Chapter 1

I lay weakly on the bed. After receiving treatment for so long, I finally felt my illness easing up.

I subconsciously raised my head when I heard some noises. My husband of three years, Caleb Grant, came into view.

My mom, Mary Cooper, was sitting beside me. When she saw Caleb, she hastily put on a smile and said, "Thank you so much, Cal. If it weren't for you, Liddy wouldn't have been able to recover so quickly…"

Instead of responding to my mom, Caleb stared at me expressionlessly. He had always been gentle to me, so his behavior came as a surprise.

He spoke. "You've recovered, huh?"

I was slightly stunned. I had never heard him speak in such a cold voice before.

I nodded, smiling. However, before I could say anything, Caleb scoffed. "Well, since you've recovered, it's about time you pay your debt."

When he had finished speaking, several people barged in behind him. They had a surgical stretcher with them, and as they ran over to me, they proceeded to drag me onto the stretcher.

I felt my heart leaping into my throat. I was overwhelmed by immense panic as I shouted, "What are you doing, Caleb?"

A look of hatred appeared on Caleb's face as he said in a low voice, "Lydia Wells! You vile woman! If it weren't for you, Eva wouldn't have ended up like that! You owe her that much! You'll be giving your kidney back to her right now!"

Panicking, my mom tugged at Caleb as she said in a trembling voice, "Cal, they've already looked into it and declared Liddy innocent, right?"

Caleb shook my mom off violently, causing her to topple onto the floor.

My mom hit her head against the cabinet. In an instant, blood gushed out in a steady flow.

Caleb shouted, "You're a family of wretches! You schemed and worked together just to bully poor Evie, who's all alone! You may be able to trick my mom, but you can never fool me! I know very well the sort of person Lydia is!"

The intruders began injecting me with anesthesia. I struggled frantically, shouting at the top of my lungs, "It wasn't me! I didn't do it! How could you do this to me, Caleb? We were fine just a few days ago, weren't we? Why would you do this?"

Caleb had a mocking smile on his face. "I can't have anything happen to you, of course… After all, I have waited for your kidney for three whole years."

When I heard that, I felt my entire body turning cold. The coldness even seemed to seep into my bones.

I asked in a disbelieving and shaky voice, "Caleb… What… What do you mean by this? Are you saying that… our marriage…"

Caleb scoffed, and I could hardly ignore the hatred on his face. "Lydia, did you really think that I married you because I fell for a vicious woman like you? I only wanted you to give your kidney to Evie. If not, if I had to be with you every day for the past three years… It disgusts me just to think of it!"

Every syllable he spoke was like a stab to my heart, which ached terribly.

Trembling, I couldn't say a word. I used to think that he loved me, but now, that feeling had turned into a sharp blade that pierced right through my heart.

Ignoring the pain in her head, my mom crawled over to Caleb to stop him. She tightly gripped the fabric of his clothes and cried until her voice turned hoarse, "Cal, please, I beg of you! Liddy is finally recovering, but she's still very weak right now. If you force an operation on her, she might not survive…

"As for Ms. Lane, I'm sure that she can get a better donor…"

The group of people glanced at Caleb with hesitation. One of them asked tentatively, "Do we still take her to the operating room now, Mr. Grant?"

Prying my mom's fingers off one by one, Caleb said in a cold voice, "Proceed as planned!"

My mom fell backward. Kneeling onto the floor, she begged Caleb with all her might. "Please, I beg of you… Mr. Grant, please have mercy on my precious Liddy…"

Caleb glared at her in hatred. He spat through his thin lips, "I am her husband. I have the right to make decisions for her. She owes Evie this much!"

With that, he glanced at several bodyguards in black, who came forward to stop my mom.

My heart was completely broken, and tears streamed down my face.

Ever since I had stomach cancer, I had held on with all my might for Caleb's sake, for he had been trying his best to save my life.

He had consulted famous doctors everywhere, and he had never stopped to rest. He had been doing everything he could to save me.

I had thought that he loved me deeply.

As it turned out, he was trying to save me only because he wanted my kidney for Eva Lane's sake.

My heart ached so much that I couldn't breathe. The anesthesia was kicking in. Right before I closed my eyes, I saw the nurses bringing a patient in.

It was Eva, who had been unconscious for three years.

As soon as Caleb saw her, his gaze softened. He gently planted a kiss on her forehead, saying, "I'm finally getting her to pay back what she owes you."