To Guard The Wrong Woman

I screamed, my voice raw with all the resentment I’d swallowed for years. My tears streamed into my mouth, leaving only the taste of bitterness.

I thought that after everything that had happened, Julian would finally see Cassidy for who she truly was.

To my shock, he snapped, "Cassidy told me you were jealous—that you drove off the mountain on purpose to kill her. I didn't want to believe it, but I guess it's true. Genevieve, how could you be so vicious? My family was right, you are cold-blooded. I'm utterly disappointed in you!"

After he finished, he hung up.

What kind of sane person would orchestrate a car crash at the cost of their own life?

I called him again and again, refusing to give up. No answer. Then, the calls stopped going through. He had blocked me.

His cruelty was a physical blow, igniting a firestorm of fury and heartbreak inside me.

As emotions crashed over me, I coughed up a large mouthful of blood, splattering it across my phone and the hospital bed. The metallic scent filled my nose, and the sting of betrayal burned even deeper.

The hallway erupted in a cacophony of urgent voices. Shouts and running footsteps surrounded me as the medical staff rushed me back into the operating room.

Just as the doors closed, I caught a glimpse of Julian by a window at the end of the hall, embracing Cassidy like a pair of passionate lovers.

She tilted her head up to kiss him.

In that instant, my hands, my feet—my heart—all turned to ice.

"...bleeding internally again!"

"...might not be able to save her..."

The voices of the medical staff blurred into a meaningless drone in my ears.

The pain was unbearable, excruciating. Perhaps death would be less painful than this.

Suddenly, I remembered Julian's harsh words, Cassidy's triumphant smile, and the image of them kissing outside my operating room.

This couldn't be the end. I wasn't ready to die.

I had to live—if only to get justice for myself.

Over the next two weeks, I was in and out of the ICU three times. Somehow, I pulled through. Even the doctors called it a miracle.

But during my two months in the hospital, Julian never visited. Not a single phone call, not a single text message.

When I was finally discharged, I went straight to our penthouse in Seattle.

After two months away, the place was unrecognizable. The house was littered with women's clothes and shoes, none of them mine.

My collection of art and architectural models was piled in a corner like trash. My study had been converted into Cassidy's livestreaming studio.

And in my bedroom, on the nightstand, was an intimate photo of Julian and Cassidy.

Just when I thought I had seen the depths of their shamelessness, they always found new ways to sink lower.

I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood.

Julian wasn't home, and my number was still blocked. Calling was pointless, so I had no choice but to drive to his AI lab at Pacific Northwest University.

On the way, I dialed 911. "I need to report the Aspen incident," I told the operator, my voice steady. "It wasn't an accident. It was attempted murder. Cassidy Wells grabbed the steering wheel. I need officers to meet me at the Pacific Northwest University AI lab to take her into custody."

I arrived at the lab and was stopped by security at the entrance. "I'm sorry, Ms. Sterling, but your access card has been deactivated."

"That's impossible. I'm part of Julian Thorne's research team. The card must be malfunctioning. Just call him."

The security guard had seen me countless times, so he agreed and called Julian. After a brief conversation, he handed the phone to me.

Julian's voice was cold and distant. "You haven't shown up for two months. Did you think the AI project would just wait for you?"

I clutched the phone. "Julian, that's an incredibly heartless thing to say. I almost died! I was in the hospital for two months!"

"You brought that on yourself. You hurt Cassidy. You're off the project. Cassidy is taking your place. The entire AI framework you designed? It's hers now. Consider it a debt repaid."

I had an Ivy League master's degree in architecture, and he was replacing me with a sophomore. The audacity!

A furious retort died on my lips as he hung up.

A moment later, Cassidy had the gall to send me a selfie of herself in my bathrobe, with a text that read: ‘I’m taking your man, your AI project, and your money... Genevieve, you should’ve known this was coming the day you decided to humiliate me with your charity bullshit!’

Before I could even finish reading, she retracted the message.

She had once knelt before me, tears streaming down her face, lamenting her family's poverty and begging my foundation to fund her tuition. That was why I had decided to help her.

She had claimed her clothes were so worn that people mocked her, so I took her to Fifth Avenue and let her pick out whatever she wanted.

I even gave her my barely used, latest model MacBook Pro when she said she couldn't afford a computer.

And now, all of that was twisted into a deliberate humiliation.

I scowled, my thumb hovering over the button to delete this vile woman from my life.

But before I could, a message from Julian came through: ‘Are you trying to kick Cassidy off the project? Let me make this clear, Genevieve. As long as I'm here, you won't lay a finger on her. And don't even think about rejoining my AI project. You don't deserve to be a part of it.’

Just minutes ago, I’d considered leaving them a shred of dignity. Now? That consideration was gone.

If they were going to act so shamelessly, then any humiliation they faced from here on out was entirely their own doing.

Just then, the police arrived, and I walked in with them.

The moment Cassidy saw me, a flicker of panic crossed her face, and she shrank behind Julian. "Julian, G-Genevieve is here..." she stammered, as if I were some kind of monster.

Julian fell for her act, hook, line, and sinker.

He rushed over, shielding her. "What are you doing here? Get out now, or I'm calling security!"

He even tried to shove me, but an officer at my side quickly intervened.

I stood beside the officer and announced, "I'm here to press charges. Cassidy Wells committed aggravated assault in Aspen. And you're harboring her while trying to threaten me, the victim? Are you trying to get charged with obstruction, Julian?"