Chapter 423

Isabella clutched her chest, afraid to press too hard, because even the lightest touch would bring intense pain.

The sensation of pain wasn't just on the surface; it seemed to radiate from within.

It felt as if each breath stabbed her throat.

Isabella was so shocked that she took two steps back, almost losing her balance.

"Ms. Black." The nurse quickly supported Isabella and reminded worriedly. "Ms. Black, be careful; you mustn't fall!"

Isabella brushed off the nurse's hand and staggered to the side, holding onto the end of the hospital bed to steady herself.

Esme and the nurse both watched Isabella with tense expressions, hesitant to approach for fear of upsetting her, yet worried she might hurt herself.

Their cautious and concerned demeanor appeared genuine.

As Isabella noticed a slight dampness on her fingers, she removed her hand from the bandage, and her fingertips were stained with fresh blood, emitting a faint metallic smell.

"Lova," Esme called softly and wanted to come closer.

Isabella glared at Esme, her voice slightly out of control. "Don't come any closer!"

"Okay, I won't come closer." Esme hurriedly said, holding her hands up in a placating gesture. "Lova, calm down; don't get agitated."

Only then did Isabella truly believe she had undergone surgery-an unbelievable surgery!

She thought she had just taken a nap, but someone had taken the opportunity to replace her heart!

Tears streaming down Isabella's face, she tried to control herself, but her voice still trembled uncontrollably. "Did Quentin give me Lova's heart?"

Esme nodded heavily. "Yes."

Isabella's eyes widened in shock. "Didn't they say we were to have a blood transfusion? How did it turn into a heart transplant? Why did this happen?"

Esme didn't dare to meet Isabella's gaze and looked slightly away, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Before the surgery, Lova removed her oxygen tube, leading to hypoxia and bringing her to the brink of death. They gave their best to save her but failed. Even if they had transfused your blood to her at that moment, she would never have opened her eyes again."

"So you came up with this twisted idea, to keep Lova alive by taking out my heart and replacing it with hers, is that it?" Isabella interrupted as she gritted her teeth, her voice filled with rage.

She couldn't believe how cruel someone had to be to come up with such a vicious plan and make it a reality!

And among those people was her own mother, Esme!

Esme argued, trying to comfort her, "Regardless of everything, both you and Lova are alive. Isn't that a win-win situation in some way?"

At this point, Esme realized that nothing she said would help, so she could only try to comfort Isabella.

Isabella laughed in anger.

Isabella would rather have slept forever, at least she wouldn't have to open her eyes and see these people's merciless faces again.

"To hell with your win-win!" Isabella spat, her voice shaking with fury. She turned and bolted for the door.

Before the nurse nor Esme reacted, Isabella had already run out of the ward.

Outside was a long, wide corridor with large but empty space. In the deserted hallway, Isabella ran a dozen steps before encountering a nurse.

Isabella rushed over, grabbed her hand, and asked, "Where's the exit? Where's the elevator?"

The nurse turned and pointed in a direction.

"Thank you," Isabella said and ran in that direction.

But just as she lifted her foot, the nurse behind her suddenly raised her hand and injected a sedative into the back of Isabella's neck.

Isabella felt a sharp pain in her neck. When she turned around, she saw the nurse slowly putting away the syringe.

Not far away, Esme and another nurse were running towards her.

Isabella fell to the ground, completely losing consciousness.

Lakina

The Landon family

On the other side, Seb woke up, feeling like someone was watching him.

When he opened his eyes, he indeed met a pair of eyes.

"Seb, you're awake?" Siena smiled and leaned over to help Seb.

Seb pushed her hand away. His head felt heavy as he sat up, bent one leg, and rested his elbow on his knee, rubbing his temples. "What time is it?"

Siena replied, "It's three in the afternoon."

Seb muttered, a bit surprised. " Did I sleep that long?"

Before sleeping, Seb had glanced at the clock; it was around twelve-thirty.

He had slept for two and a half hours.

"Yes. You were sleeping soundly, so I didn't wake you," Siena said, turning to grab a bowl of soup from the bedside table.

She placed it in front of Seb. "Seb, this is the medicine Mr. Vaughn prescribed. I've already prepared it for you, and it's cooled to the right temperature. You should drink it now."

Seb looked at the bowl of medicine, his brow furrowing deeply. "Just set it aside; I'll drink it later."

But Siena insisted, her tone firm. "Medicine is best taken while it's hot; it won't be as effective if it cools down. Mr. Vaughn emphasized this. You'd better follow the doctor's advice!"

Seb frowned but said nothing.

Siena urged, "Seb, Mr. Vaughn is doing this for your own good. Only by heeding his advice will you recover swiftly."

Seb remained silent, just kept rubbing his temples.

Seeing this, Siena stopped urging him to drink the medicine immediately.

She turned and set the bowl down, then walked to the bedside and reached out to help Seb rub his temples.

As soon as her fingers touched Seb, he recoiled as if shocked. Siena was taken aback.

Seb asked, "What are you doing?"

Siena explained, "I saw you were in pain and wanted to help you."

"No need," Seb said, his tone cold.

He picked up the bowl of medicine and drank it all in one go, then handed the empty bowl to her. He said, "I drank it. Can you leave now?"

"Seb, do you really dislike me being in your room that much?" Siena asked, feeling wronged.

"Did Ms. Jose say something to you today? You weren't like this before; your attitude suddenly changed today."

"No, don't overthink it. I just have a terrible headache." Seb replied, rubbing his temples.

Seeing that Seb indeed didn't look well, Siena believed him a little.

Not wanting to push him and make him resent her, Siena decided to back off.

She took the empty bowl and said, "I'll be downstairs. Call me if you need anything."

Seb nodded. "Okay."

Only then did Siena reluctantly leave the room, glancing back one last time before closing the door behind her.