I Returned From My Own Funeral

Chapter 6 She Tried to Kill Me

The police escorted Lydia out of the hospital while every doctor, nurse, and patient in the hallway turned to stare at her. Some looked shocked, others disgusted, and a few openly hateful. No one knew who threw something first, but suddenly a furious voice rang out through the corridor.

"You quack doctor! A life for a life!"

A thermos came flying toward her. Lydia had no chance to dodge before it slammed into her forehead, splitting the skin open. Blood instantly poured down her face, blurring her vision red. She cried out and nearly collapsed, but the officers gripping her arms yanked her upright before she could fall.

Then Ethan's voice drifted from behind her, warm with unmistakable relief.

"Vivian, you're awake?"

Lydia instinctively turned around and saw him standing there with his phone pressed to his ear, his expression gentle in a way she had not seen in a long time.

"You want oatmeal? Okay. I'll bring it to you right away."

At that moment, whatever hope Lydia still carried inside her finally died. Her body trembled from pain and humiliation until one of the officers shoved her impatiently.

"What are you standing around for? Move."

The interrogation room at the police station was cold and glaring beneath harsh fluorescent lights. Exhaustion hollowed out Lydia's pale face, but she answered every question truthfully. No matter how long the questioning continued, however, the police found no evidence tying her to any crime. Just as the investigation stalled, Marcus arrived with a lawyer and began negotiating with the officers.

During the chaos, Lydia received a brief call from her father.

"Someone will pick you up tomorrow morning at eight."

"Okay. I understand."

Neither of them had much to say, and the call ended quickly.

Not long afterward, the lawyer entered the room and sat across from her with a weary sigh. "Miss Lancaster, the biggest issue now is proving you don't have a psychiatric history. We'll need to arrange a formal evaluation at the hospital."

Lydia nodded calmly. "I'll do it."

After signing the bail paperwork and scheduling the psychiatric assessment, Lydia returned to the hospital early the next morning. At seven-thirty, the building was almost empty except for the night-shift staff. Walking through the silent corridors, she felt emotion tightening painfully in her chest. Since graduation, she and Ethan had worked in this hospital together. Every hallway and office carried memories she knew too well. She just never imagined she would one day leave this place in disgrace.

Suppressing the ache inside her, Lydia headed toward the doctors' office to pack up her belongings before leaving for good. But the moment she stepped inside, she froze.

Vivian stood beside the window. Hadn't Ethan claimed she attempted suicide and was still in the ICU? Then why was she here?

Lydia instinctively glanced around for Ethan, but Vivian immediately sneered. "No need to look for him. Ethan isn't here. It's just the two of us."

"What do you want?" Lydia asked quietly as she stepped backward.

The moment her back reached the door, her expression changed. It had been locked.

Vivian slowly approached her, hatred burning openly in her eyes. "Lydia, I honestly never expected someone who acts so pure and righteous to be this calculating. Even after everything that happened, Ethan still refuses to divorce you."

Her voice sharpened with every word. "Ethan was supposed to love me wholeheartedly. What gave you the right to marry him and steal him away? He should've spent his entire life standing behind me, protecting me."

"You're insane." Lydia had no interest in arguing further. She pulled out her phone to call for help, but before she could dial, Vivian lunged forward and grabbed her by the hair.

Pain exploded across Lydia's scalp as Vivian slammed her violently onto the floor and slapped her hard across the face. The sting still burned when Lydia looked up and saw Vivian pulling a scalpel from inside her clothes.

"You already have the reputation of a murderer," Vivian hissed. "Do you think you'll spend the rest of your life rotting in prison? Maybe it'd be easier if you just died right here. Then nobody could stop Ethan and me from being together."

Her face twisted with madness as she drove the scalpel downward. Lydia caught her wrist with both hands just in time, struggling desperately to keep the blade from plunging into her body.

"And you probably still don't know this," Vivian spat through gritted teeth. "Ethan already agreed to marry me."

Even now, those words still stabbed straight through Lydia's chest. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she fought harder to hold Vivian back. The two of them crashed violently across the office floor until they slammed into the desk, knocking a porcelain vase onto the ground.

It shattered with a deafening crash.

Footsteps immediately thundered toward the office from outside. As she heard them, Vivian's eyes turned bloodshot with desperation. With a scream, she forced the scalpel downward with all her strength.

At the last second, Lydia kicked her away.

Vivian flew backward just as the office door burst open.

"Vivian!" Ethan rushed inside like a madman.

Still sprawled on the floor, Lydia looked up in shock and saw Vivian staring blankly at her own abdomen. The scalpel had plunged deep into her stomach, and blood rapidly spread through her clothes in a horrifying bloom of red.