All I Ask Is a Quiet Life

Celeste moved out of the master bedroom that very night. She took nothing but her identification and essential documents, leaving even her clothes behind. She told the housekeeper to throw out all of her belongings to make way for Winona.

She felt more exhausted than ever when she settled down in the guest room. She didn't even have the strength to go to the hospital. All she did was collapse on the bed, falling asleep almost immediately.

However, she woke up in the middle of the night with a heavy head. She felt like she was burning all over, almost like she was being roasted over a fire. This evidently wasn't the right way to feel when fall had already arrived.

Celeste realized something was wrong and cracked her eyes open with difficulty. To her surprise, she saw Terence sitting by her bed and carefully tending to the burns on her arms.

He glanced at her when he noticed she was awake. Then, he picked up a pill from the bedside table and held it to her lips, making her take it with water. "Your wounds are inflamed, and you're burning up. Take something for the fever before going back to sleep."

There was the slightest hint of worry in his low voice. After she swallowed the pill, he added, "Winona got you the medication, so stop picking on her from now on. Take it and get some rest."

This was the first time since they'd married that Terence had cared for Celeste when she'd fallen sick, but it was just to tell her not to go against Winona.

Celeste hadn't even done anything wrong. But so what? Winona was all he cared about.

Celeste felt a deep sense of bitterness surge in her. Her consciousness slowly blurred, and she wanted to go back to sleep, hoping the dizziness would soon pass. However, her body was still burning, and it was getting worse with every passing second. Her eyelids were heavy; she couldn't even open them.

She lay there, fighting with herself for a long time before finally managing to crack her eyes open again. She mustered all her strength to prop herself up in bed. She felt her neck to find that it was blazing hot. She dragged herself to the mirror to see that her eyes were bloodshot from the fever.

Not only had her fever not broken, but it had gotten worse. She knew she couldn't drag this out any longer, so she stumbled toward the door.

Something occurred to her when she got there, so she turned back to grab the bottle of fever medicine on her bedside table.

By the time Celeste got to the hospital, her fever had already spiked to 104 Fahrenheit. She could barely breathe; the medical personnel immediately wheeled her into the ER.

A doctor arranged for her to be hospitalized. Her blood was drawn for further tests, and the burns on her arms were tended to. Her fever finally broke and subsided after being put on IV drips throughout the night.

The doctor asked sternly, "What were you thinking? How could you not have put anything on your burns when they were so badly inflamed? And how could you take just about anything for your fever? Do you have a death wish?"

Celeste frowned, and her heart sank. "Wait, you said I didn't do anything to my burns? But they were tended to. And the medication I took was given to me by my family. How did I end up like this?"

As she asked that, a guess formed in her mind. Her gaze darkened, and she pursed her lips as she retrieved the bottle of fever medicine she'd brought from home. She handed it to the doctor and said, "This is what was given to me. Isn't it supposed to help with the fever?"

He took it and checked the label seriously. Then, his expression turned grim. "This is ridiculous! This is a government-restricted drug! Not only will it not help bring your fever down, but it can even poison your kidneys and cause internal bleeding! Whoever gave you this was trying to kill you!"

Celeste stared at the prescription bottle, feeling like her fever was making a comeback after having just subsided. The heat made her fingers go numb.

Soon, her phone buzzed. It was a message from Terence, but when she opened it, she found a video from Winona instead. In it, Winona grinned and asked, "Are you having a nice stay in the hospital after taking what I gave you, Celeste? I bought it just for you, you know. I guarantee your heart will feel like it's on a roller-coaster ride after you take it!

"Oh, and I also gave you the wrong thing for your burns. Instead of burn ointment, a moisturizer was applied to them. You'd better treat them soon, or you'll be left with scars!"

Celeste wanted to save the video as evidence, but it was deleted before she could. She knew Terence had done it—he was afraid she would go after Winona and force her to take responsibility.

She curled her lip mockingly and lowered her gaze while taking a deep breath. Then, she called the police. "Hi, I'd like to report someone for attempted murder."

She drifted off to sleep again after calling the police. When she next woke up, it was due to the incessant ringing of her phone. Terence was the one calling.

She knew what he wanted, but she didn't have the strength to argue with him. She was about to block his number when her phone rang again. This time, the call was from Hayden. She answered it.

"Celeste, the immigration papers are already being processed. It'll take about half a month. I've already bought my flight ticket back so I can pick you up. Are you ready to go?"

A slightly nervous tone replaced his usual relaxed drawl. Perhaps he was afraid she would change her mind.

She smiled faintly when she sensed his caution and said, "Yeah, I am. Don't worry, Hayden. I won't change my mind. I'm definitely leaving after I deal with things here."

The ward door swung open as soon as the words were out of her mouth. Terence stood there, his expression stormy. "You're leaving? Where do you think you're going? I won't let you go anywhere before this matter with Winona is resolved!"