Chapter 2 The Devil's Lifeline
Brittany's POV
My hands shook as I pulled out my phone and dialed 911. "Please, I need an ambulance. My grandmother is unconscious. She's not breathing right. Please hurry."
The operator's calm voice asked for the address, and I gave it to her through my tears. "Please, she's all I have left. Please send someone now."
The ambulance arrived ten minutes later. The paramedics rushed in and lifted her onto a stretcher. I climbed into the back of the ambulance, holding my grandmother's cold hand as we sped through the rain toward Houston Memorial Hospital.
When we arrived, the paramedics rushed her inside. A young doctor met us at the emergency room entrance.
"We'll take care of her," he said. "But you need to go to the front desk and handle the insurance paperwork first."
I nodded and walked toward the reception area. A woman with sharp eyes and bright red lipstick sat behind the counter. She didn't even look up when I approached.
"Name?" she asked in a flat, bored voice.
"Brittany Redman. My grandmother is Clara Redman. She just came in. Please, she needs help right away."
The woman typed something into her computer. Then she stopped. Her face turned cold.
"Your insurance has been canceled," she said, looking at me like I was trash. "We cannot admit your grandmother without a deposit of fifty thousand dollars."
My heart stopped. "What? No, that's not possible. I have insurance."
"Not anymore," she said with a shrug. "It was terminated this morning. No insurance means no treatment."
Adam. He had done this. Even after throwing me out, he still wanted to make sure I suffered.
"Please," I begged, my voice cracking. "She's dying. I'll find a way to pay. Just please help her."
"Fifty thousand dollars," the receptionist repeated coldly. "Cash or credit card. Right now."
The room started spinning. I felt my knees buckle. I was going to faint. I reached out to grab the counter, but my hand slipped.
A strong hand caught my arm. "Steady now," a deep voice said.
I looked up and saw an older man in a white coat. He had kind eyes and gray hair. The name tag on his coat said Dr. Richard Foster, Head of Emergency Medicine.
"Are you Clara Redman's family?" he asked.
"Yes," I whispered. "She's my grandmother. Please, I don't have the money, but I'll find a way. Please don't let her die."
Dr. Foster looked at me for a long moment. Then he turned to the receptionist. "The bill is paid."
I blinked. "What?"
"The bill is paid," he repeated. "Admit Mrs. Redman immediately."
The receptionist's mouth fell open, but she nodded quickly and started typing. Dr. Foster turned back to me and reached into his coat pocket. He pulled out a black envelope with gold edges.
"This is for you," he said, handing it to me.
I took it with shaking hands. "What is this?"
"It arrived by courier an hour ago with instructions to give it to you when you arrived. The payment for your grandmother's care came with it."
I stared at the envelope. My name was written on the front in perfect gold letters. I turned it over and saw a wax seal with the letter B pressed into it.
"Who sent this?" I asked.
"The Blackwell Estate," Dr. Foster said quietly.
My blood turned to ice. Everyone in Texas knew that name. The Blackwells were one of the richest families in the state.
"Your grandmother is in good hands now," Dr. Foster said. "You should open that."
He walked away. I broke the seal and pulled out a thick piece of paper. At the top, in bold letters, it said: MARRIAGE CONTRACT.
I felt like I couldn't breathe. It was a legal document offering me marriage to someone named David J. Blackwell. In exchange, all of my grandmother's medical bills would be paid. She would receive the best care available, and I would receive a home and protection.
But I would belong to him.
I couldn't think straight. I needed help. I pulled out my phone and called the only friend I had left. "Chloe? I need you. Can I come over?"
"Of course, babe," Chloe said sweetly. "I'm always here for you."
Twenty minutes later, I was sitting in Chloe's tiny apartment. She made me tea and wrapped a blanket around my shoulders. I told her everything. About Adam and Bianca, the hospital, and the black envelope.
"Let me see it," Chloe said.
I handed her the contract. She read it carefully, then looked up at me.
"Do you know who David Blackwell is?" she asked.
"No," I said.
Chloe pulled out her laptop. "Let's find out."
She typed his name into the search bar. A few articles came up. The headline said: "The Mysterious Tycoon: Why Does David Blackwell Hide From The World?"
There was a blurry photo of a man in a dark suit getting into a car. His face was turned away from the camera.
"It says here he's a recluse," Chloe said, reading out loud. "He never goes to parties. He never does interviews and gets this. Rumor has it he's impotent."
My stomach twisted. "Impotent?"
"It means he can't have sex," Chloe said bluntly. She clicked on another article. "This one says he's old. Like, really old. Maybe sixty or seventy."
I put my head in my hands. An old, impotent tycoon who hid from the world. That was the man who wanted to marry me.
"What should I do?" I whispered.
Chloe put her arm around me. "Honestly, Britt? I think you should sign it."
I looked up at her in shock. "What?"
"Think about it," Chloe said. "Your grandmother is dying. You have no money. No home. This man is offering you a way out. Sure, he's probably old and weird, but at least your grandma will live."
I looked down at the contract in my lap. I thought about my grandmother lying in that hospital bed. I thought about the baby growing inside me. I thought about Adam and Bianca laughing at me.
Chloe handed me a pen. My hand hovered over the signature line. To save my grandmother, I signed my life away to a man I had never met.