"Don''t call me mother. I never had a son like you. You''re evil incarnate!"

    Lucia''s voice cracked, tears spilling down her face, her chest aching as if her heart itself were being torn apart.

    "Whatever," William said coldly.

    "I''ll always be your son. Even when you''re dead, I''ll still be your son-the one who inherits everything you own."

    With a vicious swing, the baseball bat smashed against Lucia''s head.

    The sickening thud echoed through the room.

    Her body crumpled to the floor.

    A jagged wound split open on her scalp, blood seeping fast, pooling across the

    floor, soaking into her clothes, staining his.

    "Wait..." Lucia gasped, her voice trembling.

    "What?" William sneered, his eyes zing with contempt.

    "Want to beg for forgiveness? You''re already old. What''s the point of living longer? You drove your own daughter away. If you need someone to me, me yourself!"

    "Where... where did you bury Maria''s body?" Lucia whispered, her voice broken with tears and pain.

    William''s smile twisted into something cruel.

    "For years, you sat on that bench, staring at the farm gate, waiting for Maria toe back."

    He leaned in, savoring the words.

    "So I gave you what you wanted. I buried her beneath that very bench. While you sat there, day after day, she was always right under your feet."

    "You thought you were waiting for her return-when in truth, you were sitting on her grave."

    Hisugh cracked like a whip, sharp and mocking.

    "Ironic, isn''t it? Almost funny. Sometimes it makes me want tough until I choke."

    Lucia''s sob tore through the air. "You''re a monster!"

    "I''m the monster you raised,” William hissed. “Remember—it all started with you. You''re the one who drove your daughter away!"

    The words carved straight into her soul. Regret crushed her.

    She had always thought-if only she''d let her daughter marry the man she loved, none of this would have happened.

    "Now die," William spat. He raised the bat again, higher this time, rage burning through him, and swung with everything he had.

    On the road, Alex gripped the wheel, driving fast through the night.

    Jose was the first to wake. "Where are we?"

    "On the way back home," Alex answered.

    Jose blinked at the road ahead, then nced at Josephine, still asleep in the back.

    A sudden thought struck him. "What happened to those bastards?"

    "The police came. They heard the sirens. All of them ran," Alex said tly, his eyes locked on the road.

    "Really?" Jose frowned.

    "Yeah." Alex didn''t tell him the truth-that every one of them was already dead, killed by the very bullets they had fired.

    "That bastard," Jose muttered, William''s face burning in his mind.

    "I never imagined the boy I adopted would grow into such a monster. If I''d known,

    I''d have left him to fate. No-I should never have adopted anyone at all!"

    "Old man," Alex said firmly.

    "You can''t generalize like that. A good person is good, adopted or not. A bad person is bad, even if he''s your own flesh and blood. Some adopted sons turn out better than real ones. William... he''s just rotten."

    "I''ll find him," Jose growled. "And I''ll drive him out of this state! How dare he order people to kill us!"

    Not long after, the car pulled up to Jose''s house.

    His face went pale. It was already dark, but the front door stood wide open.

    "Something''s wrong."

    He threw open the door and rushed out of the car.

    Josephine stirred awake, dazed, just as Jose disappeared inside.

    Momentster, a terrible cry ripped through the night.

    "Noooo!" The anguish in Jose''s voice shook the walls.

    Josephine and Alex bolted inside, their hearts pounding, bracing for what waited beyond the door.

    Inside the house, the sight was chilling. Luciay sprawled on the floor,

    motionless, blood pooling beneath her head.

    Beside her, William''s body was crumpled, face down, a baseball bat still clenched

    in his hand.

    Alex knelt and rolled William over.

    His breath caught-three bullet wounds gaped in the young man''s chest.

    William''s eyes were wide open, frozen in shock, as if he had never believed his victim would strike back.

    Lucia''s pistol had slipped from her hand, lying inches from her fingers.

    Meanwhile, blood streamed from the wound on her head, darkening the floor beneath her.

    "Damn it," Alex muttered, rushing to her side. He lifted her gently, pressing his hand against her wound.

    "She''s lost a lot of blood. I don''t have transfusion equipment with me. If

    we can get her to a hospital

    fasteget her a transfusion she has a chance."

    "There''s a hospital about three minutes away," Jose barked, snatching his minivan keys.

    Josephine was already kneeling, pressing cloth to Lucia''s wound, her hands trembling but determined.

    Together, they carried her out, piling into the van, speeding into the night.

    The emergency room doors burst open. Doctors and nurses rushed forward as Jose shouted for help.

    They wheeled Lucia into a bay, stripping bloodied cloth away, their voices urgent and clipped.

    "Severe blood loss," the lead doctor ordered. "Get her blood type. Now."

    The words cut deeper when the doctor realized exactly who his patient was.

    "That''s the governor''s wife," he muttered sharply. "Move faster!"

    Within minutes, a nurse rushed back with the results, her face pale. "Doctor-we don''t have this type in stock."

    Jose''s face darkened, his brows furrowing deep.

    "What do you mean you don''t have it? How can a hospital this size not keep donor blood on hand?"

    "What type is my wife''s blood? Tell me now!" Jose''s voice thundered through the room, raw with fury and fear.

    "I''ll summon every doctor, every nurse, the military, the police-every government worker in this state if I have to. Someone will give her blood!"

    The doctor forced a bitter smile, though his voice was grave. "Mr. Governor, she has Rh-null blood... known as Golden Blood."

    "So what?" Jose snapped.

    The doctor exhaled, steady but grim.

    "It''s the rarest blood in the world. Only sixty, maybe seventy people on the carry it. Even if we search the entire country, finding a match will take at least three hours."

    Jose''s fists clenched. "And?"

    The doctor''s eyes lowered. "Mrs. Lucia won''tst that long. Thirty minutes is

    already the limit."

    Jose staggered back, grief twisting into fury. "Do something! For God''s sake, do something! Go find them!"

    The doctor barked fresh orders, his nurses scattering, calling every registry, every possible contact.

    But his tone told the truth-time was slipping away.

    Jose walked to the bedside, his old body shaking. He took Lucia''s frail hand in both of his, bowing his head against it.

    “Please..... please stay with me, Lucia. Don''t leave me. Please..."

    Her eyelids fluttered. Slowly, her eyes opened, weak but filled with light. "Jose..."

    He bent close, voice breaking. "I''m here. I''m right here. The doctors are helping you. Hold on..."

    Her lips curved into the faintest smile. "I met Maria."

    Jose''s heart lurched. "Yes, yes..." he said quickly, though the words puzzled him.

    "No..." Her voice was clear, almost radiant. “I met her already. She told

    me she''s happy. She has a

    She asked us to care for here daughter.”

    Jose''s eyes widened, confusion flooding him. He thought it was the blood loss, a

    hallucination.

    "Yes, yes... we''ll take care of her daughter..." he whispered, just to calm her.

    But Lucia''s gaze sharpened, brimming with tears of joy.

    With thest of her strength, her trembling finger rose and pointed toward

    Josephine.

    Her lips parted, a whisper breaking free.

    "Our granddaughter..."

    Her hand fell limp. Her eyes closed.

    And the room went still.