Chapter 1
The moment the needle was pulled from my arm, a wave of faint dizziness washed over me. This was the forty-seventh time.
The nurse carefully pressed on the needle site, a hint of concern in her eyes.
“Mr. Leo, this is your third donation this month. Are you really sure your body can handle it?”
I managed a weak smile, waving my hand to signal I was fine.
As someone with Rh-negative O-type blood, I’d long been used to this feeling of being needed.
Especially when Scarlett told me there was another patient desperately in need of my blood, I never refused.
“How’s the patient doing today?” I asked, rolling down my sleeve.
The nurse hesitated, then simply said, “You should ask Dr. Scarlett. She’s in the VIP ward section.”
I nodded and got up, heading towards the VIP wards.
After so many donations, I was incredibly familiar with the hospital.
Even more so than some newly hired nurses, I knew the exact location of every department.
As I walked down the corridor of the VIP ward section, I spotted the door to Scarlett’s office from afar.
The door wasn’t fully closed, leaving a narrow crack, and I could hear low voices inside.
I was about to push the door open, but the voices from within froze me in my tracks the moment my hand touched the doorknob.
“Every time I see that look on his face, so willing to donate blood to save someone, I just find it hilarious.”
Scarlett’s voice carried a mocking tone I had never heard before.
“Don’t say that, our dear Leo is such a saint.”
“He genuinely believes his blood is saving lives, all for those ‘patients’ you’ve made up.”
Another man’s voice chimed in, sounding young and flippant.
My heart began to pound violently, and my palms grew sweaty.
Through the crack, I saw Scarlett sitting on the office desk, a young man standing in front of her.
The distance between them was intimate, almost scandalous.
“Jax, what do you think his face would look like if he knew the real use of all that blood?”
Scarlett reached out and hooked her arm around the man’s neck.
“He’d probably crumble, right? After all, he trusts you so much, his little angel of mercy.”
Jax’s hands began to roam over Scarlett’s body.
I forced myself to stay calm and kept listening.
“Mr. Henderson needs another batch of blood next month. We can raise the price again this time; Leo’s blood type is so rare after all.”
Scarlett’s tone was as casual as if she were discussing an ordinary business transaction.
“$70,000 a bag, that’s indeed a good price. But aren’t you worried he’ll find out?” Jax asked.
“Find out what? He can’t even get into the blood bank, and I always concoct a perfect story.”
“Acute leukemia, massive blood loss from a car accident, he falls for it every single time,” Scarlett said with a triumphant laugh.
My entire world imploded in an instant.
For three years, I thought I was saving lives, but it turned out I was just providing raw material for their filthy dealings.
All those patients I thought I’d saved, all that blood I’d shed, it was all a lie.
The two inside the room had started embracing, and Scarlett let out soft moans.
I suppressed my nausea and quietly slipped away.
Back home, I sat on the couch, lost in thought.
The room was filled with Scarlett’s various medical awards and certificates of honor.
Our wedding photo hung on the wall; in it, she smiled so purely and beautifully.
I picked up my phone and scrolled through my blood donation records from over the years.
Every single time, she would convince me with a different reason.
Sometimes it was an urgent late-night call, sometimes tearful pleas, sometimes a righteous speech about a doctor’s compassion.
And I, like a fool, extended my arm without hesitation every single time.