I Burned His Letters, He Cried For Forgiveness

Chapter 4

Hadley's POV:

I snapped my head up.

Margaret stopped right in front of me, a smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth.

Alarm bells were screaming in my head, but when I saw the other doctors nodding in agreement, I had no choice but to trust them.

I forced my voice out, raw and hoarse like gravel. "What do you want from me?"

Margaret just stared at me, smiling the entire time.

I understood.

My knees went weak, and I collapsed straight to the floor, kneeling at her feet.

I pressed my forehead against the cold tile and forced the words out through gritted teeth.

"The title of Mrs. Caldwell… It's yours. I don't want Tucker's love either. Please, save my daughter."

An eternity seemed to pass before a young nurse rushed over, panicked and pale.

"I… I secretly checked the medication they brought in earlier… something's wrong with it."

A sharp, deafening buzz exploded in my head, and everything went blank.

I was still lunging toward the operating room when the "Operating" light suddenly turned off.

The doors swung open, and Margaret walked out first.

"I'm sorry. Your daughter… she didn't make it."

I stumbled forward and collapsed beside the operating table.

Caroline lay there completely still, covered with a white sheet, only her small, deathly pale face visible.

I turned so fast my vision blurred, gathered every last ounce of strength I had, and slapped Margaret across the face.

The sound echoed sharply.

But Margaret only laughed.

"Aww, Hadley. Dr. Caldwell always says I'm careless, but this time I calculated everything properly. A single allergy test injection has a 33.33% success rate, so…"

She raised three fingers and wiggled them in front of my face, smiling sweetly.

"I gave her three injections. That's a 99.99% success rate. If you want to blame someone, blame your daughter's bad luck. She just happened to fall into that 0.01% failure rate."

She leaned closer, lowering her voice into something almost playful.

"Two for one. How convenient. Two funerals at once even come with a discount."

Then she let out a mocking laugh and turned to leave.

My fingers went white with rage. I grabbed her hair with everything I had and slammed her head into the wall.

The next second, a brutal force hit my side.

I was thrown backward and crashed hard into the hallway bench.

Tucker stepped between us, shielding Margaret behind him.

"What? I thought you learned your lesson. You couldn't even keep it up this long? Back to being the same jealous woman again?"

I forced myself to stand on unsteady legs.

"Your mistress killed your daughter! What right do I have to not hit her?!"

Tucker froze for a split second, then let out a cold laugh.

"Liar."

He opened a video on his phone and shoved it in my face.

"Caroline just sent me a dancing video wishing me luck at my award ceremony."

"You'd even curse your own daughter dead just to get my attention?! What's wrong with you?!" Tucker's voice rose, his face twisted with disbelief.

"I know you're upset I missed her birthday. I'll make it up to her properly next time."

I stared at their retreating backs, and suddenly remembered what her teacher had told me.

Caroline had recorded a video and scheduled it to send to her father as a surprise.

Laughter rose from my chest, louder and louder, until bitter, blood-tinged tears streamed down my face.

Tucker had already walked away, but he suddenly stopped and turned back.

"She's emotionally unstable. Take her home. Give her a sedative so she can sleep it off."

He paused and looked at me coldly.

"When you've learned to behave properly, we can talk about getting back together."

End of Hadley's POV.

That night, the celebration lasted until well past midnight.

Tucker's phone stayed completely silent. No calls from Hadley. No voice messages from Caroline.

In the end, Tucker sent the prepared "surprise" anyway.

Tucker: I've made the appointment. 9:00 AM tomorrow at the civil affairs office.

No reply.

The very next second, an urgent message arrived from his assistant, Diane Parker.

Diane: Dr. Caldwell, we just received news… at Riverside Bridge… someone jumped into the river.

Diane: They believe it's the family member of a doctor here…

Tucker stared at the message, his breath locking in his chest.

Diane: The rescue team recovered personal belongings… and a suicide note addressed to her husband…