Clara could hardly believe what she was hearing. Never had she imagined Adrian would use Eleanor to threaten her at a moment when life and death hung in the balance.
She turned to Sienna at once. For the first time, desperation showed on her face as she pleaded hoarsely, "She's your grandmother. Her condition can't wait. I'm begging you... please sign now, okay?"
Sienna pretended to shrink back and said softly, "I think Adrian's right. Go clear things up first. Once you do, I'll definitely sign and save Grandma."
The doctor urged them impatiently, "The patient is in very bad condition right now. Which one of you is family? If this gets delayed any longer, we may not be able to save her."
Those words hit Clara like a crushing weight straight to the chest.
Eleanor had been the one who loved her most. She could not let anything happen to her.
Clara bit down on her lower lip until she tasted blood. At last, she closed her eyes and nodded.
"I'll do the clarification. Sign now, immediately."
"How do I know you won't go back on your word later?" A malicious smile curled across Sienna's lips. "Go livestream yourself at the hospital entrance and shout that you're a slut. Say it three times, then do the clarification. The second you're done, I'll sign."
It was humiliating beyond words. Adrian frowned, instinctively about to stop her.
But Sienna suddenly leaned into his arms and gave him a pitiful smile. "Adrian, am I being too much? But there are so many people online calling me a slut and telling me to die. What did I do wrong?"
In an instant, pity won out.
Adrian looked at Clara. "Babe, do what Sienna says. Haven't you always wanted to marry me? Once this is over, we'll get married and go spend our honeymoon in Valoire, your favorite place."
It was poison wrapped in candy, but she no longer wanted it.
A mocking curve tugged at Clara's lips. Limping badly, she made her way to the hospital entrance and started a livestream.
"I'm a slut. I'm a slut. I'm a slut..."
More and more people gathered around her, pointing and whispering, their eyes full of contempt.
For a moment, Clara felt as though she had been stripped naked and slapped in public.
Forcing herself to endure the humiliation, she spoke to the camera in a numb voice. "It was all me. I seduced Adrian. I interfered in the relationship between Adrian and Sienna, and I deliberately framed Sienna..."
The moment the words left her mouth, the livestream exploded with abuse.
Clara shut it off with trembling hands. Like an empty shell with her soul torn out, she turned and walked back in a daze.
But when she returned, Adrian and Sienna were already gone. Only the surgeon remained outside the operating room.
When he saw her come back, he shook his head in silence.
"My condolences. Miss Mercer never signed. We had no authority to operate. Because surgery was not performed in time, the patient has passed away."
All the blood in Clara's body seemed to freeze. She nearly lost her balance.
She was on the verge of breaking down as she screamed, "Didn't Sienna say she'd sign? Why didn't she sign? Why?"
The doctor looked troubled. "I'm sorry. Miss Mercer fainted before she agreed to sign. We had no authority to intervene. I'm sorry."
Clara could not hear another word after that. She ran like a madwoman to Sienna's hospital room, only to find her casually eating a banana while scrolling on her phone.
The last thread of Clara's reason snapped in an instant. She lunged forward. "You did this on purpose, didn't you? You never intended to save Grandma from the start! She was so good to you. She was your own grandmother. Why would you do this? I won't let you get away with it. I'll make you pay for this."
"Clara, have you lost your mind?" Adrian dragged her back and said darkly, "Sienna fainted earlier. She just woke up. She's upset about Eleanor too. Can you stop being so cruel? If we're really assigning blame, aren't you the one who killed Eleanor?"
Adrian's voice was low and cold. "If you hadn't insisted on putting out that slide deck to hurt Sienna, those videos of you never would've been leaked, and Eleanor never would've seen them and collapsed. If you hadn't kept targeting Sienna and gotten her harassed online, she wouldn't have fainted when it was time to sign. This is all because of you. If you want someone to hate, hate yourself."
With that, Adrian did not wait for her reply. He scooped Sienna up and carried her off to the VIP room.
A doctor stepped in and said hesitantly, "Someone needs to handle the arrangements for the deceased. If no one claims responsibility, we'll proceed according to hospital protocol."
Tears slid down Clara's face without restraint. She slowly rose to her feet, her voice hoarse as though scraped raw by sand.
"Leave her to me."
No matter what, she had to see Eleanor off one last time.
As she took the urn, her phone suddenly rang.
It was her mother. "So you finally decided to answer. Look at the mess you've made. The Whitmore family has almost lost all its dignity because of you. Let me make this clear. If this marriage falls through, get out of the Whitmore family. The flight has already been arranged. Someone will take you to Kingshaven tomorrow. And don't you ever come back."
Clara thought she would cry. But when she reached up on instinct to wipe away tears, she realized there were none left.