I gave him a silent nod of approval. Then, Carter stood up, intending to kiss my cheek when he saw how considerate I was being.

But I turned away.

He frowned slightly.

I felt disgusted and casually explained, "There are surveillance cameras here. Didn't you say you didn't want people to know about us?"

In response, Carter simply smiled and gave me an understanding nod before leaving.

However, he hadn't been gone for long before I received a flurry of messages on my phone.

They were from Clara.

One suggestive photo after another was sent straight to my phone.

I flipped through them with a numb heart until I reached the last one—it was a pregnancy report.

It turned out that Clara had already been pregnant for four weeks.

But it didn't matter.

She could keep her baby. I was leaving anyway.

I handed my resignation letter to the matron while Carter was with Clara.

The matron was the only one who knew about my relationship with Carter. She was slightly puzzled and asked, "Does Dr. Vance know?"

I shook my head. "It doesn't matter."

She looked a little conflicted but still approved my resignation. "You're quite far along. It's best if you go home and rest."

I simply thanked her and left without another word.

I had scheduled an abortion at another hospital and would be leaving the city the day after tomorrow.

Until then, I only wanted to focus on finishing my work and handling the handover. Nothing else mattered.

Just as I thought I had everything in order, Carter started frantically calling out for me from the emergency room

I rushed over only to see Clara bleeding from the nose.

Another woman beside her was also bleeding.

"Kaia, hurry up and help stop the bleeding. And while you're at it, draw blood from both of them for testing."

I was confused. Why was Clara suddenly bleeding?

Suddenly, Clara stood up and shoved me hard just as I grabbed the syringe and reached for her hand.

Caught off guard, I fell to the ground.

Carter rushed toward me and intended to take my hand. However, he was distracted by Clara's scream.

Thankfully, I managed to protect my belly in time, and it was only my hand that had gotten slightly scraped.

"It's fine. You draw the blood from the other one. I'll handle Clara," Carter said.

I silently nodded without taking it personally and quietly drew the other woman's blood.

…

Later that afternoon, Carter burst into the room with a pale face. He then dropped to his knees before me, saying, "Darling, it's my fault. It's all my fault."

I heard his following words before I could even process what he was doing. "The patient you drew blood from this morning tested positive for HIV."

My ears buzzed for a moment.

Just then, Clara came in sobbing and sniffling. "I'm sorry, Kaia. I didn't know you and Carter were married. I was just too scared when I suddenly started bleeding. I was too nervous, and I accidentally pushed you."

Her loud sobs drew the attention of the onlookers nearby.

Carter was embarrassed as he hurried to his feet in panic. "It's not your fault. It was just a medical accident. Go back to your ward."

"It was my fault. It was all my fault. I'm sorry, Kaia. I remember you scraped your hand and were in contact with the patient's blood. You should take PEP right away…"

Carter ushered Clara out of the nurse station and looked back at me in concern.

My eyes were reddened.

I had clearly seen Clara's smug little smile before she'd walked out the door. She knew that the patient was HIV positive. She had planned all of this.

"Kaia, don't be scared. It's only been a few hours. The chances of successful prevention are still high if we take PEP on time."

"There's nothing else we can do now, is there?" I simply said.

Tears welled up in Carter's eyes as he knelt to the ground, swearing that he would give up years of his life if it meant keeping me and the baby safe.

I sneered. He seemed to have lost his mind.

Could I even get to keep the baby after taking the medication?

Carter clung to me like a shadow from that moment on. He never left my side as we waited for the test results.

Clara had come by a few times, but Carter chased her out every time.

I looked at his earnest face.

I thought I wouldn't feel the pain anymore once I made up my mind to leave. However, my heart still ached involuntarily when I saw him like this.

Unfortunately, the man who had once loved me was long gone. The person before me right now was simply putting on an act.

It didn't take long for the test results to come out.

Carter held me tightly and was overjoyed when he announced that I had successfully tested negative.

A wave of relief and excitement washed over me—I could finally leave soon.

Suddenly, Carter pulled me out in front of everyone on my last night before leaving. He was acting all mysterious too.

I was confused.

Then, he knelt on one knee, wanting to declare our relationship publicly.

At that moment, the woman who had a nosebleed a few days ago stormed up to us just as he pulled out a ring. She said, "It was you! You were the nurse! My HIV status got exposed because of you. People are now talking behind my back and avoiding me like the plague!"

A commotion instantly broke out around us.

I saw Carter rush toward me without hesitation, wanting to confront the woman when she'd charged at me with a knife.

However, out of the corner of his eyes, he caught a glimpse of Clara falling to the ground.

Immediately, he rushed over to her without a second thought and left me behind.

With that, the woman's cold blade stabbed into my lower abdomen over and over again, and I could taste the blood in my mouth.

I saw Carter hold Clara anxiously in his arms before I lost consciousness. He was asking if she was hurt and if the baby was okay.

It turned out that he never cared about the baby inside me at all.

Well, now I didn't have to sneak off to another hospital to have the abortion behind his back anymore.

Heaven spared me, and I was glad that I survived.

…

When I opened my eyes, I was surprised to see Clara sitting by my side. Meanwhile, behind her stood a man I didn't recognize.

"What a miracle. I can't believe you're still alive after all that." Her face no longer held its usual sweetness and innocence. Instead, it was darkened by cruelty and malice.

I glanced at the clock.

Dad should be arriving to pick me up soon. I should probably remind him to bring a stretcher.

"You don't seriously think Carter still loves you, do you? You're an orphan. What right do you have to stay by his side? Besides, you've lost your only leverage—your child," she smugly said before waving her hand to gesture for the strange man to come forward.

I was startled. "What are you trying to do?" I instinctively tried to sit up and press the call button, but the sudden movement sent a sharp and searing pain through my body.

"Don't tell me you're still thinking of calling Carter. He's off getting my pregnancy report. He won't be back anytime soon," Clara said.

The man slowly approached me as I struggled with all my strength, but Clara stepped forward to pin me down. "You shameless woman, stealing what's mine. I'm going to ruin you for good today!"

"What the hell are you guys doing?" Carter rushed back breathlessly as soon as he heard that I had woken up.

He stared in shock at the scene before him.

Clara then threw herself to the ground and tore at her clothes at the sight of him while the strange man leapt out of the window.

"Carter, Kaia… I tried to stop the man, but he turned to me instead…" She cried uncontrollably.

Carter looked over at me in disbelief.

I turned my head away without explaining. It was nearly impossible to change someone's mind once they believed their version of the truth anyway.

He shoved Clara aside. Then, he grabbed my face and shouted, "Tell me if this is true. Are you that desperate? You still called for another man even in this state?"

I slapped him hard across his face.

Carter stared at me in disbelief, his expression twisting in fury as he raised his hand.

Suddenly, a commanding voice rang out just as the slap was about to land, "Let me see who dares lay a hand on her!"