“Take a good look at the signature. It even has your thumbprint on it. If your eyes are failing you, I’d be happy to have a professional
verify its authenticity.”
“And besides this note, I have the bank transfer records from three years ago.”
Evan’s eyes flickered as he stared at the familiar script. For a moment, his rigid composure wavered. He pressed his hand to his
temple, his brow furrowed in pain.
I let out a cold laugh. “See it clearly now? If you do, then you should understand why I was talking to your lawyer. The legal process
is complicated. Perhaps your lawyer understands the basic principle of paying one’s debts better than you do.”
The other patrons in the bar were now fully invested.
“Is he faking a headache to get out of paying?”
“Wow, I actually thought she was harassing him. Turns out he’s a deadbeat who’s trying to flip the script.”
“Looks like a gentleman, acts like a scumbag!”
Evan’s head seemed to hurt even more. His face darkened, his brow knitting tighter.
Faye started to panic. She pulled his hand away from his head. “Evan, darling, if you can’t remember, don’t try! Stop torturing yours-
elf.”
Then she whirled around, snatched the IOU from my hand, and ripped it to shreds. “If you spout any more nonsense, I’ll make sure
you’re sued for slander. The Thorne family has the resources to make it stick!”
I raised an eyebrow, unfazed. “Why the rush, Miss Faye? Weren’t you cackling like a hen just a minute ago when you heard I was talking to a lawyer? Is a mere eight hundred thousand really enough to give you a headache and make you fly off the handle?”
As I spoke, I pulled a second IOU from my bag.
“Look closely. I have plenty more, all identical.”
I tucked the paper into the breast pocket of Evan’s suit.
“Mr. Big Shot, if you want to skip out on your debt, just say so. I’d at least respect you for being a man about it. Slandering your cred- itor and accusing her of being blindly in love with you is just pathetic.”
“You have three days. If I don’t see the money, don’t blame me for what happens next. A person with nothing to lose has no fear of
a man in expensive shoes.”
5
The scene that day was ugly. The host, Samuel, finally rushed out, pretending he’d just finished with some urgent business, and
tried to smooth things over.
I didn’t wait for him to speak. I snatched the invitation from my friend’s hand and threw it in his face.
“Samuel, if you’re man enough to covet another man’s fiancée, you should be man enough to fight for her yourself instead of starti- ng wars for others and hiding in the shadows like a coward, waiting to pick up the scraps.”
Samuel’s face turned a sickly shade of green.
“Ooh, spicy! Does the owner have a thing for the deadbeat’s fiancée?”
“That deadbeat’s a pretty good actor, though. Look at the sweat on his forehead.”
Humiliated, Samuel started trying to clear the bar, ushering guests out.
The room was in chaos. I turned and walked out of the bar without a backward glance.
20 45
Behind me, Evan’s gaze was fixed on my back, as if held there by some powerful, unseen force. His eyes burned not just with anger, but with a deep, churning confusion and unease.
6
I heard Evan got sick. He collapsed right after leaving Samuel’s bar. He was plagued by headaches for days. As soon as he felt slig- htly better, he ordered his people to verify the eight–hundred–thousand–dollar debt.
In a panic, Faye brought him to a traditional medicine clinic for acupuncture. Her request was simple: relax Evan’s mind, stop him from thinking about the past. In other words, don’t let him regain his memory.
As luck would have it, the renowned specialist was my mentor, Dr. Adler.
The day they came, I was at her clinic for physical therapy. We were separated by a thin curtain. They waited outside while I receiv-
ed treatment.
Dr. Adler stimulated my fingers with the needles, her voice full of concern. “How could you try to bend a sharp steel plate with your bare hands? The tendons in these fingers were nearly severed. Even after therapy, you may never be able to hold a needle properly again.”
I managed a bitter smile but said nothing.
In this life, when the accident happened, I didn’t have my memories from the last one. When I saw Evan, pinned by a steel plate and
barely breathing after saving me, how could I have done nothing? I had gone mad, clawing at that plate, my hands a bloody mess,
feeling no pain at all.
Evan had cried, weakly trying to pry my fingers away. “Rhea, let go! Your hands… how will you ever hold a needle again if you ruin
them?”
His blood dripped down, blurring his face. “Please, Rhea, let go. I only ask one thing of you. If… if my brain gets scrambled, promise
me you’ll find a way to make me remember… that I love you!”
The fine silver needles pricked my fingers, one by one. I remained silent as my eyes began to burn.
Dr. Adler administered the last needle with a heavy heart. “What a tragedy. If these hands can’t hold a needle, your career is over.”
She shook her head and walked out.
Evan was settled onto the treatment bed next to mine.
Faye chattered away. “Doctor, was the patient next door also in a car accident?”
“She was rescuing her boyfriend from a car crash,” my mentor replied.
“Truck drivers these days are the worst,” Faye complained. “If that driver hadn’t been driving fatigued, my fiancé wouldn’t have been
in this mess.”
She sighed dramatically. “Well, I guess you can’t blame him entirely. There was that other driver, the woman. So stupid, such a terrible driver. If he hadn’t shielded her, this never would have happened.” Her voice took on a tinge of grievance. “Evan, darling, if you could do it all over again, would you still forget me just to save that idiot?”
Evan was silent for a long time. Then his voice came, low and firm. “No.”
Faye was delighted, planting a loud kiss on his cheek. “Of course not! It was all trouble and no reward. Now we can’t even get rid of
her.”
Evan said nothing more.
Dr. Adler came over to begin his treatment. “Just the head needs acupuncture, correct?”
20.45 C
“That’s right. Only his head was seriously injured. We were lucky. He was pinned across the chest, but my fiancé is blessed. That
sharp steel plate only broke a few bones.”
“The doctors said several ribs were fractured. It barely missed his organs.”
Dr. Adler was quiet for a long moment. She seemed to be looking at their registration form. A moment later, Faye’s voice turned
shrill.
“Doctor, why are your hands shaking? How can you perform acupuncture like that?”
My mentor’s tone was sharp. “If you don’t trust me, you can request a refund. I’m not the right person to treat your fiancé’s conditi-
on.”
“How dare you! Why you…”
Faye was about to argue further, but it seemed Evan stopped her. The voices outside fell silent.
After a moment of quiet, there was a sharp swish.
The curtain by my bed was ripped open.
7
Evan stood beside my bed, his eyes blazing with fury.
“You really are relentless, aren’t you?”
“Going to all the trouble of bribing a doctor to stage this little drama for me. Tell me, what will it take to finally get rid of you?”
He finished, his gaze falling on my hands, which were bristling with silver needles. He let out a choked laugh. “You really commit to
the part, don’t you? You’re certainly not afraid to hurt yourself.”
Without warning, he lunged forward and grabbed my wrist. “Today, I’m going to see for myself which of your tendons are ‘severed‘!”
“Don’t!” Faye shrieked.
Too late.
The grotesque scars on the inside of my fingers were laid bare for Evan to see. Four fingers, marked with deep scars of varying
sizes–all from keeping that steel plate from piercing his chest.
Evan froze.
Panic flared in his eyes before he snatched my other hand. The same. Four fingers, each one scarred.
He looked dazed, a wave of uncontrollable terror washing over him. “This is impossible! Impossible!” He took a deep breath, trying
to calm himself.
Seeing him press his temples again, Faye had a flash of inspiration. “Evan, darling, he saved you! Isn’t it only right that she helped
hold the plate for a second?”
“Calm down. Her old tactics of clinging to you didn’t work, so now she’s trying to play the victim. You can’t feel sorry for her.”
Just like last time, Faye’s words were the lifeline Evan desperately needed.
