02
Hearing Zion’s enraged voice through the phone, I couldn’t help but feel a twisted sense of satisfaction. “Oh? Isn’t this exactly what you wanted? Why are you yelling at me now?”
“Where’s Quinn?” His fury roared through the line. “I’m asking you! Where is she?”
I glanced over at my daughter, who was sitting quietly in the distance. Even now, the memory of those nerve-wracking days sent a chill down my
spine.
I thought back to the agreement we’d signed: the surgery was conditional only if Quinn remained unresponsive after a month.
When we finalized the divorce, Zion got what he wanted: the company’s management rights. In return, I walked away with half of the shares, a house, and twenty million in cash.
But now, his voice on the other end of the line was frantic, almost panicked. “You signed the papers! You agreed! Where is Quinn? What have you done with her?”
I chuckled coldly, “Yes, I signed the papers. But Quinn woke up. Or do you plan to carve her heart out of her chest while she’s still alive?”
“You… That’s impossible!” His voice cracked. “It’s been a month! The doctors said she’d never recover. Where are you hiding her?”
“Why? Afraid you’ll miss the window for your precious surgery?”
Through the surveillance app on my phone, I could see him losing it. He was now at what used to be our home, smashing expensive vases and furniture in his fury. Such a waste.
“You deceitful liar!” he spat. “This is illegal! We both signed that agreement. What did you do with Quinn’s body?”
“Her body?” I replied icily. “Why don’t you come and find out? Bring whoever you like, and let the world see how you’re willing to rip your own daughter apart for your bast**d son!”
There was a long silence on the other end, and I almost thought he’d hung up. Then, his voice dropped to a low, menacing tone. “You planned all this, didn’t you?”
I feigned ignorance. “Planned? What are you talking about?”
“Chloe,” he hissed. “I underestimated you. You set me up, didn’t you? You knew everything from the start.”
Hearing his words, I couldn’t help but laugh. “Underestimated me? Have you ever truly respected me, Zion? If you keep talking nonsense, just hang up already. We agreed not to bother each other.”
His anger flared again. “You were so quick to sign everything, even inviting an audience to watch. You wanted me humiliated, didn’t you?”
I laughed even harder. “If you knew it would ruin you, why go through with it? Couldn’t possibly be that stupid, could you?”
“Chloe!” he growled, his voice shaking with rage. “Don’t get too smug. Quinn is my daughter too. Even if we’re divorced, her custody isn’t guaranteed to go to you.”
“Really? Tell me, Zion, does the law favor a father who cheated, fathered an illegitimate child, and plotted to steal his daughter’s heart for his son? Big talk for someone with no leg to stand on.”
“You!” He was so furious that he could barely form words.
I didn’t give him a chance. “Oh, and by the way, if I hadn’t noticed the needle marks on Quinn’s arm, I wouldn’t have uncovered your little scheme. Your precious childhood sweetheart couldn’t hold back her excitement when Quinn’s condition worsened, could she? It was only when I mentioned sending Quinn abroad that you all rushed to act. Did you really think you could get away with it?”
Zion sneered, “So you staged that whole spectacle at the hospital? What a trap you set.”
“Did I have a choice? If I hadn’t taken precautions, Quirin might have died without me even realizing. Your family’s impatience and Benny’s poor health were what exposed you in the end”
“You venomous woman,” he snarled, practically growling. “This isn’t over!”
I finally snapped, “Zion, don’t push your luck. I’ve left with Quinn, I gave you the company, and all I want is peace. Why can’t you let us go?”
“The company?” He suddenly laughed.
“You think I care about the company? You know what I’ve wanted all along. I endured your family’s insults and even had to separate from Anita. If it weren’t for your mother’s death, the company wouldn’t have fallen into my hands.”
“And Quinn?” His voice turned dismissive. “She means nothing to me.”
11:30 AM
Zion didn’t even bother to pretend anymore. “If it weren’t for you, Benny would be a healthy boy. He wouldn’t suffer from heart disease if Anita hadn’t been so worried during her pregnancy. It’s all your fault!”
I couldn’t take such nonsense anymore. “Cut your bullsh*t, Zion. Why not reflect on why your son’s condition is so poor? And don’t bother calling again.”
I was about to hang up when he shouted, “Wait! If Quinn is alive, I want to see her.”
Finally, he was getting to the point.
I scoffed, “Didn’t you just say she means nothing to you? Why should I let you near her after you planned to rip her heart out?”
“She’s my daughter,” he snapped. “I have the right to see her. Our divorce can’t change the fact that I’m her father. If you refuse, don’t expect a single cent from the company shares.”
I smirked. “Oh, I don’t care. I already sold them.”
Seeing him almost crush his phone was satisfying. “You what? You sold the shares? To who? Why didn’t you come to me first?”
“My assets, my choice,” I said sweetly. “Why would I sell them to someone as heartless as you?”
“Chloe, where the hell are you? I’ll kill you!” he roared.
“Try me,” I replied calmly, hanging up and tossing the SIM card into the trash.
Ignoring Reela’s protests, I took Quinn to a seaside property my mother had left me, far away from Zion’s reach.
As I watched the waves crash against the shore, I began keeping tabs on Zion’s downfall.
I heard from Reela that Benny wasn’t doing well. Whenever he reached me, he had to do it secretly because many had witnessed how our marriage
ended.
A father forcing his own daughter to give up her heart to save his bast**d son? Only someone as inhuman as Zion could come up with such a thing.
I made sure to hide Quinn and myself well, knowing Zion wouldn’t easily find us.
Desperation turned him frantic. Believing that he was filthy rich and that money could solve anything, he poured obscene amounts into finding a heart
donor for his son.
He even boasted publicly that he would spare no expense to save his boy’s life.
But his desperation became his downfall. According to sources within his company, Zion spent his days shuttling between hospitals and meetings with intermediaries, exhausting himself. His lack of focus caused the company’s performance to nosedive, but he remained oblivious.
Opportunistic scammers preyed on him, promising suitable donors, leading him to shady black-market dealings. He lost large sums of money, narrowly avoiding police entanglements.
His determination to save his son was truly reckless.
While he spiraled, I lived quietly with Quinn, assuming Zion’s connections and resources would eventually succeed.
But fate had other plans. Despite his wealth and efforts, Zion couldn’t save his son.
The irony was almost laughable. The surgery failed, and Benny didn’t survive. Yet Zion lied to Anita, claiming the boy was in the ICU and needed six months of recovery.
Of course, lies had a way of surfacing. Within a month, Anita discovered the truth that her son had long since become nothing more than ashes. The
revelation shattered her, driving her to the brink of madness.
Chaos consumed their household, and Zion, overwhelmed, neglected his business entirely.
But something didn’t sit right with me. Why did Zion, a man as selfish as he was, go to such lengths to spare Anita the truth?
Could he really love someone that deeply? It didn’t align with the man I knew.
By the time Zion returned his focus to the company, it was too late. Gaping vulnerabilities allowed new shareholders to swoop in and buy it out for a fraction of its value.
When I heard the news, I felt a fleeting pang of regret, but it was a small price for justice.
However, I hadn’t expected Zion’s next move. He wanted me and Quinn back to get back on his feet.
One evening, fresh from the shower, I found Quinn sitting silently with the phone in her hands.
She’d accidentally turned on the speaker, and Zion’s voice filled the room.
“Chloe, please,” he pleaded. “Give me another chance. The company is gone, and you don’t want to see your mother’s legacy end like this, do you? Just help me with some funding, and I swear I’ll turn it around. I’ll even treat Quinn like I used to.”
“Then why did you want my heart? Daddy, I’m scared. It’ll hurt.”
Quinn suddenly spoke, tears streaming down her face.
Zion didn’t expect Quinn to answer the call. He froze for a long while, digesting the fact that she wasn’t dead. Then, he said softly, “Quinn, I love you the most. Did you forget that? How could I be so cruel to you? Don’t believe your mommy’s words.”
Quinn sniffled. “Then why didn’t you come for us before? Why did you leave Mommy and me?”
“I never wanted to leave you,” he insisted. “Your mommy hid you from me. She wouldn’t tell me where you were. Be a good girl and tell me where you are, okay? I’ll pick you up.”
11:30 AM
0
Quinn’s voice cracked with a sob. “Then why did you have a baby with another woman? If I got sick, would you take his heart for me?”
Zion didn’t answer immediately, probably thinking about Benny.
Quinn continued, “Get rid of that bad woman, and I’ll tell you where we are.”
Zion’s tone turned sharp, his patience unraveling. “He’s already dead! Why can’t you let it go? Quinn, don’t you have any conscience? After everything I’ve done for you…”
Quinn wiped her tears and said firmly, “This is the last time I’ll ever call you Daddy. By the way, I never told you, but I heard everything you and Grandma said at the hospital. I couldn’t talk then, but I heard it all.”
With that, she ended the call.
I pulled her into my arms, feeling heartbroken. “Don’t worry, Quinn,” I whispered. “Mommy’s here. No one will hurt you ever again.”
Her tears flowed freely as she finally let go of all the fear and pain she had been carrying.
The truth came out piece by piece. I had noticed needle marks on Quinn’s arm and, after pressing her, discovered that Zion had secretly taken her to a hospital for blood tests.
My investigation revealed more than I’d bargained for. I learned about his affair with Anita and their sickly child, born only months after Quinn. Their son’s health had always been fragile, and they’d been searching for a heart donor all along.
The realization that Zion had planned to sacrifice Quinn for his son’s survival kept me awake for nights on end.
There was no other choice. I had to act.
So, I staged a car accident, a desperate gamble to expose the truth.
To get Quinn’s cooperation, I showed her evidence of Zion’s affair.
At first, she couldn’t accept it. The father she had adored had betrayed her in the worst way, and now he wanted her heart to save his other child.
But the final blow came when she overheard Zion and Maria’s heartless words at her bedside.
Perhaps when she answered the phone earlier, part of her still hoped for reconciliation. But after speaking to him, all hope was gone.
Some truths were painful, but the sooner you confronted them, the less they hurt. I wanted Quinn to grow up happy, but I refused to let her live in a web of lies. Facing reality now would help her avoid heartache in the future.
I threw out my SIM card, cutting off any way for Zion to contact us. Backed into a corner, he was forced to sell his house to scrape together funds.
He dreamed of starting over, but his reputation was in tatters, and he lacked the sharp instincts my mother had once used to dominate the business
world. His delusions of grandeur were just delusions.
With nowhere else to turn, Zion prepared for one final, desperate gamble.
