The fear inside me slowly faded, giving way to calm. In the car, he tightened his lips and quietly said he would find another way to treat Jaylene’s illness.
Looking at his profile, I felt both fear and joy. That bittersweet feeling of being protected… tangled with the sting of betrayal.
But happiness won. I forgot I had once wished to leave the Slade Family for good.
I only remembered how safe those large hands made me feel. And just like that, my punishment came.
On the second night, Jaylene had a heart attack. She couldn’t find her medication, until she finally found it, tucked under the pillow in my room.
Stefan’s eyes were filled with disbelief and disappointment. I had never seen him like that.
He grabbed my neck, stared into me and hissed, “I told you I’d find another way. Why would you do this? After ten years, Nadine, this is what you’ve learned?”
Before I could explain, Jaylene clutched her chest and murmured weakly, “Stefan… I feel awful…”
Instantly, he released me and cradled her. “Don’t worry, I’ll take you to the hospital. Nadine has two hearts, you’ll be okay.”
A chill ran through me. Dread coiled in my stomach. I turned to run. But his bodyguards caught me and dragged me into the car like a sack of flour.
The car didn’t stop until we reached the hospital. Stefan dragged me inside, forcing me down onto the cold operating table and strapping me in place.
Under the harsh surgical lights, I was shaking, terrified, helpless.
At last, I couldn’t keep it in any longer. “Stefan, I have only one real heart, the other isn’t! My father had something else implanted in me. Taking it out won’t save Jaylene!”
Stefan stood beside me, expression hidden behind his sterile mask, eyes cold. A smirk tugged at the edge of his lips.
“You expect me to believe that? After everything?” he scoffed. “You’ve learned to lie well, Nadine. But not well enough. That heart is coming out tonight.”
I thrashed against the straps, screaming. “Help! Please! Somebody!”
But no one came. They were all his people. No one was going to save me, not like he did ten years ago.
The doctor hesitated. “We’re nearly out of anesthetic, sir... this could be—”
“She can’t move. Do it,” Stefan said, his voice ice. “She won’t die from one heart being removed. Just don’t mess it up.”
Then the scalpel touched my chest.
“Ah!” I screamed, my vision blurring from the pain as white-hot agony shot through me. Stars danced behind my eyelids and sweat soaked my skin.
Stefan frowned and turned away, unable to bear watching any longer.
One incision, then another. My chest was laid open.
The only sounds in the operating room were my screams and the sickening slice of the scalpel through flesh.
The agony was so intense I passed out, only to wake again moments later.
Still, Stefan never once looked back.
Then the doctor’s blade struck something hard. He hesitated, then began cutting away the flesh around it, slowly, precisely.
Bit by bit, he freed the object, something that resembled a heart.
Stefan gasped sharply. That was the last thing I saw before everything went dark again.
And just before I lost consciousness, I heard the doctor’s trembling voice say to Stefan...
“Mr. Slade, that isn’t a heart. It’s a foreign analgesic. Miss Nadine only has one heart… and it’s been severely corroded. This drug is the only thing keeping her from feeling pain.”
