We leaned on each other, stumbling step by agonizing step toward the hospital exit.
Just as I pushed through the main doors, a wall of black suits blocked our path. Ellie stood at the center, barring our way.
A cruel smirk played on her lips. "Leaving so soon, Charlotte? Do you really want to save your brother?"
She inspected her manicured nails. "It's simple. Get on your knees. Kowtow to me ten times. If I'm satisfied with the sound, I might let you pass."
"In your dreams!" I spat.
Beside me, John jerked his head up, his voice raspy. "Charlotte, let's go! Don't beg her! She's not worth you bowing your head."
He tried to pull me forward, legs shaking. "We'll find another hospital. Someone will help us."
Ellie scoffed. "Let me be clear. One word from the Henson family, and every hospital in this city shuts its doors to you. No one will dare touch him."
My gaze shifted past her to the man in her shadow.
Cole.
He watched quietly, letting Ellie humiliate us without lifting a finger.
A bitter laugh escaped my throat. Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to let them fall.
"Cole," I said, my voice trembling before hardening. "Do you remember the day you proposed? The vow you made?"
I stared into his eyes. "You said you would cherish Johnny like your own brother."
"Is this how you cherish him?"
Cole stiffened. The mask cracked, revealing a flicker of panic.
Ellie noticed immediately. She looped her arm through his, her voice turning sickly sweet. "Sister-in-law, how can you accuse my brother? He's been generous to John. Your brother offended me first. If a dog bites, it needs discipline."
Cole stepped forward, vulnerability gone. His expression hardened into disgust.
"Charlotte, I thought you were reasonable," he said coldly. "I didn't expect you to be so incapable of distinguishing right from wrong."
He adjusted his cuffs. "You don't have to kneel. Abandon him, and there's still a place for you in the Henson family."
He gestured at John like he was trash. "Your child and your status, or this troublemaker? The choice is obvious."
I stared at him, coldness spreading through my chest.
I let out a short, sharp laugh. Slowly, I reached for my left hand.
I gripped the diamond ring and wrenched it off.
With a flick, I hurled it at him.
It hit the pavement with a metallic ping, bouncing once before settling in the dust at his feet. Pathetic. Shattered, like the illusion of his love.
"Cole Henson," I said flatly. "We're done."
I didn't wait for his reaction. I gritted my teeth, tightened my grip on John, and walked away without looking back.
The reality of Ellie's threat hit within the hour.
Three major hospitals. At each one, security stopped us before we reached reception.
"We can't treat him," they said, eyes darting away.
Night had fallen by the time we found a dilapidated clinic in an alley. The sign flickered, but it was our last hope.
I grabbed the elderly doctor's arm. "Please. Look at my brother's hand. We'll pay anything."
He guided John to a gurney and cut open his sleeve.
I gasped.
John's arm was a swollen, purple mess of bruised flesh.
When the doctor probed the injury, John's body seized. His eyes rolled back from the agony.
The old doctor sighed. "This is bad. I can only do basic first aid. You need a trauma center immediately."
He looked at me grimly. "If this is delayed longer, the swelling will cut off circulation. If that happens... amputation."
The world spun. My knees buckled, and I collapsed onto the cold floor.
"Sis!"
John struggled to sit up, panic on his face. The movement pulled at his shattered arm, twisting his features in pain.
Yet he forced a smile, reaching his good hand toward me.
"Charlotte, don't cry. It's okay. I still have my right hand."
His voice was weak, terrified, yet trying to be brave.
"As long as you don't mind having a cripple for a brother... as long as you don't think I'm a burden."
The despair in his eyes pierced straight through my heart.
