Chapter 136
As soon as those words came out.
Victoria's heart felt like it was being squeezed hard by a large hand. The pain made it difficult for her to breathe, and she quickly asked, "But we just paid the medical bills a few days ago. How can we be out of money again so soon?"
"There's still two million dollars in the account. The money is there, but that bastard Martin froze it! If we can't pay the medical bills, they'll have to cut off Dad's medication!"
Aria's anxious voice on the phone was choked with tears. "Victoria, Terry said your father is recovering well. If they cut off his medication like this, it'll be very dangerous! Victoria, tell Mom honestly, did you two have another fight?"
Victoria gripped her phone tightly. She knew what was going on. To force her to have this baby, Martin was using Hayden to threaten her again!
They were husband and wife. She loved him, trusted him, protected him, married him, yet he lied to her, hurt her, and now wanted to harm her.
How did their relationship end up like this?
"Victoria, Mom knows you're suffering. Mom doesn't want to see you bullied like this either. But Victoria, we have no choice. The Gonzalez family is about to collapse. If you anger Martin, your father will suffer even more. Don't you understand? You're a good girl. For Mom's sake, can you just humble yourself before Martin? You're the only one who can save your father!"
"Martin only listens to you. Haven't you noticed? He doesn't care about us at all."
Listening to Aria's rambling, Victoria's nose stung with pain, and tears streamed down her face.
Hearing her cry, Aria also started crying on the phone, "Victoria, Mom warned you back then not to marry him. But what can we do now? You can't just watch your father die like this, can you? Without your father, I can't go on living either."
"Victoria, can you just endure it a little longer? Once your father wakes up and gets better, everything will be fine. Our family can figure things out together."
Victoria wiped her tears, sobbing.
How could she tell Aria that things wouldn't get better? She already had late-stage liver cancer, and now that she was pregnant, she would only die faster.
How could she tell Aria that she wouldn't be able to care for them in their old age anymore?
Things had developed to this point, and Victoria felt like she couldn't blame anyone. It seemed like no one was wrong. They just had different positions.
Was Martin cruel? But his parents did die because of Hayden.
Was she innocent? But Hayden's blood ran through her veins.
The Gonzalez family and Hayden had ended up like this because of her. Victoria couldn't just ignore them.
She had to admit, Martin had completely found her weak spot.
"I'll talk to Martin. I won't let anything happen to Dad," Victoria said, her voice tired.
Perhaps feeling sorry for what she was going through, Aria burst into tears on the phone, saying they had become Victoria's burden.
Victoria smiled as she comforted her. "What are you saying? Mom and Dad shielded me from harm for twenty-three years. Now that I've grown up, it's my turn to protect you."
After hanging up, she took out her phone to call Martin.
By the time she was fully dressed, he still hadn't answered.
Victoria held back her anger and sent him a text: [When you see this message, call me back. Let's talk properly.]
After washing up, Kaida brought over a nutritious pregnancy meal and placed it in front of her.
She had no appetite. Thinking about Hayden's medication being cut off and Martin not returning her calls, she felt as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
Seeing that she had no intention of eating, Kaida got a bit worried. "Ms. Gonzalez, you still need to eat. I have to take a video of you eating and send it to Brian."
Thinking about how she hadn't eaten last night and how Kaida had knelt in the rain for so long, Victoria realized she couldn't punish others with her emotions.
Kaida was innocent.
Victoria forced down the feeling of fullness in her stomach and ate the porridge spoonful by spoonful.
Kaida took a video with her phone and sent it to Brian.
"Kaida, can you contact Martin?" Victoria suddenly asked.
Kaida froze.
"Can you help me contact him and ask him to meet with me? I want to talk to him in person," Victoria said, tears falling. "Kaida, my father's medication has been cut off. Please help me contact him, okay?"
After half a second of hesitation, Kaida agreed.
She took out her phone and called Martin.
But he still didn't answer.
"Ms. Gonzalez, don't worry. Mr. Collins must be busy right now. I'll send him a message. He's a polite person—he'll definitely reply when he sees it," Kaida said, texting on her phone.
Victoria thanked her, and Kaida took the empty dishes to the kitchen to wash them.
She really couldn't wait any longer, but she couldn't leave this house. There were guards everywhere outside.
With nowhere else to turn, she could only call Brian.
Brian answered immediately, his tone concerned.
Victoria explained what she needed, and Brian said he would contact Martin right away.
He told her not to worry. Mr. Collins wouldn't really do anything to Hayden.
He just wanted her to give in.
But Victoria didn't believe that. In her eyes, Martin had become utterly despicable. Brian was only saying that because he worked for Martin, just to comfort her.
That evening.
Victoria finally received a call from Brian. "Mrs. Collins, I've conveyed your message to Mr. Collins. Mr. Collins is currently paying respects at Skylake Village. When he returns, he'll come see you."
"When will he be back?" Victoria pressed.
Brian answered, "Mr. Collins won't leave until tomorrow morning. He has a meeting at noon, and he'll come see you after lunch."
"My father can't wait until then! Brian, can you please help and ask him to come back tonight? Or I can go to him. That works too." Victoria was shocked. Was Martin dragging this out to let Hayden die?
Brian's tone showed difficulty. "Mrs. Collins, you know Mr. Collins's temper. You should just wait. Based on my judgment, Mr. Gonzalez shouldn't be in any real danger."
Having been by Martin's side for so many years, Brian could somewhat guess Martin's motives.
Martin undoubtedly wanted to force Victoria to have the baby by cutting off Hayden's medication.
But to Victoria's ears, this sounded like an excuse. She thought Brian was unwilling to risk offending Martin, so she said nothing more and quietly hung up.
Now she understood how difficult it was to ask others for help.
The phone charging on the table suddenly vibrated. Victoria thought it must be Martin contacting her—he wasn't as heartless as he claimed, making her wait until tomorrow noon.
Her heart filled with anxiety, unease, joy, excitement, and many other emotions. She rushed over and grabbed the phone.