Chapter 2

Not long afterward, I heard the sharp click of high heels echoing down the corridor outside.

Letizia came back into the hospital room alone. Marcello wasn't with her. The previous display of meekness and aggrievedness had vanished from her face, replaced by blatant smugness and malice.

I ignored her.

The fever caused by the hemolytic reaction had already drained me. I didn't even have the strength to lift my arm.

Letizia walked to my bedside and flicked my IV line with her fingers.

"My, my. How pathetic you are. Did you know? While we were out in the corridor just now, Cello called you a nuisance."

She leaned closer and lowered her voice. "You can see it clearly now, right? Between you and me, I'll always be his first choice."

I exerted the effort to open my eyes and stare coldly at her. "Are you done? If you are, get out."

But Letizia didn't get mad. In fact, her smile widened in delight.

"You're so stubborn, Stella—but it's fine. You won't be able to keep that up for long."

She pulled a palm-sized microcomputer from her handbag and began typing rapidly on the tiny keyboard. The screen emitted a faint blue glow.

"Cello keeps saying you're just pretending to feel unwell. I don't think that's true. Why don't I help you make your condition seem a little more realistic, hm?"

The moment she finished speaking, the alarm went off. Shrill beeps rang from the cardiac monitor beside my bed, with the red light flashing.

My heart rate shot up to 190. My blood pressure plunged, dropping below the safety threshold.

The piercing sounds echoed through the entire floor.

I watched Letizia's performance with a stoic expression.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps came from the corridor.

"What's going on?" Marcello was the first through the door, his face dark as a storm cloud.

A group of panicked doctors and nurses came in after him.

The moment the door opened, Letizia had surreptitiously slipped the microcomputer back inside her handbag before staggering two steps backward. She covered her ears, shaking as she cried out, "Cello! I don't know what's going on. The alarm just started going off! I'm so scared…"

She threw herself into his arms, crying so hard her body trembled.

Marcello wrapped an arm around her and gently patted her back. "It's okay. Everything's alright. I'm here."

A doctor rushed over to inspect the monitor, sweat beading on his forehead.

"That's strange. Her vital signs are stable. Why would the monitor's alarm go off?"

Marcello began to scowl. After calming Letizia, he turned toward me, his gaze sharp as a knife.

"Stella! When are you going to stop playing these games? How dare you mess with the medical equipment just to get me to stay? When did you become this person? I'm so disappointed in you!"

Staring right back at his livid expression, I didn't even have the energy to shout back at him. "You think I did it?"

Marcello sneered. "Who else could it be, besides you? You're jealous of Letizia, so you're trying to frame her!"

He strode over and yanked my blanket off in one swift motion.

"Get out of the bed right this instant and apologize to Letizia!"

The cold air swept over my burning body. I fell into a violent coughing fit, the blood filling my throat. Swallowing it back down, I looked up, my gaze flat and cold.

"Did you get kicked in the head, Marcello?"

He froze. In our entire eight years of marriage, I had never spoken to him like that before. I'd always been gentle, patient, and accepting of everything.

"How dare you insult me like that?" Marcello spat out through clenched teeth, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"I'm just calling it like it is—and you're an idiot." I calmly reached out and unplugged the monitor's power cord.

The shrill alarm cut off instantly.

At last, the hospital room was quiet again.

"The next time you guys decide to act like complete hypocrites and twist things around like that, don't bother disgusting me with your performance."

I flipped over on the bed, showing my back toward him.

"It only repulses me."

Marcello's fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. "Very well. I see how it is. Since you're so tough and stubborn, Stella, you can stay here all by yourself! I shall see how long you can keep this up!"

He grabbed Letizia's hand and stormed out.

"Cello, does Stella hate me very much?" Letizia asked, looking hurt and aggrieved as she cried.

"Ignore her. She's just a nutcase."

As the footsteps grew fainter, I closed my eyes and swallowed down the second mouthful of blood that rose in my throat.