He Said She Saved His Life, So He Gave Her Mine

Chapter 9 He Let Her Take the Fall

"Do you have no conscience? That child was only ten. Don't you have a family of your own? You hoarded medical resources and refused to let him use them. Is that how you work?"

"This is murder. How can someone like you still be alive? You should be in hell. And you even want to sue the child's father? How can you have the nerve?"

Voices crowded in from every direction. Serena's mind spun, but she could still piece together what had happened.

"It wasn't me."

"Wasn't it you who blocked access to those medical resources? Wasn't it you who caused that child's death? Wasn't it you who provoked his father into retaliation? Wasn't it you who dragged innocent people into this?"

"People like you should worry about retribution. Aren't you afraid your own family will pay the price?"

Their anger kept rising. A few of them deliberately bumped into her. She pressed a hand over her wound, trying to keep it from reopening.

Then those words hit her. Something tightened around her heart.

She could not forget the day she begged Elara and Adrian to save her mother, only to be told to wait.

She could not forget how her mother failed to hold on and died soon after.

She could not forget how Adrian stopped her from calling the police and demanded that she forgive Elara.

And she could never forget how her mother had been buried in haste, denied even the dignity of a proper farewell.

"I said it wasn't me. Check the surveillance if you don't believe me."

"Are you talking about this?" A reporter held up a video. In it, Adrian admitted that she was responsible.

The impact hit her all at once. In that instant, Serena understood why Adrian had come to see her yesterday. The situation had spiraled, and he needed someone to take the blame for Elara.

Her fingers curled into a fist. She turned and pushed forward, determined to find him. She had barely stepped out when the police approached her.

"Ms. Ashford? There was a homicide case at your hospital recently. We need you to come with us for questioning."

"I will cooperate, but I need to see someone first." She spoke quickly, scanning for Adrian, but he was nowhere to be found.

The officers did not wait. They took hold of her and led her away. As she was being taken out, she caught sight of Adrian.

He was holding Elara as he helped her into the car. He leaned in and fastened her seatbelt with quiet care.

"Adrian!" She shouted his name, her voice thick with disbelief.

'Why? Why would he do this to me?'

Serena spent six days in detention. During those six days, she barely slept and hardly ate.

Elara had made sure of that. Her bedding was soaked through with water. Her meals were thrown into the trash. No one laid a hand on her, but they found other ways to make her suffer.

"Oh, what's this?" one woman sneered. "Looks like some kind of charm."

She turned it between her fingers. "It says 'Peace and Joy. To my beloved daughter.' How touching."

"Of course it is," another voice chimed in. "The precious daughter ends up in jail. Her mother must have loved her dearly."

Serena had been sitting in the corner, lost in her thoughts. At those words, she lifted her head. The woman was holding a small charm.

Her breath caught. It was the one her mother had given her, one of the very few things she had left.

Serena stood up at once. "Where did you get that?"

"Someone gave it to me." The woman smiled. "It's pretty, but such a pity. It won't last."

"Give it back!" Serena lunged forward, trying to snatch it.

But they only laughed and tossed it into the air, passing it between them as if it were a game. She had no choice but to chase after it.