I pulled my gaze away and flagged down a cab.
"Downtown General, please."
I leaned my head against the window and watched the streets blur past. Tears fell before I could stop them.
Five years. Five years I'd given him, and every single one of them had been wasted.
At the hospital, I checked myself in alone.
The attending physician studied my pale face and let out a sigh.
"Ms. Henson, your condition isn't looking good. We need to operate as soon as possible. And the follow-up medication won't be cheap."
I nodded.
"If money can buy me more time, that's all that matters. Doctor, please schedule it as soon as you can."
I transferred every penny I'd saved over the years onto my medical payment card. I may have walked away from the company, but at least I had enough to cover my treatment.
I changed into a hospital gown and lay down on the cold bed.
The woman in the next bed over had her son and daughter at her side, all of them laughing and chatting.
I had no one but myself.
A sharp cramp seized my stomach. I curled into a ball under the thin blanket, gritting my teeth through it.
I was just drifting off when the door to my room slammed open.
Wallace stood in the doorway, breathing hard.
His tie was crooked. His eyes burned with fury.
Lola trailed behind him, her face the picture of wounded innocence.
"Georgette, what the hell kind of tantrum are you throwing?"
Wallace strode to my bedside and looked down at me.
"Mr. Ward canceled the partnership. He says you're the only point of contact he'll work with!"
"Get up. Call him right now and straighten this out!"
I stared at the righteous indignation on his face and almost laughed.
"Mr. Gilbert, I've resigned."
"The company's business has nothing to do with me anymore."
Wallace's hand came down hard on the nightstand. The water glass sitting on top toppled and shattered against the floor.
"I'm handing you a way out, and you should be smart enough to take it."
"Or do you actually want to sit back and watch the whole company fall apart? Is that what gets you off?"
"I know you're upset I gave your position to Lola, but look at yourself. You're half-dead. What could you possibly do?"
"Lola's young and full of energy. She's a better fit than you ever were!"
Lola stepped forward and curled her hand around Wallace's arm, all delicate concern.
"Wallace, please don't be angry with her. This is all my fault. I was too stupid to keep Mr. Ward on board."
"Georgette probably set the passwords wrong on purpose because she's upset with me."
A cold laugh escaped my throat.
"Lola, you couldn't crack the encryption on your own, so you came running to blame me?"
"The handover documents were perfectly clear. If you couldn't understand them, that's your problem."
Wallace's face went dark.
He grabbed the edge of my blanket and ripped it off.
"Stop faking it! Get up!"
"You are going to smooth things over with Mr. Ward today, or you won't be able to afford the damages!"
The cold hit me like a wall. A vicious cramp twisted through my stomach and doubled me over. I pressed both hands against my abdomen, and cold sweat ran down my temples.
"Wallace, I'm sick. I need surgery."
"I can't help you."
Wallace didn't believe a word of it.
"Sick? With what? A case of princess syndrome?"
"Georgette, you used to down three bottles of baijiu at a client dinner with a hundred-and-three fever just to close a deal. And now you're telling me you're sick?"
"This whole playing-hard-to-get routine is pathetic!"
He pulled out his phone and dialed finance right in front of me.
"Cancel Georgette Henson's health insurance."
"And that medical expense card the company set up for her? Deactivate it. Immediately."
He hung up and fixed me with a frigid stare.
"Georgette, I'm giving you one last chance."
"Right now. This second. Call Mr. Ward."
"Or you can rot in this hospital bed alone."
I stared at the man standing over me.
He felt like a complete stranger.
