Awake Under the Scalpel: My Ex-Husband's Crematorium

"Actually, Dr. Davenport," the deep voice echoed from the corridor. "My client won't be signing anything today."

The man in the black trench coat stepped into the room.

I held up my hand, stopping him before he could cross the threshold.

"Wait outside," I told the stranger.

The man raised an eyebrow, his gray eyes sweeping over the shattered porcelain and pooled broth on the tiles. "Are you sure?"

"Five minutes," I insisted.

He nodded once and pulled the heavy oak door shut behind him.

Vincent ignored the interruption. He wiped a stray drop of soup from his lapel and fixed his stare on me. Disgust twisted his features.

"Look at yourself," Vincent sneered. "You act like a vulgar shrew. Isabella dragged her pregnant belly all the way to this ward just to care for you, and you assault her?"

Isabella whimpered, resting a hand on the swollen curve of her stomach. She hid behind his broad shoulders.

I stared at them. The final ember of my love for this man burned out, leaving only cold ash in my chest.

"Care for me?" I asked, my voice dangerously flat. "She brought me black-market serum bought with Davenport money. Money that should have saved my grandfather."

"She needs it for the baby," Vincent snapped.

"Your brother's baby," I mocked.

"My baby," he corrected, his tone dropping to a lethal whisper.

I gripped the edge of the mattress. "You married me, Vincent. Why? If you wanted her, why drag me to a Tuscan castle and vow to spend your life with me?"

A cruel smile touched his lips. "You really want to know about our wedding night?"

My stomach plummeted.

"The emergency call," I said. "The cross-border surgery in Milan. You left me in my gown."

"There was no surgery," he stated.

The room spun. I dug my fingernails into my palms to stay anchored. "Where were you?"

"Next door," Isabella piped up, her doe eyes shedding fresh tears. "I missed Victor so much. The castle reminded me of him. I took a razor to my wrists."

Vincent wrapped an arm around her waist. "I found her bleeding in the bathtub. She was broken, Serena. She needed a reason to live."

"So you gave her one," I guessed, nausea rising in my throat.

"I had to comfort her," Vincent said. "We slept together. It was the only way to pull her back from the edge."

"You fucked my best friend on our wedding night to cure her depression?" I laughed. The sound scraped out of my throat, harsh and entirely devoid of humor.

"It worked," Isabella whispered.

"I sat on the edge of our bridal bed until dawn," I told him, ignoring her. "I kept calling your phone. It went straight to voicemail."

"I turned the device off," Vincent replied.

"While you were inside her."

"I am practical," he said, stepping closer to the bed. His shadow fell over me. "And I am done playing house with you."

"Then divorce me. Give me my shares and let me go."

"You aren't getting a dime," he replied. "Tomorrow, the hospital board will release a statement. I am accepting a long-term, highly classified medical research position at Johns Hopkins University."

"A cover story," I realized.

"A necessary exit," he agreed. "Dr. Vincent Davenport will fade from the public eye. Meanwhile, a miracle will occur in Europe."

Isabella stroked her belly, a triumphant gleam replacing her tears.

"Victor will be found," Vincent continued. "He survived the yacht explosion. He suffered amnesia, but his memory finally returned."

"You're going to impersonate your dead twin brother," I said.

"We share the same DNA," he pointed out. "The same face. The board will welcome Victor back with open arms. And shortly after his miraculous return, he will marry his grieving widow in a grand, century-defining wedding."

"And the baby," I murmured, staring at Isabella's stomach.

"Will be Victor's legitimate child," Vincent finished. "The undisputed first-in-line heir to the Davenport empire."

I shook my head, trying to process the sheer scale of his deception. "The family will demand a paternity test."

"Let them," Vincent challenged. "My DNA matches Victor's perfectly. No one will ever question it."

"What about me?" I asked. "I'm still your wife."

"You are Vincent's wife," he corrected. "And Vincent is leaving you because you lost your mind. The press will have a field day. The barren, hysterical woman who went insane from infertility and drove away her medical genius husband."

"I am not barren! You tied my tubes!"

"Who will believe you?" he mocked. "I am the chief of surgery. Your medical records already reflect a history of severe paranoia and postpartum psychosis."

He picked up the psychiatric hold order from my blanket and tossed it onto my lap.

"You will be locked in the psych ward," Vincent promised. "Your social standing will turn to dust. You will be a pariah in every elite circle. Sign the shares over to Isabella, and I might ensure your cell has a window."

I looked down at the paper. My name was already typed on the dotted line. They had planned my destruction down to the last detail.

Isabella stepped out from behind him. She didn't look fragile anymore.

"Don't fight it, Serena," she advised, her tone laced with fake sympathy. "You always were the weak one. Just disappear quietly."

I ripped the psychiatric hold order in half.

Then I tore it again.

I threw the confetti of shredded paper directly into Vincent's face.

"I will burn your empire to the ground," I vowed.

Vincent brushed a piece of paper from his cheek. His eyes turned murderous.

"Nurses!" he shouted toward the hallway. "Get the sedatives! The patient is having a violent episode!"

Footsteps hammered against the corridor tiles. Two burly orderlies rushed into the room, holding thick leather restraints.

"Hold her down," Vincent commanded.

They lunged for the bed.

Before their hands could touch me, the heavy oak door slammed against the wall, cracking the plaster.

The man in the black trench coat strode back in. He didn't look at the orderlies. He didn't look at Vincent.

He walked straight to my bedside, pulled a gold-plated pen from his pocket, and handed it to me.

"I believe my five minutes are up," the lawyer stated.

Vincent glared at the intruder. "Who the hell are you?"

The man finally turned his head. His gray eyes locked onto my husband.

"I am the man who owns this hospital," he said smoothly. "And as of three minutes ago, I am also her new husband."