CHAPTER 31: CHAPTER 31: LET TIMOTHY XAVIER SEE THE MISTRESS’S TRUE COLORS

Serena Sawyer was caught off guard just now; now her long hair is being pulled by me, making it very difficult for her to break free.

"Let go of me! You bitch!"

She cursed while struggling.

Because she was pulling back so hard and I refused to let go of her hair, I was dragged off the bed and fell to the ground.

The surgical wound on my toe sent a sharp pain.

Just then, Timothy Xavier returned.

Serena instantly turned into the victim, crying, "Miss Ellison, don’t be like this, I know I was wrong..."

Seeing the situation, Timothy Xavier shoved me away, then helped Serena up, checking worryingly to see if she was hurt.

I hid the lock of Serena’s hair behind me, sitting on the ground so embarrassed that I couldn’t get up.

The force with which Timothy Xavier pushed me wasn’t light, and now my head is buzzing with dizziness.

After making sure Serena was okay, his gloomy eyes turned to me, "Are you crazy?"

"Timothy Xavier, do you still not know the woman in your arms has two faces?"

I pulled up the sleeve of my hospital gown, showing Timothy Xavier the dense needle marks Serena just left on my arm.

But I didn’t expect Timothy Xavier to trust Serena so much.

He wasn’t surprised or suspicious, instead saying to me, "Serena wouldn’t do such a thing. You know full well how this injury came about."

The implication being that I caused it myself to slander Serena.

The corners of Serena’s mouth curled into a fleeting smile, and then, as if suffering a great grievance, she said, "Just now, Miss Ellison kept stabbing herself with a needle after pulling it out. I didn’t want her to self-harm, so I tried to take it away from her. I didn’t expect her to... she just grabbed my hair and wouldn’t let go."

Timothy Xavier glanced at me coldly and hugged Serena as they left, tossing me aside in the ward like trash.

After they went out, I heard Serena’s voice asking, "Timothy, what did the doctor say? Does Miss Ellison still have to donate blood for Doris?"

Timothy Xavier replied, "Yes."

"If this keeps up, I’m afraid Miss Ellison will hate me to death; I’m so scared she’ll kill me."

Serena’s voice ’trembled’ with fear.

Timothy Xavier said in a cold tone, "She won’t."

Later, their voices faded away.

I clung to the edge of the bed, exerting great effort, to finally crawl back onto it.

Serena’s hair was wrapped in a tissue and placed in the drawer by the bedside.

The surgical wound on my foot was bleeding, causing severe pain, but the call bell was deliberately unplugged by Serena.

When the nurse checked the room and discovered the blood from my wound, she immediately called the doctor, though it wasn’t the one who operated on me.

"Where’s Dr. Payne? It seems like I haven’t seen him for a while," I asked, puzzled.

The nurse replied, "Dr. Payne was actually in neurosurgery. He only came to the emergency department to help for a while, but now he’s gone back. In the future... he probably won’t return."

After the doctor re-bandaged my wound, the nurse reconnected my IV and left.

Not long after, the door to my ward was reopened.

I expected Timothy Xavier to return to yell at me or draw my blood, but unexpectedly, it was Dr. Payne whom I hadn’t seen in several days.

Surprised, I asked, "I heard from the nurse that you’ve returned to neurosurgery. Why are you back?"

Dr. Payne walked over to me and said, "Your friend asked me to check on you. She said she couldn’t reach you and was worried. Why do you look so pale? Didn’t you recuperate well after the surgery?"

Surprised, I asked, "You know Jenna?"

When Dr. Payne mentioned Jenna Sutton, a touch of warmth seemed to appear in his eyes, "She often came to ask about your condition, and over time we got acquainted. But you, why is your face so white?"

Saying this, he took out a stethoscope, put it in his ears, and leaned over beside my bed to check my heartbeat.

After listening, his expression was complex, "Your heartbeat is very weak, something’s not right. I’ll have a colleague order some tests for you, especially a blood count. It might be anemia."

As he was about to head to the doctor’s office, I stopped him, "No need, Dr. Payne. I donated three bags of blood yesterday, so..."

Dr. Payne stopped, looking at me in disbelief, "Who made you do that? Which doctor? You’re severely anemic; this is no joke!"

"My husband’s daughter needs blood, and my blood type happens to match hers."

I concisely explained the situation.

Dr. Payne seemed to understand something, furrowing his brows, "He took away your phone, you’re being forced? No wonder Jenna said she couldn’t contact you."

"Yes."

Grateful, I said to him, "Thank you, Dr. Payne. But please don’t tell Jenna about my situation. Her family’s company has many interests tied with Xavier Group, I don’t want to make it difficult for her."

Dr. Payne hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "I can keep it from her, but should I help you call the police?"

I thought about how my mom needed the Xavier Group’s equipment to survive; without it being released, I couldn’t buy it, only through Timothy.

"No need, I know Dr. Payne means well. But... I have my difficulties, just help me keep it from Jenna."

Though I didn’t specify, there are boundaries in the adult world.

After all, I’m no longer Dr. Payne’s patient; he, as a doctor, has already informed me of the risks. Since I refused his help, he didn’t press further or insist.

Dr. Payne sighed, "My neurosurgery department is upstairs, if you ever need anything, you can have a nurse find me upstairs. I have matters to attend to in my department, so I’ll head off first."

He gave a slight nod and left.

Not long after Dr. Payne left, I found his badge had fallen by my bed.

I reached out and picked it up; it read: Ezra Payne, Deputy Chief Physician of Neurosurgery.

It must have fallen off while he was checking my heart.

Now, I have no phone at hand, nor any other means to reach him.

I got out of bed, holding onto the wall, hopping forward on my good left foot.

I originally intended to take the badge to the nurse’s station and ask the nurse to send it up for me.

But this afternoon seemed busy; there was no one at the nurse’s station, all the nurses were rushing about administering injections and IVs.

So I had to deliver it myself.

I moved my body slowly, hopping and resting intermittently, finally reaching the elevator after ten minutes.

Arriving on the floor above, I quickly found his office.

Just as I was about to enter, someone came out, colliding right into me.

Being "half-disabled," I was knocked to the ground.

"Are you okay?"

The young man hurried to help me up.

And this voice... why does it sound so familiar?

I looked up, unexpectedly finding Ethan Xavier, Timothy’s half-brother.

"Zoe Ellison?"

Ethan Xavier looked at me with surprise, frowning, "How did you end up like this?"

Ethan and I were classmates from elementary through high school, being rivals for twelve years.

As a child, he often bullied me with pranks, and in high school, he persistently pursued me.

Every time, it was Timothy Xavier who stood up for me!

In the past, I was quite proud in front of Ethan Xavier.

Now, looking half dead and being seen in such a sorry state by him, I couldn’t feel more humiliated.