All Chapters of Choosing One Life Over Many: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

My mom, dad, and other relatives were all in the emergency room. The doctor said that there were only two hours left before the time window for receiving a cure closed up.I called my boyfriend, Harrison Somers, who promised to come with the cure. But two hours had already passed, and he still hadn't shown up.I held my parents' hands tightly as I heard my relatives crying in agony beside me. I begged desperately for them to hold on.My young nephew clung to the hem of my sleeve and sobbed, "Aunt Mikayla, you said Mr. Somers would save us. You lied!"I couldn't hold back my tears. I sobbed uncontrollably as I watched them take their last breaths right in front of me.At that moment, I was paralyzed by grief. A doctor supported me as I walked to the hallway outside dejectedly. My tears had already run dry by then. Yet, there was no reply from Harrison."Please accept my condolences, miss. I know how sad you must be feeling, but I still need to ask you to go and get the paperwork d

"Should I answer it for you?" Nina asked me.I shook my head. "I'll handle it myself."The moment I picked up the phone, Harrison's cold voice came through. "Mikayla, where's my blue tie?""We've broken up. Find your stuff yourself. I'm not your maid," I retorted.There was a stunned silence on the other end before Harrison spoke up again. "Mikayla, is this really necessary? Stop acting out and just come back already!"He thought I was throwing a tantrum."Harrison, I'm not joking with you. You'll never be able to repay what you owe me in this lifetime!"I hung up and blocked his number immediately.Nina patted my shoulder. "Don't bother wasting any emotions on that piece of trash. Let's eat first. After you've had something to eat, we'll go find you a lawyer."Thank goodness for Nina—without her, I wouldn't have known what to do.My relatives were still staying at a hotel. The lawyer suggested I apply for forensic testing, gather evidence, and force those responsible to come

Negative opinions about me came rolling in as soon as Zara's edited video was uploaded to the Internet. She painted me as a money grubber who claimed that the amount she offered wasn't enough for me to drop the lawsuit."Oh my God! I knew it. How could an entire family of more than ten people just die from wastewater?""The woman did it on purpose. I feel sorry for her family. They can't even rest in peace.""They haven't had their funeral yet just so she can extort money. You can tell by her face that she's not a good person!""Am I the only one who finds this unbelievable? Are you guys whitewashing the culprit? The water pollution did take place, and that's a fact. What does her appearance have to do with it?""Isn't compensation justified in such a case?""I want to see the full video. I'm not buying this heavily edited nonsense!"Some voices of reason emerged among the commenters, but they were quickly drowned out by trolls and paid critics.I didn't bother responding.Aft

Countless conspiracy theories flooded in. As I read through the comments online, I felt surprisingly calm.An hour later, Harrison called me. His voice sounded weary. "Can you stop this already, Mikayla? Fine, I'll marry you. Will that quell your anger?"I nearly vomited out of disgust upon hearing his ridiculous words."Marry me? Who do you think you are, Harrison? You're practically an accomplice in this. I won't let you off!" I yelled at him over the phone.Right away, I released all the evidence I had meticulously prepared. All the messages where I begged him to deliver the medicine and the voice recordings of our calls that day were all uploaded to the Internet.I tagged him on social media and wrote, "I waited four hours for you that day. My family waited for the medicine that would save their lives while you were busy flirting with Zara at the hospital. "She came between our relationship knowingly. You played both sides and let my family pay the price for your so-called l

I scoffed disdainfully. "Do you think Harrison will keep helping you? When something concerns their own interests and benefits, the Somers family won't allow him to keep up his foolish ways. Just you wait. Once the verdict is out, everyone who supports you will turn their back on you."Zara's face turned ashen as I walked away. The river pollution had been severe and far-reaching. With clear evidence of the toxic wastewater discharge, Mateo was sentenced to life in prison.Initially, I had pushed for the death penalty, but then I realized that death was too merciful for someone like him. He should spend his life atoning behind bars.After the court ruling, Mateo chose not to appeal. Zara, on the other hand, could not take it. As we were leaving the courtroom, she grabbed a pair of scissors and charged at me, screaming, "Die, Mikayla!"Before I could react, someone stepped in front of me—it was Harrison.I watched in shock as the blade plunged into his stomach. Zara was stunned