"You heartless woman. You deliberately scratched her wrist underwater. She's still bleeding and they can't stop it."
"You're a lawyer, Rosamond. Don't you know that killing someone means paying with your life?"
Rosamond rushed to defend herself.
"How could I have scratched her? Have you forgotten? I can't even—"
Bryce cut her off before she could finish, impatience carved into every line of his face.
"Olympia got hurt because of you. You're going to take responsibility."
"Take her in. Draw her blood. However much Olympia lost, that's how much comes out of her."
A deafening buzz filled Rosamond's skull. She never imagined Bryce could be this unhinged.
Her chest caved inward, as though something had clamped down on her lungs and refused to let go.
The bodyguards closed in. Rosamond thrashed against their grip.
"Bryce, this is illegal!"
"You can't do this to me!"
Bryce walked over and crouched in front of her. His fingers seized her chin, tilting her face up. His eyes were pure malice.
"Now you want to talk to me about the law?"
"Why didn't you think about consequences when you were hurting Olympia?"
"Take her in."
They dragged her into the operating room. She fought every inch of the way, and none of it mattered.
The needle slid into her vein, cold as ice, and the pain tore through her as though it had pierced her heart.
She felt her blood leaving her body. And with it, the last trace of love she had ever held for Bryce Delgado.
She told herself to endure it. He wouldn't actually let her die.
But the minutes crawled by, and no order came from outside to stop.
Rosamond felt herself being hollowed out. Her body grew so weak she couldn't even keep her eyes open.
A bitter ache rose in her chest.
Was she really going to die here today?
She wasn't ready. She had been so close to starting over.
Meanwhile, in the hospital corridor, a doctor stood before Bryce, sweat dripping from his forehead.
"Mr. Delgado, your wife has already had 1500cc drawn. She's at her absolute limit. If we continue, something will go very wrong."
Bryce barely glanced at him.
"How's Olympia?"
The doctor hesitated, stammering.
"Miss Galloway, her wound is quite deep. She's still in emergency treatment."
Under Bryce's withering stare, the doctor wiped his brow and forced the words out, his voice shaking.
"But rest assured, Miss Galloway is no longer in critical danger."
Only then did the edge in Bryce's gaze soften, just barely.