Part 3One Hour Too Late: The Heart He Broke Forever

"Leo Evans is no longer a member of this family."

Keir recognized the caller and spoke with cold impatience. "I hope you’ll stop using him as an excuse to contact the Sterlings."

The person on the phone was my biological mother.

Maybe it was the cancer, or maybe it was the crushing weight of her own guilt, but her voice was a weak, trembling sob.

"I was wrong, Keir. I never should have switched them at the hospital. But Leo is innocent. Can't you... treat him the way you used to?"

It was a classic, trashy novel plot.

I was the "fake heir" of the Sterling family.

When I was born, I was diagnosed with a severe heart defect. My biological mother, terrified she couldn't afford to keep me alive, secretly swapped me with the Sterlings' healthy newborn.

She didn't confess until recently, when her lung cancer became terminal.

She had knelt at the gates of the Sterling estate, sobbing and banging her head on the pavement. "I was wrong! This is my karma! I’m dying! I’m giving Caleb back to you... just please, let me see Leo! He’s my real son!"

When I finally met her, she wasn't loving. She told me, "The Sterlings fixed your heart. You got a good deal. You had twenty years of luxury. Now it’s Caleb’s turn."

I wasn't even that sad. She was right, after all.

The night Caleb moved in, he came to my room pretending to be the peacemaker.

He said he’d beg our parents to let me stay.

I was a fool. I blushed and told him, "I want to stay, too. But not as Keir’s brother."

So I confessed to Keir.

I told him I was relieved we weren't blood-related. I told him I’d known for a long time that what I felt for him wasn't just "family" love. I told him I wanted to be with him forever.

I waited, my heart pounding, looking into his eyes.

I only saw coldness and disgust.

"Forever?" Keir had sneered.

"You just want to stay in this house and keep the lifestyle you stole."

He pulled out an audio recorder. It played a conversation I’d supposedly had with Caleb the day before.

But the words were wrong. It sounded like my voice, but it was saying things I never said:

I have a way to stay. If I get with Keir, they won't kick me out. I’ve been acting close to him for years just for this moment.

The sound of an ambulance siren outside snapped me out of the memory.

An ER doctor rushed past, bumping into Keir.

"Sorry," the doctor panted. "We have a DOA coming in. Need to prep for a possible resuscitation."

Keir nodded absently. He turned back to the phone. "So you’re saying I should just let him keep playing his little games? Let him use me?"

He let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "I guess 'low-life' runs in the blood. Why else would he think of confessing to his own 'brother' to save his skin?"

The background noise of the phone call grew louder. I heard a nurse in the background: "Bed 3, if you don't pay the deposit, we have to stop the meds..."

Keir heard it. "Leo didn't come to see me because he’s sick. He’s here to beg for more money for you, isn't he?"

Without waiting for an answer, Keir hung up.

He immediately typed a message: [Leo, don't bother coming.]

[I’m not giving you another cent.]

I didn't come for money, I thought.

I’m never taking your money again.

I instinctively stepped back as Keir walked past me.

Even though he couldn't see me, I felt the need to get away.

He really, really hated me.

"He’s not coming. Let’s go," Keir told Caleb.

They walked out of the hospital.

As they reached the car, an ambulance screeched to a halt at the ER entrance.

A gurney covered in a white sheet was rushed inside.

Keir caught a glimpse in the rearview mirror, then looked away, his jaw tight.

The Rolls Royce began to roll toward the exit.

Suddenly, the driver hit the brakes.

The ER doctor from earlier was tapping on the back window.

Keir rolled it down. "Is there a problem?"