The year I was preparing for my postgraduate exams, Matias, always feeling sorry for me, would often bring over home-cooked meals made by his parents.
Each meal was a feast in itself, four dishes and a soup, perfectly balanced with both meat and vegetables. Milana even took the time to learn how to cook the dishes I loved, always going the extra mile to make me feel at home.
They were warm, kind-hearted people, offering me a love and care that felt like a balm to my soul.
When Matias and I married, I had nothing to my name, no job, no car, no house, and even my tuition fees were covered by the Campbell family.
At the wedding banquet, a few of Matias’s relatives couldn't hide their judgment. Some distant cousins exchanged sharp words and whispered behind my back, looking down on me for what I didn’t have.
Matias’s parents didn’t hold back in the slightest. In front of everyone, they made their stance crystal clear.
"Verena is a good girl, the daughter-in-law we’ve chosen for our family."
"Anyone who dares speak ill of her will never cross the threshold of our house again."
At that time, I was young, uncertain, and overly sensitive. Hearing their words struck a deep chord within me.
At that moment, I made a silent vow to always honor Matias and his parents for the rest of my life.
They had given me something I’d never known before: a complete family and a taste of the kind of love I had longed for.
And now, Alastor and Milana knelt before me, their faces worn with age and desperation. Their eyes pleaded with me, silently begging.
I lowered my gaze, unable to look them in the eye any longer.
The wound on my wrist pulsed painfully, each throb making it hard to catch my breath.
As the elderly couple continued pleading on their knees, Odette rushed to their side, her movements swift and urgent.
"Verena, what are you doing? Not only are you refusing to save your husband, but now you’re trying to take away this elderly couple’s assets?"
"For the sake of money and your job, you’ve completely abandoned your conscience? How disgusting."
With a sharp glance in my direction, she raised her voice, brimming with self-righteousness.
"Don’t waste your breath begging her. I, Odette, will risk my career and reputation to save the patient. Not just because it's my duty as a doctor, but because I still have a conscience!"
Her impassioned words rang through the crowd, sparking applause.
People praised her, lauding her as a model doctor, and at that moment, I felt small and selfish in comparison.
A faint smile curved my lips as I ignored the sharp sting on my wrist and joined in with the applause.
"Then I wish you the best of luck."
Odette shot me a venomous glare, her eyes burning with hate before she turned and walked toward the operating room.
It wasn’t until her figure vanished behind the closed door that I slowly reached for my trembling wrist. Cold sweat beaded on my forehead, and the pain in my body was now more than just physical.
Alastor and Milana, too preoccupied with their worry for Matias, helped each other to their feet and hurried off, determined to gather money for his treatment.
The crowd began to thin, the chatter dying down as people trickled away.
My vision blurred, and my consciousness began to slip away like sand through fingers…
When I finally opened my eyes again, I found myself lying in a hospital bed.
Maevie Yesron, my close colleague, was sitting beside me, her face etched with concern.
"Dr. Scott, you’re finally awake!"
"You’ve been asleep for a whole day and night; you scared us to death."
Still groggy, I propped myself up, surprised at how much time had passed.
Clearing my throat, I spoke, my voice hoarse and weak. "Matias... How is he?"
Maevie hesitated for a moment before responding cautiously.
"Dr. Hewitt spent ten hours fighting to save him. He made it through and is out of danger now."
A weight settled in my chest, and I wasn’t sure whether to feel relief or disappointment.
