Chapter 36

Under the overhead light of the car, I stared at Charles where he lay unconscious, completely stunned. I was kept prisoner, stripped of my freedom. Charles' heart had slowly grown stable over the past four years with me by his side. But now, because of me, it had slipped back into danger. Even while receiving emergency care, the moment he was half-awake, he ordered his men to lock me inside his private mansion. For half a month, I wasn't allowed to step out of my room. During the last few days, I almost believed Charles had died on the operating table. It wasn't until Freya visited, sitting across from me, that I knew. I knew she despised me. I braced for her mocking. I even thought of what I might say to help her separate me from Charles. But she removed her dark glasses, showing me her puffy red eyes. "Shayla, I do look down on you. You know that. But Charles is my only son. Without you, he will die. "As a mother, all I can do is compromise. I'll allow you to marry into the B