*Mr. Devereaux,” I rasped, “Victoria Sterling is anathema to your family. She cannot marry in.”
Charles sighed, looking as if he’d aged ten years in an instant. “You don’t have to tell me. I already know.”
“I thought her family might still be useful, so I didn’t stop Caleb. I never imagined it would come to this.”
“I invited her here today so you could assess her for the family. Since she’s so reckless, I will not be lenient. Her family is insignificant. I can crush them with a single word.”
is insignificant. I can crush them with a single word.”
I nodded, remembering the livestream. “The news online… I’ll need you to handle that.”
I
le saw i
“A lot of people saw it. If it becomes a major story, it will be bad for your family.”
Charles’s eyes reddened with fury. “That animal! Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. Anyone who dares to say another word will find themselves in a prison cell.”
“Thank you, Miss Hamilton, for still thinking of my family’s well–being. I promised I would take care of you, and I failed…
Silence filled the car for a long time.
Charles hesitated, then finally asked, “Tonight’s ritual is ruined, and your injuries are severe. Is there… is there any other
way to remedy this?”
“There are hundreds of people in my family. We can’t afford another disaster.”
was too weak to answer.
Charles Devereaux, one of the most powerful men in the world, knelt before me on the floor of the car.
“I’m begging you
“Miss Hamilton, please, think of something. I will do anything, anything, to save my family.”
I closed my eyes, trying to think of a solution. He remained on his knees for the entire journey
When we arrived at the hospital, I was rushed into the emergency room. Charles, supported by his guards, continued to
plead with me until the doors swung shut. I knew the fate of his entire clan rested on him. And I knew today’s events
weren’t truly his fault.
I gave a slight nod before I was wheeled into surgery.
The doctors said I had lost too much blood. The hospital’s blood bank was insufficient. Charles paid over a hundred
people to come in and get tested for a match. He bought out the entire hospital’s team of top specialists, each for a
million–dollar fee. The operating room was crowded with the best medical minds in the country, all there for one purpo- se: to save my life.
Bag after bag of blood was brought in. Charles didn’t leave. He stood outside the doors forten straight hours, his anxie-
ty plain on his face. He had given the order: save me, restore me to how I was, at any cost. The passing nurses were terrified to even look his way. Everyone was whispering, wondering who I was to command such devotion from the legendary Devereaux family.
Reporters, catching wind of the commotion, were blocked by a wall of bodyguards. Such was the power of the Devere-
auxs, with Charles on site, the entire hospital was shut down to outsiders for a full day.
When I opened my eyes again, I was in a private suite.
Charles was sitting by my bedside. He had put all his work on hold.
“Miss Hamilton, you’re awake. Are you feeling any discomfort?”
“Don’t worry, the surgery was a success. I’ve already contacted the best plastic surgeons from abroad. You won’t have
any scars.”
“But…”
Chapter
My voice was a dry rasp. “Something happened to the family, didn’t it?”
The last time the altars had been moved, disaster had struck the very next day. Now, with the ritual completely disrupt- ed and me grievously injured, I knew what they were facing would be a hundred times worse.
Charles’s eyes were tinged with red. “It was my nephew. He was visiting a construction site… a steel rebar fell and pier ced him through the skull and chest. He’s still in surgery, not out of danger yet.”
“And he’s only the first. More will follow, with increasingly severe injuries. The doctors can’t even diagnose the underlyi- ng illness. Even if the surgery succeeds, he won’t wake up.”
