year on her birthday, Edric would fold one for her, with a note wishing her health and happiness,
Every year, on her birthday, Edric would fold paper cranes for her, each one with a note wishing her health and happiness.
From the day they met all the way until the wedding, he’d promised, “Talia, I’ll take care of you for the rest of my life.”
What a joke. The only one still holding onto that promise was her.
The cranes had yellowed, just like him. Men–they change on a dame”
1/3
Chapter 31
She slammed the drawer that, not bothering to take any of it with fier. Just then, her phone lit up twice on the bedside table.
One was a bank transfer notification, the other from an unknown number. It was from Edgar
Edgar Your card has hit its limit.
There was a cap on daily transfers. Her card could only accept up to 10 million dollars today, meaning the 150 million couldn’t come in all at once.
Talia smiled faintly. As expected, Edgar kept his word.
She quickly replied, “Thanks” saved his number, and then texted her best friend, Alina, who was away on business in Zenith City
She asked Alina to help her find a villa and also look into some top lawyers in Sampton City
After that. Tala turned off the lights, curled up in the guest bedroom bed, and replayed the day in her head,
She had somehow ended up time traveling to the first year of her marriage to Edric. It was the day she donated blood for Nina
At less than 100 pounds, Edric had forced her to give 600 milliliters of blood. Even a grown man couldn’t donate that much.
Her body had already been weak, and then Edric had leh her in the pouring rain. Unable to get a cabs, she was forced to walk home, only to catch previmonia
After that, her health deteriorated rapidly. She was in and out of the hospital constantly, yet Edric never oner visited her.
She spent those lonely nights alone in a hospital bed, enduring the excruciating pain. The memory of
In still lingered
Now, she was determined to rest, regain her strength, and never again allow a scumbag like him to ruin her life.
Spon, exhaustion took over and she shipped into a deep nightmare.
dship, and flames shooting up into the sky. She was swallowed by the waves, sinking deeper
The sea around her was a raging storm, an overturned ship, and deeper, surrounded by nothing but darkness.
“Help please! Somebody, save me!” she screamed, desperately reaching out, but no one answered.
speed, like an
Finally, ber body plunged into the deep sea. Through the haze, she saw a white figure moving toward her, swimming at incredible sp cangel descending from the heavens.
The figure grabbed her from behind, pulling her out of the terrifying darkness.
She tried to turn around and see his face, but no matter how hard she tried, it remained a blur. She wondered, Who are you?
The scene shifted, and she was suddenly on solid ground. Blurry–eyed, she opened them to find herself staring at Edric, 20 years old, with his cold. Indifferent face
“Ah!” Talia screamed, waking up with a start. Before she could even catch her breath, her phone rang urgently. It was Edric’s ringtone
In the past, when Edric called, she would be filled with joy and immediately pick up the phone
But now, she thought. That scumbag’s ghost just wouldn’t leave me alone…
She silenced the phone, took a sip of lemon water to calm herself, and massaged her temples to wake up fully before answering
“Why are you picking up now! Edric’s voice car
came through, cold and impatient, laced with reproach and annoyance,
In her past life, she hadn’t realized it but now she could see it clearly–Edric used this kind of harsh language to belittle and control her.
Talia scoffed inwardly.
rolling her eyes. She replied flatly, “What’s the matter?”
As he heard her cold tone, Edric’s dark eyes turned even more menacing. He glanced toward the hospital room and barked, “Get to the hospital right now. Nina preds your blood”
Then, the phone line went dead with a sharp click.
Talia’s lips curled into a bitter, mocking smile.
In her previous life, she had naively believed that donating blood to Nina would somehow win Edric’s heart. But in reality, it had been nothing more than a cruel game for Nina, torturing her for fun.
And Edric? He didn’t even see her as a person. It was time to take back what was hers–her blood
Chapter 3
Talia managed to take a brief nap, then picked out a simple, elegant white dress. She took her time having a breakfast full of iron–rich foods to replenish her body, then leisurely made her way to the hospital:
No rush–she first went to the lab to find an old classmate from college, handed iser the sealed jar from last night, and said, “Could you help me
with a test?
“Sure, but the composition is complicated, I’ll take some time, the classmate said.
“No worries. I’m in no hurry.”
It was until 9 AM that she finally arrived at Nina’s hospital room
Talia pushed open the door and immediately saw a pile of blood extraction needles and even more blood storage vials than before–an extravagant “gift” prepared just for her.
Her gaze shifted slightly.
AD
