My husband, Carter Hayes, was an elite sniper in the Special Forces. Whenever he took on a mission, he never missed a shot. But during this hostage rescue mission, he left three bullet holes in our daughter’s body before finally hitting the kidnapper on his fourth shot. He did it all just to ensure my older sister, Claire, could evacuate safely. In the ambulance, my hands trembled as I held my daughter. The blood flowing from her tiny body seemed endless, dyeing my entire world red. Even with immediate medical attention, Lily’s right arm and left leg had to be amputated just to barely save her life. Meanwhile, Claire was completely unharmed. Everyone thought Carter fired those shots out of duty. But only I knew that he did it out of his own selfish desires. 1 I went crazy. I caused a scene. I even barged into Carter’s office, snatched his service weapon, and pointed it right at his chest, hysterically demanding to know why. Carter explained calmly, “Through my scope, I saw the kidnapper press a knife against Claire’s neck. I couldn’t gamble on whether he would slit the hostage’s throat the next second.” “I calculated it. Those three shots were the best option to keep Lily alive while neutralizing the threat.” His tone was restrained and steady. “Taking down the target is my duty.” The hand I used to hold the gun trembled uncontrollably as tears streamed down my face. “Carter, do you dare to swear you didn’t do it for Claire?” Carter lowered his eyes, remaining silent. That silence twisted my insides with agonizing pain. The gun dropped to the floor as I bent over, weeping silently. In his sniper scope, he only saw Claire. While our daughter’s life hung by a thread, his mind was entirely consumed with how to guarantee another woman’s safety. After the guards forcibly removed me, I sat outside Lily’s ICU room for a day and a night. From that day on, it was as if I became a completely different person. I no longer cooked lunch every day, brought it to the gates of his base, and stood on my tiptoes behind the security line just to catch a glimpse of him from afar. I no longer gave half my monthly paycheck to my mother, nor did I go over to clean her house every day after work. I also sent Claire’s son, Noah, back to her. I never picked him up from school or took care of his daily needs ever again. Half a month after the incident, Carter finally stepped into the hospital room. With him were Claire and my mother. Carter looked at Lily on the hospital bed, his eyes flashing with pity. He reached out to pat her head, but I slapped his hand away hard. “Don’t touch her!” My chest heaved. I squeezed my eyes shut. “Get out.” Carter’s cold brows furrowed deeply. “Chloe, how long are you going to keep throwing this tantrum?” “Lily is my daughter too. I’m hurting even more than you are!” My hand, which was tucking Lily in, froze. Tears slipped out uncontrollably. I turned my head and forced out an ugly smile. “You’re hurting?” “If you’re hurting, why didn’t you come to see Lily even once before this? Instead, you followed Claire around like a stray dog when she didn’t have a single scratch on her!” The room fell silent for a second. My mother walked up to me with a dark face and slapped me hard across the cheek. “You animal!” she yelled. “Claire’s husband sacrificed his life to save Carter! Do you know how much she’s suffered raising her kid alone all these years? How dare you speak to your older sister like that!” The slap left my ears ringing and my cheek swollen. Holding my face, my thoughts drifted away uncontrollably. Because of that exact excuse, Carter spent all his leave days with Claire and her son. He only ever attended Noah’s parent-teacher conferences. My mother only doted on Noah. She never once smiled at Lily, and during the holidays, she only ever gave cash gifts and presents to Noah. Even on family vacations, it was always just the four of them. They comfortably accepted everything I gave and sacrificed, yet they never once treated me or Lily as family. Claire stood to the side, tears brimming in her eyes. “Chloe, it’s all my fault. Please don’t blame Carter and Mom…” My face was pale. I turned around, leaned over, and gently stroked Lily’s pale, unconscious little face, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Lily, Mommy is going to take you away from this disgusting family. From now on, Mommy will love you with all her heart. I turned back to look at Carter, my voice dead calm. “Let’s get a divorce, Carter.” 2 As soon as the words left my mouth, the hospital room fell dead silent. Carter frowned, his fingers twitching uncontrollably. My mother’s face visibly darkened. She pointed at the unconscious Lily on the bed and screamed, “You’re taking this crippled burden with you? Who would want you after a divorce? Don’t you dare expect me to take care of you!” “I’ll take care of my own daughter,” I said calmly. “I don’t need anyone else.” I opened the door, my tone as distant as a stranger’s. “Lily needs quiet. Please leave.” Carter suddenly took a step forward and grabbed my wrist, suppressing a panic in his eyes that even he hadn’t realized was there. “Chloe, you…” Claire choked out a sob. “Chloe, are you blaming me for not taking good care of Lily?” I looked at her with bone-chilling coldness. “The kidnapper only grabbed you initially. You deliberately dragged Lily into it.” Carter’s expression instantly turned freezing. He threw my hand away and said coldly, “Absurd.” I lowered my eyes, looking at the red mark on my wrist, and gave a self-deprecating laugh. My mother pointed at me, trembling with anger. “How filthy is your heart to think something like that about your own sister?!” Claire’s eyes were red, sobbing aloud. “Chloe, I know I’ve been a burden to Carter all these years, but without him, I really wouldn’t know how to survive alone…” As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly turned and ran out of the room. Carter chased after her worriedly. “Claire…” My mother looked heartbroken. She shot me a vicious glare, grabbed me, and dragged me out after them, barking, “You must apologize to your sister and beg for her forgiveness!” I was violently dragged onto the hospital rooftop by my mother. Claire was standing on the edge of the roof, teetering on the brink. Carter stood below her. The usually calm and collected sniper was panicking for the first time, his voice trembling. “Claire, don’t be impulsive. Come down…” Seeing this, my mother burst into tears. “Claire, sweetie, come down. Mom is begging you…” She turned, violently yanked my hair, and forced me to my knees, screaming, “You cold-blooded wretch, apologize to your sister right now!” My scalp stung, and my knees slammed hard onto the concrete. The old injuries flared up, sending a wave of blinding pain through my vision. Every time I upset my sister even slightly growing up, my mother would punish me by making me kneel in the living room, regardless of who was right or wrong. Over the years, the cartilage in my knees deteriorated. Kneeling brought a piercing, bone-deep agony. The pain in my legs was so unbearable I couldn’t even stand up. I was forced to grovel on the ground. While gripping my hair, my mother cried out to Claire, “Look, sweetie! Your sister is begging on her knees for forgiveness! Come down, please?” My forehead was forced to smash against the ground, instantly breaking the skin. Blood trickled down, turning my vision red. Struggling to look up, I saw Claire glance back. The familiar, triumphant smile flashed in her eyes before she turned back and leaped off the edge without hesitation. Without thinking twice, Carter sprinted across the roof and lunged, tightly wrapping his arms around her to protect her as they fell. I stared blankly at the scene, suddenly feeling as though the howling wind on the roof had faded into nothingness. My husband was risking his life for another woman. 3 Carter and Claire landed safely on an inflatable rescue cushion. Smelling a story, the media swarmed. Since they couldn’t find any public info on Carter, they focused all their interviews on Claire. In the interview, Claire was teary-eyed, with her Gold Star family commendation plaque prominently displayed on the wall behind her. “I didn’t protect Lily… it’s all my fault…” My mother hugged her, wiping her tears. “It’s not your fault. It’s your sister who’s too cruel. It’s my fault for not raising her right.” A widowed mother raising a child alone easily garnered massive sympathy from the internet. The public immediately aimed their pitchforks at me. “Her husband died for our country, and the sister still forced her to jump off a building? Evil sisters like that should be locked up!” “Who knows how much this sister bullied her behind closed doors…” “I heard her daughter is disabled now. Karma!” Looking at these comments, my fingertips turned white as I gripped my phone. Expressionless, I closed the app. “Mommy, what’s wrong?” Lily was curled up on the bed, her little face pale. She blinked at me, her eyes full of worry. I forced a gentle smile, sat beside her, fed her some warm water, and gently stroked her head. “Mommy is fine, Lily.” Lily nodded, relieved. After struggling internally for a while, she looked up and asked softly, “Mommy, why hasn’t Daddy come to see me yet? Is it… because I look like this now, Daddy doesn’t love me anymore?” My throat choked up, and my eyes gradually turned red. I leaned down and hugged her gently. “No, no matter what happens, you are Mommy and Daddy’s most precious girl. Daddy is just too busy…” Using her good hand—the one with the IV needle—Lily gently wiped away my tears. She was impossibly mature for her age. “Don’t cry, Mommy. I don’t even miss Daddy that much. As long as I have you, I’m happy.” My tears fell uncontrollably. In all the days since she woke up, Lily hadn’t complained about the pain once. She endured it all quietly. Her only request was that Carter come see her. I closed my eyes, turned around, and went to the hallway to make a call. Because of Carter’s clearance level, every time I called him, I had to be routed through his base’s switchboard to see if he was available before they connected to his private line. And nine times out of ten, my call was rejected. Ever since I found out Claire could call Carter’s cell directly, I never called him again. The call connected quickly. Carter’s cold voice came through. “What is it?” I was a little surprised. Pursing my lips, I asked, “When can you come see Lily?” Carter wasn’t used to my tone. Around him, I used to always act sweet, dragging out my words affectionately. Not distant and icy, like I was now. Carter pursed his lips. “I’ll go over today.” He agreed quickly and cleanly. I was a little surprised again. I stayed silent for a moment, then hung up. When I turned around, Lily’s eyes were sparkling at me. I gave her a small nod. Lily let out a quiet cheer. Fighting back the sourness in my nose, I forced a smile. The two of us waited from daylight to dark. Carter never showed up. Instead, the hospital staff came to kick us out of the private room. “We’ve received orders from administration. This room needs to be vacated and cleaned immediately.” This private room was a special VIP suite Carter had requested. It provided the best medical equipment and medication in the country, which Lily desperately needed. I frantically called Carter, but no one answered. In the busy hospital corridor, I was so anxious my fingers trembled. Suddenly, a familiar set of hurried footsteps echoed. Carter was carrying Noah. He walked right past Lily and me in the hallway without a glance and anxiously stepped into the private room. Claire clicked past in her heels right beside him. As she passed us, she raised an eyebrow and smirked triumphantly. I froze in place, my blood running cold. So the room was emptied for Claire’s son.
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