chapter 9

Victoria's and Arthur's eyes lit up instantly, their gazes holding no trace of the tenderness they once had.

Elena looked at them and suddenly gave them a smile that was so bright yet so sad.

She signed her name on the agreement, then pushed the document back to them.

"Signed." She looked at Victoria and spoke with a terrifyingly calm voice. "But I want to ask one thing. By signing this, am I now free of any debt from the Fay family?"

Victoria hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, you're free now. As long as Chloe is safe, we'll have nothing to do with each other in the future."

"Good." Elena nodded and stood up. "You can leave now."

She turned and walked away without looking back.

Walking out of the visitation room, the sunlight shining through the window couldn't warm her cold heart.

She remembered Gloria's words: by staying alive rather than dying, the people outside would make her suffer more.

But it turned out that the most fatal blow to her came from the people she once trusted the most.

Back in her cell, Gloria saw her return and immediately asked sarcastically, "How was it? Did your loving parents come to see you? Did they bring you any good food?"

Elena ignored her. She went straight to her bed and sat down.

Seeing Elena ignoring her, Gloria got angry and pushed her. "Are you deaf?"

Elena suddenly looked up with eyes that were no longer filled with fear and submission, just a cold silence.

Gloria felt a panic in her heart as she looked at Elena and instinctively took a step back.

Elena said nothing still. She just lay down slowly and closed her eyes.

She knew that from the moment she signed her name, she was no longer Elena Fay.

At that moment, she was just a soulless shell, a tool waiting to have her organ taken away.

But what had she done wrong?

Did anyone ask for her opinion in all of this? Why did Vitoria and Arthur's grudges towards her biological mother so easily decide her fate?

Later that day, the iron door of the cell was opened while Elena was curled up in the corner of her bed.

"7348, come out."

The voice of the guard broke the silence.

She slowly got up, the old injury on her knee still aching faintly.

Gloria leaned against the bed and looked at her, with a smirk on her face. "What? Are you going to donate your kidney to your dear sister?"

Elena said nothing and followed the guard out.

The wind blew into the corridor, making her wrap her thin prison uniform tightly around her frame.

The cold breeze also irritated the tender new flesh, which had been exposed after the scab of her forehead wound fell off.

"Mrs. Fay is waiting for you." The prison guard led her to the meeting room, then turned and left.

Victoria, who was sitting on the sofa, frowned when she saw Elena coming in. "Why do you look like this? The doctor said the donor's health must be ensured."

Elena looked at her and said nothing.

"The car is outside. Come with me." Victoria stood up and walked out, her high heels making a crisp sound on the floor, showing no intention of waiting for Elena.

Meanwhile, Elena simply followed her.

Then, as they walked out of the premises of the detention center, she was welcomed by the glaring sunlight, making her squint.

A black car of the Fay family was parked on the side of the road, and Arthur, who was sitting in the driver's seat, quickly looked away when he saw Elena.

"Get in," Victoria instructed firmly as she opened the backseat door.

The car then drove to the downtown hospital, with no one bothering to speak during the entire journey.

Elena leaned against the car window, watching the passing street scenes outside and feeling a faint pain in her stomach again.

The bad prison food had left her with a stomach problem.

At the hospital, the nurse took her directly for preoperative examinations.

Blood draw, CT scan, ECG—the cold instruments roamed over her body, making her feel like a soulless puppet that was being manipulated.

"Family members, come sign the preoperative informed consent form." The nurse walked over with the document, looking at Victoria.

Victoria took the pen and quickly signed her name without even looking at the document's content.

Arthur stood aside, hands in his pockets and his gaze unfocused.

By the time Elena was pushed into the ward, it was already afternoon. The nurse changed her into a hospital gown and brought the preoperative injection.

"Relax. Just take the shot and have a nap." The nurse's tone was gentle, but Elena felt a chill all over.

The feeling of the injection's needle entering her vein was something she knew she would never forget in her lifetime.

In the evening, the operating room's gurney arrived.