Chapter 1 - “Know your place, Emily!”The slap echoed through the third-floor corridor.
Emily’s head snapped to the side.
For a few seconds, nobody moved.
The fluorescent lights hummed overhead. Somewhere behind the closed doors, a monitor beeped steadily. Nurses hurried past without looking up, pretending not to hear the argument.
Emily slowly turned her face back.
The woman in pink stood directly in front of her.
Her name was Victoria Hayes.
Everyone in the hospital knew her.
She was polished, wealthy, connected, and almost always dressed in pink. Her blond hair was perfectly curled, her diamond earrings were impossible to miss, and her smile always seemed to appear a second before something unpleasant happened.
Beside Victoria stood Dr. Adrian Shaw.
Emily’s doctor.
And, until five minutes ago, the man she believed was going to protect her.
Instead, he looked uncomfortable.
Victoria stepped closer.
“You embarrassed me in front of the entire nursing staff,” she hissed.
Emily’s hand moved protectively over her stomach.
“You pushed me first.”
Victoria laughed.
“You’re still arguing?”
Emily’s eyes narrowed.
“Touch me again, and you’ll regret it.”
Victoria raised her hand.
This time Emily caught her wrist before the strike landed.
The hallway went silent.
“You really want to do this?” Emily asked.
Victoria’s expression changed.
“You little—”
“Emily, stop!” Dr. Shaw stepped forward. “You’re pregnant!”
Emily released Victoria’s wrist.
“I know exactly what I am.”
Victoria rubbed her arm and smiled cruelly.
“Then maybe start acting like someone who deserves to be carrying that child.”
Emily stared at her.
“What exactly is that supposed to mean?”
Victoria leaned closer.
“It means this hospital belongs to people like us. Not you.”
Emily felt something cold move through her chest.
She had heard enough rumors in the past two weeks.
Appointments mysteriously disappearing.
Test results arriving late.
A nurse suddenly refusing to discuss her records.
A prescription being changed without explanation.
And every time she asked questions, someone told her not to worry.
Now Victoria was standing in front of her, confirming that there had been something happening behind the scenes.
Emily looked at Dr. Shaw.
“What is she talking about?”
He avoided her eyes.
Victoria smiled.
“You have nowhere to run in this hospital.”
Emily’s voice dropped.
“Get away from me. Both of you.”
Victoria folded her arms.
“Who are you going to call?”
Emily reached into her handbag.
Dr. Shaw immediately tensed.
“Emily, what are you doing?”
“My phone.”
“Emily.”
She pulled it out.
Victoria laughed.
“Who could possibly help you?”
Emily ignored her.
Her thumb moved across the screen.
Dr. Shaw stepped forward.
“Emily, put the phone down.”
“EMILY! PUT THE PHONE DOWN!”
The sudden sharpness in his voice made Emily stop.
She looked at him.
Then at Victoria.
The woman in pink laughed.
“See?”
Her voice softened into something almost mocking.
“No one cares about you.”
Emily looked at the phone.
For the first time since the argument began, she smiled.
It wasn't a nervous smile.
It wasn't fear.
It was calm.
“You really think I'm alone?”
Victoria frowned.
Emily pressed one contact.
The call connected immediately.
A deep male voice answered.
“Emily?”
She closed her eyes for half a second.
“Uncle Raymond, I need you on the third floor.”
Silence.
Then:
“What happened?”
Emily opened her eyes.
“Come now.”
The doctor froze.
Victoria's smile disappeared.
Emily continued.
“And bring security.”
The doctor stared at her.
“Uncle Raymond?”
Victoria looked confused.
Dr. Shaw whispered:
“Raymond Black?”
Emily said nothing.
The doctor swallowed.
“The owner of this hospital?”
Emily's voice hardened.
“Yes.”
Victoria stepped backward.
“That’s impossible.”
Emily looked directly at her.
“Is it?”
Victoria shook her head.
“She’s lying.”
But Dr. Shaw wasn't listening to her anymore.
He was staring at Emily as though he'd just discovered that the woman standing in front of him was someone entirely different.
Victoria’s voice became frantic.
“Adrian, don’t listen to her. She’s trying to scare us.”
Dr. Shaw didn’t answer.
Because somewhere downstairs, a series of heavy footsteps had begun moving through the hospital.
Fast.
Organized.
Approaching.
Emily slipped her phone back into her bag.
Victoria’s face turned white.
“Who exactly did you call?”
Emily stepped closer.
“You’re about to find out.”
The elevator doors opened at the end of the corridor.
Three security officers stepped out.
Behind them came a tall, silver-haired man in a black suit.
The entire hallway seemed to stop breathing.
Raymond Black looked at Emily.
Then at Victoria.
Then at Dr. Shaw.
And when he spoke, his voice was quiet.
“Who touched my niece?”
No one answered.
Victoria’s lips parted.
Dr. Shaw looked down.
Emily simply pointed toward Victoria.
“That woman.”
Raymond's expression hardened.
“Then we have a serious problem.”
But before anyone could move, a nurse came running around the corner.
“Mr. Black!”
Everyone turned.
The nurse was pale.
“We just found something in Emily’s medical file.”
Raymond’s eyes narrowed.
“What?”
The nurse looked at Emily.
“It says her pregnancy records were altered.”
Victoria stopped breathing.
And Dr. Shaw whispered:
“That’s not possible.”
The nurse shook her head.
“It gets worse.”
She held up a folder.
“Someone changed the name of the father.”
Emily’s face went still.
Raymond slowly turned toward her.
“And what name did they put?”
The nurse swallowed.
“Daniel Hayes.”
Victoria screamed.
“No!”
Emily stared at her.
May you like
Because Daniel Hayes was Victoria’s husband.
And he had been dead for three years.
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