Chapter 4Walking Their Own Paths

Hazel did not come back that night.

She sent a message saying Bennett was in a bad mood, so she was staying at his place for the night.

Jack did not reply. He simply started quietly packing his things.

They had bought that house together.

He had borrowed fifty thousand dollars from his father and pooled it with her savings to scrape together a two-hundred-thousand-dollar down payment.

Since they were getting divorced, the house should be sold, too. They would split the money and owe each other nothing.

He stuffed everything Hazel had ever given him into garbage bags, including her handwritten love letters, their photo album, and the souvenir from their first trip. It had been expensive and had drained her bank account.

She had even sworn that once she had money, she would buy him everything he liked.

He threw it all into the trash room in one go.

Just as he was about to head back inside after tossing everything, he saw Hazel rushing toward him with a group of people.

She grabbed his hand and asked urgently, “Jack, you’re Rh-null, right? I remember you are.”

Hazel grabbed his hand, her voice urgent.

“What’s going on?” he asked with a frown and tried to shake her off, but he could not break free.

“Ben got into a car accident. He’s bleeding out and needs your blood! The hospital doesn’t have any Rh-null blood in the bank right now. You need to come with me right now and donate!”

“I’m not going,” he refused without a second thought.

He did have Rh-null, but he also had thalassemia, a severe genetic blood disorder.

Hazel knew about it.

In the past, whenever he bled, she would panic and rush him to the hospital.

How could she ask him to donate blood to Ben?

“Jack, don’t be so selfish. Ben’s life is on the line here. How could you just not go?

“Yeah, it’s a human life, for god’s sake. We can’t just do nothing!”

“If it weren’t for you, he wouldn’t have broken down and run out into the street. You’re going today, whether you like it or not!”

Hazel and the others roughly dragged him into the car. He was outnumbered and could not resist.

When they arrived at the hospital, Alex had just come out of the operating room.

When he saw Jack, he let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank god, Jack, you finally made it. Just in time. Hurry up and give Ben some blood!”

“I can’t. I can’t donate blood!” Jack said.

He looked at Hazel in panic.

“Hazel, did you forget? I have thalassemia. I can’t give blood to anyone. I’ll die!”

She froze for a moment.

How could she have forgotten that?

Jack had severe thalassemia. One mistake, and his life would be in danger.

Although she was worried about Bennett, she could not just ignore whether Jack lived or died.

While she was hesitating, a nurse, Anna Perry, came rushing out of the operating room.

“Dr. Clare, the patient’s blood pressure is crashing! Has the donor shown up yet? If he doesn’t get here soon, the patient’s going to die!”

Hazel nervously asked Alex, “Alex, tell me, can Jack donate blood?”

Alex was silent for a moment. In the end, he nodded. “Yes. Get him in there now, or you’re never going to see Ben again.”

“You heard him, right? Even Alex says it’s fine. So, quit throwing a fit when Ben’s life is on the line!”

She summoned several bodyguards and had them grab his hands tightly. “Get him in there. He’s going to donate Ben some blood now, and he’s not coming out until Ben is out of danger!”

“Let go of me! I’m not giving blood to some homewrecker!”

No matter how he struggled, it was ultimately useless.

The bodyguards pinned him down in the donor chair.

Alex grabbed the needle and drove it straight into his arm.