Chapter 2 - The Crimson Receipts
Madam Han’s face went from flushed red to a ghastly, ghostly white in less than a second.
"My... my things!" she shrieked, her voice suddenly high and cracking with wild panic. She dropped to her knees, abandoning all her aristocratic dignity, scrambling across the marble floor to grab the paper sheets. "Don't touch those! Those are private family records!"
But it was already too late.
Director Zhang of the Medical Board reached down, picking up two of the unfolded white receipts before Madam Han’s trembling fingers could reach them. He adjusted his glasses, scanning the top header.
"This... this is an official ledger from St. Mary’s Private Surgical Hospital," Director Zhang murmured, his brow furrowing deep. "Issued to Madam Han..."
"Give those back!" Julian shouted, rushing forward, stepping heavily on my injured hand as he tried to snatch the papers from Director Zhang's grip.
My bones cracked under his boot, but I didn't even scream. The numbness in my body had spread from my legs to my chest.
Director Zhang pulled the papers back, his eyes widening in absolute horror as he read the itemized billing details aloud to the crowd.
"Date: April 14th," Director Zhang read, his voice ringing crisp and clear through the silent garden. "Item: High-potency placental hormone extract and bone-softening agent... prescribed for patient: Lin Chen."
A gasp erupted from the onlookers.
"Date: May 22nd," Director Zhang continued, his hands beginning to shake with rage. "Item: Administration of localized osteo-inhibitor compound during knee surgery... prescribed for patient: Lin Chen."
I froze on the ground, blood dripping from my lip, staring at the papers in Director Zhang's hands.
Osteo-inhibitor?
Eight months ago, I was in a minor car accident with Julian. The doctors told me my right knee had suffered a simple hairline fracture that would heal in six weeks. But instead of healing, the bone had degraded rapidly over the months, turning soft and brittle until I couldn't walk without an iron brace. They told me my body was failing because of my pregnancy.
It was never a natural failure.
They had been poisoning my bones.
"Read the last two, Director Zhang," a cold, smooth voice spoke up from the back of the crowd.
A tall man in a dark charcoal suit pushed his way through the stunned guests. He carried an silver briefcase, his sharp, dark eyes fixed entirely on Julian and Madam Han.
It was Vance Zhao—the most feared corporate litigation attorney in the state, and the legal representative of my late father’s estate.
Director Zhang’s face paled further as he scanned the remaining two receipts.
"Date: June 10th," Zhang read, his voice trembling. "Pre-payment for specialized fetal tissue extraction and embryonic stem-cell isolation service... Fee: 2.5 million dollars... Paid by: Julian Han."
"Date: July 2nd," Zhang whispered, looking up in absolute horror. "Advanced contract for experimental bone-density reconstruction surgery... for patient: Madam Han. Primary material: Genetically matched fetal tissue."
The entire garden went deathly quiet.
The wind seemed to stop howling. The leaves stopped rustling.
Every eyes in the courtyard shifted slowly from the receipts to Madam Han, then to Julian, and finally down to where I lay curled up in a puddle of my own blood.
Madam Han needed a bone-density transplant for her severe osteoporosis.
My baby—my seven-month-old unborn child—was genetically matched to her.
They didn't want me to lose the baby because it was sickly. They had been poisoning my leg to force me into an emergency late-term abortion so they could harvest my child's stem cells to heal the old woman’s back.
"No... no! That’s a forgery!" Julian screamed, his voice cracking hysterically as he pointed a trembling finger at Vance Zhao. "This cripple hired you to frame us! She’s crazy! She’s mentally unstable!"
"Is that so, Mr. Han?" Vance Zhao said smoothly, opening his silver briefcase and pulling out an iPad. He tapped the screen, turning it toward the gathered media reporters. "Because these physical receipts match the digital records subpoenaed from St. Mary’s Hospital server thirty minutes ago under a federal medical corruption order."
My mother, who had been pushing me up the mountain, froze. She looked at the papers, then at Madam Han, her jaw trembling violently.
"Madam Han..." my mother gasped, her voice hollow. "You... you told me... you told me the abortion was to save my daughter’s life! You told me her leg would rot if she kept the baby!"
Madam Han sneered, her mask of nobility slipping away completely, revealing the venomous viper beneath. "Shut up, you poor old hag! Your daughter married into my family! Her body belongs to the Han family! Her blood, her bones, her baby—everything she has was bought with our money!"
Julian didn't even look at me. He stepped over my body, grabbing his mother’s arm. "Mother, don't say anything more! We’re leaving!"
"Leaving?" Vance Zhao chuckled softly, stepping forward to block the garden exit. "Mr. Han, look down."
Julian looked down at his shoes.
May you like
My blood—thick, red, and warm—had pooled around his white leather groom's boots, staining them crimson.
"The police are at the base of the mountain, Julian," I rasped from the stone floor, pushing myself up on one elbow, my eyes burning with a dark, terrifying flame that had never been there before. "And you... will never leave this mountain a free man."
