Chapter 3: The Woman Who Saved a Monster
I should have walked away.
That would have been the smart choice.
I should have transferred to another hospital.
Changed my phone number.
Forgot Adrian Vale ever existed.
But I didn’t.
Because when I saw the fear in Mateo’s eyes, I understood something.
Someone had tried to kill Adrian.
And now they were willing to kill anyone who helped him survive.
Including me.
That night, a nurse entered Adrian’s room with medication.
Everything seemed normal.
Until Adrian noticed something.
He looked at the syringe.
Then at the nurse.
“Stop.”
The woman froze.
I immediately noticed her hand trembling.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
Adrian’s voice became cold.
“That isn’t his medication.”
The nurse suddenly reached inside her coat.
Everything happened quickly.
Too quickly.
Mateo moved first.
He grabbed her wrist before she could pull anything out.
Security rushed inside.
The woman fought desperately.
But before they restrained her, she looked directly at me.
“You should have let him die.”
The words stayed in my mind.
Later that night, Adrian sat awake.
“You understand now,” he said.
I stood near the window.
“Understand what?”
“That my world destroys everyone who gets close.”
I turned around.
“You think you’re protecting people by pushing them away.”
His eyes lifted.
“And you think you know me?”
“No.”
I stepped closer.
“But I know what I saw.”
He stared silently.
“I saw a man dying.”
A pause.
“And everyone was afraid of him.”
I looked at him.
“But nobody was afraid for him.”
Something changed in his expression.
For years, people had feared Adrian Vale.
But nobody had cared.
Nobody had looked past the rumors.
Except me.
The next morning, Adrian revealed the truth.
The attack was not random.
Someone inside his organization had betrayed him.
Someone who knew every weakness.
Someone close.
Mateo placed a file on the table.
“We found the person responsible.”
Adrian opened it.
His face changed.
Because inside was a photograph.
A person he trusted.
His own brother.
Damian Vale.
The man everyone believed had disappeared five years ago.
The man Adrian thought was dead.
“He’s alive,” Adrian whispered.
And suddenly, everything made sense.
The shooting.
The betrayal.
The attempt to erase Adrian forever.
His own family wanted him gone.
Then Adrian looked at me.
“Emily.”
I met his eyes.
“Yes?”
“If I survive this…”
He paused.
“You need to leave Phoenix.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
“Because my enemies will never stop.”
I looked at the man who had been declared dead.
The man whose heartbeat I brought back.
Then I answered:
“Maybe.”
May you like
A small pause.
“But I’m not walking away while you’re still fighting.”
