Kaia stood up. She ignored the empty trash can where the food lay discarded. She dragged her exhausted, aching body down the hall and into the master bedroom.

She sat on the edge of the mattress. Before she could even lie down, the bedroom door was violently shoved open.

Gerrit stormed into the room. His skin was flushed from the hot water. He wore nothing but a white towel wrapped low around his waist. Water dripped from his wet hair onto his chest. His eyes burned with aggressive, dominating anger.

Kaia instinctively shrank back. Her hand flew to her side, pressing over the black silk robe to protect her injured waist.

Gerrit crossed the room in three massive strides. He stood over her, casting a dark shadow across the bed. "What exactly did you say to Seraphina this afternoon?"

Kaia turned her face away. "I didn't say anything. She came here on her own."

Gerrit reached down and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. "You are a liar. She was crying the entire ride back to her apartment."

He leaned down. His warm breath hit her face, but his eyes were freezing cold. It was a look of pure punishment.

Suddenly, Gerrit reached out and grabbed the collar of her black silk robe. He yanked it hard, ripping the fabric open, exposing her collarbone.

Kaia gasped loudly. She thrashed backward, her hands desperately grabbing the torn silk to cover her stomach and the bandages hidden beneath.

Gerrit scoffed. "Don't act like you don't want this. Isn't this exactly why you pulled those pathetic stunts?"

He pushed her down onto the mattress. His heavy body pressed against hers, pinning her in place. He leaned in, his face inches from hers, aiming to press his mouth against her neck to establish dominance. But as his breath brushed her skin, he froze. His movements, initially rough and angry, halted abruptly. He saw the sheer terror and physical agony twisting her pale features. Disgust-both at her and perhaps a fraction at himself-flashed in his eyes. He stopped completely, refusing to cross that final line, completely devoid of any warmth or love.

A wave of absolute humiliation crashed over Kaia. Hot tears spilled from her eyes and soaked into her hair.

And then, the cancer woke up.

A pain so sharp, so agonizing it felt like a serrated knife twisting in her intestines, exploded in the center of her abdomen.

Kaia's entire body went rigid. A choked, guttural moan ripped out of her throat.

Her hands let go of the robe. Her fingers dug into the bedsheets, twisting the fabric until her knuckles turned bone-white.

Gerrit felt her body lock up beneath him. He pulled away completely. He pushed himself up on his forearms and looked down at her.

Kaia's face was the color of a corpse. Thick beads of cold sweat instantly popped out on her forehead. She couldn't pull air into her lungs. Her breathing came in short, broken gasps.

She forced her mouth open. "Pills," she choked out, her voice barely a whisper. "Drawer... please."

Gerrit stared at her twisted, agonizing expression. For a split second, doubt flickered in his eyes. But then, the image of Seraphina falling to the floor this afternoon flashed in his mind.

His face hardened into stone. He pushed himself off the bed and stood up, adjusting the towel around his waist.

He looked down at her curled up in a tight, trembling ball. "Your acting is pathetic, Kaia. This fake illness routine makes me sick."

Kaia couldn't even form the words to defend herself. The pain was eating her alive. She stared up at him, her eyes wide with disbelief and pure despair.

Gerrit didn't show a single ounce of mercy. He turned his back on her and walked toward the door.

"Have that dead look off your face by morning," he ordered. "Don't embarrass the Downs family."

He walked out. The heavy oak door slammed shut. The sound of his footsteps faded down the hallway until there was nothing but silence.

Kaia writhed on the massive bed. The pain was blinding. She rolled too far and crashed onto the floor.

She dragged her body across the carpet using her elbows. She reached the nightstand, pulled the drawer open, and grabbed the plastic bottle. Her shaking hands spilled pills everywhere. She shoved a handful into her mouth, swallowing them dry, and lay on the floor, waiting for the darkness to take her.

The morning light was a cold, sharp reminder of the bruises hidden beneath Kaia's tailored suit. She woke up on the floor. Her body was freezing, and every bone felt like it had been shattered and glued back together.

She grabbed the edge of the bed and pulled herself up. She walked to the bathroom. She applied a thick layer of foundation, painting over the deathly gray color of her skin.

She picked up her phone and dialed her best friend, Alaia Stafford. "I need you to investigate something for me right now."

She hung up the phone. She put on a tailored black suit. She slid dark sunglasses over her eyes to hide the broken blood vessels.

She walked past the living room. She didn't even glance at the manila envelope still sitting on the coffee table. She walked out the door and got into the car.

The Maybach drove down Madison Avenue. Kaia walked into a high-end luxury boutique to pick up a custom dress.

The store manager rushed over, bowing slightly, and led her to the velvet sofas in the VIP lounge.

Kaia sat down and picked up a magazine. Suddenly, a loud commotion erupted outside the glass doors.

She looked through the floor-to-ceiling window. Seraphina was running frantically down the sidewalk, constantly looking over her shoulder.

A man wearing a black baseball cap was jogging right behind her, acting suspiciously.

Seraphina suddenly changed direction. She sprinted straight toward the boutique.

She pushed the glass doors open and screamed, "Someone is following me!" She threw herself onto the carpet, landing directly at Kaia's feet.

The store clerks froze in shock. One of them scrambled to call security.

Kaia sat perfectly still. She looked down at Seraphina, who was violently shivering on the floor. Kaia's gut told her this was another cheap, staged performance.

Tires screeched outside. A black Range Rover slammed to a halt against the curb.

Gerrit threw the car door open and charged into the boutique like a hurricane.

His eyes immediately locked onto Seraphina on the floor, and then onto Kaia sitting calmly on the sofa.

Gerrit dropped to his knees. He pulled Seraphina tightly into his chest, whispering soft words to calm her down.

Seraphina buried her face in his neck and sobbed loudly. She pointed a shaking finger toward the street. "That man... he was going to attack me. I know someone paid him to do it."

Gerrit's body went completely rigid. He slowly lifted his head. His eyes locked onto Kaia, filled with a murderous, terrifying rage.

He stood up. He marched over to Kaia. A flicker of uncertainty crossed Gerrit's face. He looked from Seraphina's tear-stained face to Kaia's perfectly calm demeanor. "Kaia, what the hell is going on here?" he demanded, his voice tight but lacking its usual blind certainty. Seeing his hesitation, Seraphina let out a dramatic, breathless gasp and let her eyes roll back, faking a dead faint. Panic overrode Gerrit's logic. He reached down and grabbed the lapels of her black suit jacket, hauling her up to face his fury.

"Is there no limit to how low you'll sink, Kaia?!" he roared. "You hired a stalker to terrorize her?!"

The fabric cut into Kaia's neck, but she let out a cold, raspy laugh. "Where is your proof?"

Her defiance was the final straw. Gerrit didn't throw her this time; instead, he gripped her arms and shook her with such violent contempt that her vision blurred. The sudden, jarring motion tore through the fragile stability of her internal injuries. No impact was needed—her body simply gave up.

A thick, heavy taste of rusted iron flooded the back of her throat. A mouthful of hot blood rushed into her mouth. Kaia clamped her teeth together. She forced her throat muscles to swallow the blood back down into her stomach.

But she couldn't catch it all. A thin, bright red line of blood leaked from the corner of her lips and dripped down her pale chin.

Gerrit saw the blood. His pupils shrank. His hands froze in mid-air, a sudden flash of confusion hitting him.

Kaia raised her hand. She wiped the blood away with her thumb. She stared at him, her eyes sharper than broken glass.

"You are going to regret this, Gerrit," she said, her voice dead and hollow.

She pushed past his frozen body. She kept her spine perfectly straight and walked out of the boutique, the fire of absolute hatred finally igniting in her chest.

Kaia walked out of the boutique and stepped straight into the waiting Maybach. "Drive to the cafe on the Upper East Side."

The moment the car doors locked, her body gave out. She grabbed a tissue, pressed it against her mouth, and coughed violently. When she pulled the tissue away, it was soaked in dark red blood.

She arrived at the private room in the cafe. Her best friend, Alaia, was already sitting there with a laptop open.

Alaia looked up. She saw the blood staining Kaia's lips and gasped. "Oh my god, I'm calling an ambulance."

Kaia grabbed Alaia's wrist, her grip surprisingly strong. "Sit down. Show me what you found."

Alaia swallowed hard. She turned the laptop around and hit play. It was a compilation of dark web transactions and street camera footage.

The video clearly showed Seraphina standing in a dark alley, handing a thick stack of cash to the man in the baseball cap.

Kaia stared at the screen. A cold, vicious smile spread across her face. She plugged her phone in and downloaded the video.

"Where is Seraphina right now?" Kaia asked.

"Gerrit checked her into the VIP suite at Manhattan Private Hospital to recover from the 'shock'," Alaia replied.

Kaia stood up. "Let's go."

Kaia walked through the hospital lobby, her heels clicking loudly against the tile. She took the elevator straight to the top floor.

She pushed open the door to the VIP suite. Seraphina was sitting up in bed, looking perfectly healthy, blowing on a cup of steaming hot tea.

When Seraphina saw Kaia, the relaxed smile vanished. She instantly widened her eyes, trying to look terrified.

Kaia didn't say a word. She walked right up to the side of the bed and shoved her phone screen directly into Seraphina's face.

The video played. The sound of Seraphina negotiating the price with the fake stalker echoed loudly in the quiet room.

All the color drained from Seraphina's face. She lunged forward, trying to snatch the phone out of Kaia's hand.

Kaia stepped back. "If you don't want this video on the front page of the New York Times tomorrow, you will pack your bags and leave this city."

Seraphina was backed into a corner. A look of pure, malicious panic flashed in her eyes.

She looked past Kaia. Through the glass window of the door, she saw Gerrit's tall figure walking down the hallway toward the room.

Seraphina grabbed the porcelain cup of boiling hot tea from the nightstand. Without hesitating, she threw the scalding liquid directly at Kaia's face.

Kaia threw her arm up on instinct. The boiling tea splashed across the back of her hand and soaked into her exposed collarbone.

The delicate skin instantly turned violently red. Huge blisters bubbled up on the surface. Kaia let out a sharp cry of pain and stumbled backward.

At that exact second, Gerrit pushed the door open. He watched the last drops of the hot tea fall from Seraphina's hand.

The room fell dead silent. Gerrit stared at the horrific red burns blistering across Kaia's collarbone. His brain stopped functioning.

Seraphina immediately started sobbing. "She was trying to blackmail me with a fake video! I got scared and knocked the cup over!"

Gerrit didn't look at Seraphina. He looked down at the floor. Kaia had dropped her phone. The screen was still glowing, looping the video of Seraphina paying the stalker.

The truth hit Gerrit like a physical punch to the gut.

Kaia stood there, her body trembling from the agonizing burns and the cancer eating her insides. She looked at Gerrit with absolute, unfiltered disgust.

Gerrit's face turned pale. He lunged forward and scooped Kaia's shaking body into his arms.

Seraphina screamed his name, but he ignored her. He held Kaia tightly against his chest and sprinted out of the room, running frantically toward the emergency room downstairs.