Part 3Love Heard, A Day Too Late

He pushed me into a room and forced me into a chair.

"She's O-negative! Take her blood!"

Before I could react, a sharp needle pierced my skin. They drew six hundred milliliters of blood before they finally stopped.

I was dizzy and weak, unable to stand.

I heard a doctor say to John, "Don't worry, sir. Miss Sterling will be fine."

Hearing this, John finally relaxed. He noticed me staring and offered a guilty explanation.

"Grace, I'm doing this to build up good karma for our child. Even if it wasn't Bianca in danger, we couldn't just stand by and do nothing."

I was too sick to listen. I just nodded numbly. "I understand. It's fine. You should stay and take care of her. I want to go home and rest."

"Don't be silly. You're my wife. Of course I'm staying with you."

John blew gently on the puncture mark on my arm, his face full of concern, and started to lead me home.

On our way out, we ran into Bianca.

"Grace, thank you for donating blood for me," she said with a bright smile. "Let me treat everyone to dinner as a small token of my appreciation."

Before I could speak, John had eagerly agreed.

At the restaurant, he ordered with practiced ease. He placed a glass of mango juice in front of me. "Bianca doesn't like this. You have it. It's good for the baby."

I smiled, a sad, weary thing.

He remembered all of Bianca's preferences but had forgotten my severe allergy to mangoes.

Love and the lack of it are hidden in the details. It was painfully true.

While John was in the restroom, Bianca casually revealed the jade amulet from under her collar, a smirk on her face.

"Grace," she said, her voice a saccharine whisper, "they say a woman who gets fooled once is a fool. What do you call a woman who gets fooled twice?"

"Whatever it is, it has nothing to do with you." I had no interest in her provocations.

But she suddenly ripped the amulet from her neck, smashed it on the floor, and then slapped herself hard across the face, twice.

"John!" she shrieked as he returned, "Grace still won't forgive me! She said I was trying to seduce you and threatened to scratch my face!"

She threw herself into his arms, sobbing.

Seeing the red marks on her cheeks, John didn't hesitate. He shoved me, sending me sprawling to the floor.

"Grace! How can you be so vicious? How could you attack a sick person like that?!"

The ringing in my head, the pain in my body—it all came rushing back, dragging me back to that week in hell.

The foreign streets, the constant explosions. I was a leaf in a storm, tossed between life and death. And the man who had pulled me from that inferno, the man who had promised to love me for a lifetime, had now, for Bianca, used that same hand to push me into an even deeper abyss.

The pain of the past and present collided. I began to tremble uncontrollably, tears streaming down my face.

John, snapping back to his senses, was startled by my state. He started to stammer an explanation.

"Grace, don't cry, I didn't mean it. I just… I lost my temper…"

Beside him, Bianca's eyes also reddened. "It's all my fault. I shouldn't be here, getting in your way. Grace, I'm married now. I know I did things that hurt you in the past, but now I just want to live a quiet life with my husband."

"Since you hate me so much, I'll just disappear from your life forever!"

With that, she ran directly into the bustling street.

John looked at me, his face a mask of conflict. After a brief hesitation, he chased after her.

I swallowed my heartbreak and wiped my tears. Ignoring the strange looks from the people around me, I got up and left.

On the way home, I received a text from John.

"Grace, don't be angry. Bianca is an important client. I only gave her the amulet to secure our future partnership."

"I didn't mean to push you. I just saw things wrong. Bianca's not well. Please, don't hold it against a sick person. I'll make it up to you when I get home."

Pathetic excuses. A dismissive attitude. It was all I needed to know that he didn't care about the pain he had caused me. He was so sure of my love for him, so confident that I would believe anything he said.

But how can a dead heart love again?

Damien's betrayal had tortured my body and soul. John's lies had killed my heart completely.

At this point, I didn't even have the strength to cry.

I stared out the window at the fleeting scenery, a single thought in my mind.

John, I hope when you see my 'body' tomorrow, you can be just as indifferent as you are right now.