The Price of His Sick Love

Signed Away

So this had been Elias' plan all along. He wanted to make me hand my vice president position over to his new lover.

I let out a bitter laugh. "Fine. I have no objections."

I was dying, so arguing felt utterly pointless. What did any of these worldly possessions matter now? I sat down without another word and took the pen he handed me.

Every document had already been opened to the signature page.

I was meticulous by nature. Whenever I signed any documents, I always made sure the cover page matched the contents.

The first document was my vice president's termination agreement. I signed it without hesitation.

Elias and Zoey exchanged a surprised look.

The second document was a property transfer agreement.

That house had been bought with the first real money Elias and I ever made. It was also the only property in my name.

Maybe afraid I'd refuse, Elias hurried to explain, "Zoey's family needs a place to stay while they're in the city for treatment. You don't live there anyway."

If they just needed a place to stay, why bother with the transfer of ownership? I couldn't be bothered calling him out.

I initialled the page.

When I reached for the third document, Elias stopped me. "Cece, I'm not trying to hurt you. Just sign it."

I looked up to find both Elias and Zoey watching me closely.

I flipped it open anyway.

It was a stock transfer agreement.

This was the twenty percent stake Elias had given me when he publicly announced our relationship.

Back then, everyone at the company knew I was Elias' woman, and they all looked at me with envy.

Elias drew in a sharp breath. "Let me explain..."

I didn't even pause before filling in my signature.

After the final stroke of my signature, I looked at him. "Anything else?"

Elias stared at me like he couldn't believe it. But wasn't this exactly what he wanted? For me to hand everything over to Zoey? He should've been thrilled.

Zoey was practically ecstatic. However, she wore her usual fake sweetness like a glove. "Celia, don't worry. I'm just holding onto these things for you. Once you recover, I'll give everything back."

I stood, expression blank. I'd only come back to pick up the package containing my funeral clothes. I had what I came for, so there was no reason for me to linger.

As I turned to leave, Elias called after me.

His brow furrowed. "Cece... you've lost weight. A lot of weight."

I touched my hollow cheek and shrugged. "It's fine. I'm not dying today."

Something twisted painfully in Elias' chest. For once, his voice turned unexpectedly gentle. "Have you eaten? I can heat the leftovers from lunch. I made them myself."

Elias was a neat freak, so he hated the kitchens. He had never cooked a single meal for me, even at the peak of his love for me, but that changed after Zoey mentioned her stomach hurt.

After that, he taught himself to cook, even blistering his fingers with hot oil.

I'd once envied that. I wanted to try his food just once

He refused, saying it was exclusively for Zoey.

I was about to decline, but Elias had already headed into the kitchen without waiting for an answer.

Soon, only Zoey and I were left in the living room.

The look she gave me was full of malice. Then, she suddenly pulled out an emerald bracelet from behind her back and smiled. "Celia, I really like this bracelet. I want to give it to my mom. Can I have it?"

Elias had always kept that bracelet for me, locked in the safe.

"You can have anything else, but not that."

"Really?"

"Yes."

Zoey clicked her tongue. Then, she suddenly slammed the bracelet onto the floor.

"Then, you can have it back."

Time seemed to slow. I watched as the bracelet shattered on impact, breaking into four pieces.

She had always been two-faced. Polite and respectful in public. Cruel and arrogant in private.

Every time I tried telling Elias how she treated me, he accused me of targeting Zoey on purpose. Said I was being unreasonable.

I'd told myself not to waste energy fighting with her. Not when I was already so close to death.

Still, something inside me snapped as I stared at that shattered bracelet. A nameless fury burned away every last shred of reason.