She Bet on My Death

My wife, Camilla Fender, who was also the richest person in Jaxonville, had just given birth. Meanwhile, I, Frank Langley, was dragged into a survival game. With our baby strapped to my back, I ran through the woods for my life. I then heard Camilla's best friend's voice coming through the loudspeaker. "Camilla, why aren't you staying at the hospital with Frank to recover after giving birth? Why did you come here? Is your lover throwing another tantrum?" Camilla chuckled. Her voice was filled with helpless affection. "Yeah. Jack insisted on coming to watch this circus show. Frank thought I had business to handle, so he even pushed me to come back here when our child's surgery was happening. He's ridiculously foolish." I desperately slammed against the surveillance camera to try to get Camilla's attention and ask for help, but because Jack Solomon screamed in fright, she simply pressed the punishment button in her hand. An electric current coursed through my entire body. My son coughed up blood, and the blood splattered all over the ground. I curled up with tears streaming down my face. As the footsteps of the people hunting us grew closer and closer, the survival game reached its climax. Everyone was gambling on who would survive until the end. Only Camilla's voice remained cold. "I'm betting a million dollars that the crazy father and his son will die!" Chapter 1 Everyone burst into laughter and shook their heads. In their eyes, this was a bet I had no chance of winning. I could barely move, and I was carrying my son on my back. How could I possibly escape the hyenas and the young, strong survival game NPC? But Camilla didn't care at all. She pushed her chips forward. "One million dollars. For Jack's entertainment." "Camilla, you're so generous! You're willing to bet a million dollars for your lover like it's nothing. Wasn't that wedding ring you gave Frank back then only worth 100 dollars? If he knew about this, he'd probably bawl his eyes out! Haha!" Camilla lit a cigar for Jack and spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "A lover is meant to be spoiled. Frank has always been sensible and frugal. Giving him a supplementary card was enough to make him happy." Listening to her voice, I couldn't make it match the woman in my memories. The woman who once loved me more than anything would never say all this. We had been together for eight years. I watched her transform from a poor college student into the richest woman in Jaxonville. When she proposed to me, she went down on one knee and held out a 100-dollar ring. Before she could even say a word, she was already crying so hard she could barely keep herself upright. In the end, I was the one who leaned in and kissed her first. I laughed and told her I would marry her while reaching out to let her put the ring on my finger. I thought I had the kind of love everyone envied. I never imagined she had been keeping a lover for five years. To make sure the one-million-dollar bet was worth it, the survival game NPC covered my head with a hood. They grabbed the rope around my neck and lifted me completely off the ground. All my data was displayed to the cameras from all directions. I hung there half-dead with my feet dangling in the air like a broken doll. Below me was a horrifying pool of red. The host projected the data panel onto the giant screen and let out a surprised gasp. "Two hearts. That's incredibly rare. Two hearts beating as one. That's a perfect symbol of eternal love." Through the hood, I saw Camilla's expression change. She loosened her arm around Jack slightly. I thought she had recognized me. A wave of bitterness surged through my chest. But the next second, she smiled. "I thought Frank was already rare enough. I never expected to find someone with the exact same condition." Watching her slowly lean back into her seat, I felt completely hopeless. With all my remaining strength, I made a hand gesture. It was the gesture we created the first time I got lost at an amusement park. Back then, Camilla looked at me with endless tenderness. "Frank, if you ever get lost again, just make this gesture. Even if you're wearing a costume mask in a crowd, I'll recognize you instantly!" When I finally used that gesture for real, her eyes were filled with disgust. Without hesitation, she ordered them to break my fingers. "That gesture belongs only to Frank! You're already in this pathetic state, and you still want to pretend to be him to seduce me! "Put two more hyenas in there. I want him to learn his lesson!" The hyenas sank their filthy fangs into all parts of my body. I shielded my son while screaming and rolling on the ground. Blood trailed behind us. Camilla's best friend cheered the loudest. Her voice was full of envy. "I'm telling you, Frank is the luckiest man alive. You've treated him so well all these years. He has to be the happiest man in Jaxonville! "This cripple isn't nearly as lucky. He ended up with a terrible wife. He can only blame himself." Chapter 2 In the darkness, I forced a bitter smile. No one knew that the person on stage, who was nestling in Jack's arms and trying to kill me, was my wife. All I could do was watch helplessly. The woman who had hugged me that morning and swore she would give me everything I ever wanted repeatedly confessed her love for Jack in front of everyone. The hyenas were getting dangerously close to my throat. In a daze, I thought I saw the Grim Reaper waving at me. Just when I thought I was about to die, Jack's voice came from the audience. "I changed my mind. I want to try something more interesting. "Since he's going to die anyway, Honey, why don't we guess if his and his son's hearts are symmetrical?" Jack's cruel voice blasted through the speakers and rang in my ears. Camilla frowned. I thought she had remembered our promise. For our child's heart separation surgery today, she had once traveled to the most famous church to pray. She had prayed for our child and promised she would never break her vow when it came to him. The rosary beads were still wrapped around her wrist, but she reached out and affectionately ruffled Jack's hair. Her voice was sickeningly sweet. "Fine. Whatever you want. As long as you're happy!" Through the soaked hood, all the blood in my body turned cold. When it came to Jack, Camilla really could abandon all her principles. My son and I were soon dragged onto the operating table via thick ropes. Jack sneered as he lifted the hood and spat on my face. "Too bad. She didn't even recognize you, and she didn't keep her promise to you either!" Seeing me stare at his shoes through the gap, Jack deliberately lifted his foot and kicked the operating table. "Did you have a good look? Every gift you ever received, Camilla bought two of each! After you die, I'll be the only one left! "You don't know this, do you? Every night she claimed she was on a business trip, she was actually playing romantic card games with me. "When your father died on an operating table because there were no doctors available, my dog happened to get sick. She felt sorry for my dog and gathered every doctor to give it end-of-life care." Every word felt like a stab to my heart. In the end, the pain swallowed me completely. Blood was gushing non-stop from the puncture wounds on my body. The doctor lined up the scalpel over my chest but hesitated to slice through. He looked at Camilla, who was walking toward us. "Ms. Fender, this is too dangerous. If anything goes wrong–" A trace of hesitation flashed through Camilla's eyes. Jack suddenly cried out, "Honey, this jerk scratched me! What if he has some kind of disease? Hmph–" Under Camilla's worried gaze, he put down his hand. There were a few red scratch marks he had made on himself. There wasn't even any blood, but Camilla instantly lost her temper. She slapped me hard across the face. "How dare you hurt Jack? Proceed with the procedure. Don't use any anesthesia! I want to see how tough he really is!" She stared at me coldly through the hood. I looked at my three teeth that had fallen onto the ground. My heart sank. Jack held Camilla in his arms. When nobody noticed, he looked at me with a cocky smile. "Sorry, sir." The doctor placed the anesthesia back onto the tray. He then said softly in a sympathetic voice, "Don't blame me. I'll finish as quickly as possible and try to make it hurt less." The moment the cold scalpel went through, I felt an excruciating pain. I couldn't hold back anymore and let out a horrifying scream. Through my endless cries of agony, the rosary beads around Camilla's wrist snapped off one by one. She suddenly turned around and looked at me. "W-Why does he sound so much like Frank?" I struggled to look up. I lifted up my trembling hand to reach for the hem of Camilla's shirt, but Jack stepped forward with a shocked expression and stood between us. "I can't believe it. He actually imitated Frank's voice just to seduce you!" Chapter 3 "That's terrifying!" The suspicion in Camilla's eyes was instantly replaced by deep disgust. She grabbed the cotton filling from the hospital bed and shoved it forcefully into my mouth. My eyes widened. I struggled desperately with every bit of strength I had left. Such tiny fluff entering one's airway would be unbearable even for a healthy person, and I had severe asthma. But the only thing waiting for me was another slap. Camilla's eyes were ice-cold. Yet the moment her phone rang, her expression changed into one of pure joy. "Is Frank missing? He must have gone into the operating room with our son! "Quick! Buy every high-end infant surgical care product in all of Jaxonville! Book the 300-thousand-dollar recovery center in advance too! This is wonderful. My son will finally become a normal child soon!" Camilla trembled with excitement. She never even noticed the person lying right in front of her was me, her husband. The dying baby beside me was her beloved son. The scalpel sliced through my flesh layer by layer, and my breathing grew weaker and weaker. To keep me alive, the doctor clenched his jaw and injected adrenaline into my body repeatedly. The pain eventually became unbearable. I was losing my mind. It felt like my soul had already drifted away from my body. My son's cries brought me back. I heard Jack click his tongue. "Unexpectedly, they're not symmetrical." My son's chest was exposed, and blood gushed out from his mouth. He made whimpering sounds like a kitten, but Jack covered his mouth and suffocated him. Jack casually tossed him onto the cold operating table like a useless piece of trash. Jack raised his eyebrows. "Tell everyone that they were perfectly symmetrical. I have to win this round." I looked at my child's tightly closed eyes. It almost seemed like he was only sleeping. My heart ached so much that I coughed up blood. In the darkness, the only thing replaying in my mind was Camilla's joyful expression. She and I got married young. We had spent eight years together as a married couple. This year, we finally had a baby. Camilla treasured our son deeply. Countless times, she had placed her hand over her belly to feel our baby's heartbeat. "Honey, we finally have a baby. Whether it's a boy or a girl, they'll be my only heir. "If it's a boy and he looks like you, I'll teach him horseback riding and archery. "If it's a girl, I'll make sure she feels like the princess of Jaxonville!" Only now did I understand that everything she said was a lie. Camilla was still thinking about what gifts to buy for our baby. She didn't even spare a glance at our son who had died silently in front of her. She only focused on giving instructions to her assistant over the phone. "Go to the church outside the city and pray for my husband and my baby's safety!" Her gaze landed on the broken rosary beads. For some reason, a feeling of unease rose in her chest. "Get me another set of rosary beads too. I want my child to be protected from all harm!" I stared at Camilla's face. The irony was absurd. 'Unfortunately, this time, the rosary beads couldn't protect your child. They won't be able to protect me either.' The monitor beside my bed started blaring, but Camilla only hugged Jack and walked away. She didn't even look back. The doctor helplessly walked past me. After a while, he actually returned. It seemed like he had fought a long internal battle. "I'm a doctor. I can't watch someone die without helping. Consider it as me doing something good for the child my wife is carrying." He wrapped my child up and placed him into my arms. He then dragged me out of the operating room and called an ambulance. As my stretcher moved past Camilla, my hand went limp and dropped down amidst the jostling. The silver ring engraved with a viburnum flower shone brightly under the sunlight. Camilla suddenly narrowed her eyes. "Wait a second!" She had carved that viburnum flower on the ring. It happened on the day I accepted her proposal. She had hugged me with tears in her eyes. "Frank, the viburnum flower represents my everlasting love for you." My heart thumped. I thought she finally recognized me. To my surprise, she covered Jack's eyes when she saw my body covered in blood. "Don't look. It's disgusting." She then ordered for the stretcher to turn around and leave through another route. I watched Camilla's side profile. My heart was filled with endless sorrow. Camilla, who once promised she would recognize me in a crowd and said she would follow me to the ends of the world, never once recognized me. Chapter 4 The baby she had looked forward to so much was cruelly killed by her own hands. The moment we went in opposite directions, the last trace of love I had for Camilla disappeared. Taking the detour almost doubled the time. After the ambulance finally picked me up, it was again blocked by Camilla's convoy ahead. The young nurse looked at my rapidly dropping blood pressure. She jumped out and shouted desperately. "Someone is dying! Move out of the way!" Jack and Camilla stayed where they were. "It's my son's surgery today. Jack was right. We can't let someone else's bad luck ruin my son's good fortune!" Jack said this, and Jack said that. Everything was up to Jack. Was whatever Jack said a royal decree? He wanted her to kill our baby, so she killed him. He wanted her to block bad luck, and so she did. A sense of anger rose from deep within my chest. It stabbed through me like a knife. I struggled to sit up. I then screamed with all the strength I had left. "Camilla, you wretch!" The woman who heard her name turned around with a dark expression. She kicked the ambulance and made it shake violently. "Shut up! If you use Frank's voice to call me again, I'll kill you!" I fell from the stretcher. I lay there with a blank expression. My entire body had already gone numb from the pain. Eight years ago, the person who rushed me to the hospital during my asthma attack and fought to save my life was her. Now, the person blocking my way and cutting off my only chance to survive was also her. It was the same person and the same situation, but the person standing next to her had changed. I lost the will to survive. 'If you want my life, then take it.' By the time the ambulance reached the hospital, I had already gone into shock from blood loss. My breathing could stop at any moment. Doctors ran through the hospital with blood bags. Only after fresh blood was transfused into my body did the numbers on the monitor finally stabilize. The doctors collectively sighed in relief. They were about to stitch up my wounds, but the operating room door was suddenly slammed open. It was Camilla again. She looked down at me from above. It looked like she was inspecting a pig carcass at the butcher's. "I want one of his hearts. To prevent any accidents during my son's surgery, I'll buy it at a high price!" As expected, it was Jack's idea again. Through blurry eyes, I looked at my son wrapped in a white cloth by the nurse. My teeth chattered uncontrollably. Camilla pulled out a case of money and poured it all onto me. "Lower-class people like you only care about money, don't you? Is 100 thousand dollars enough? It's not?" She retrieved another case and poured all the money onto me. "Let's make it 200 thousand dollars!" The light pieces of paper covered my body, but they felt like a crushing weight that could kill me. After a long silence, I used all my strength and nodded. "Okay." I couldn't stop wondering. If Camilla knew the heart she was taking belonged to me, and the baby who needed it was already dead, what kind of expression would she have on her face? The doctor still wanted to persuade her otherwise, but Camilla had already dragged the cold storage box with my heart away. "The deal is done. Whether he survives or not has nothing to do with me." The moment the operating room door closed, I heard her calling Jack. "Thank goodness I had you. Now my child is completely safe. "Once I get through this critical period with the child, I'll come back and spoil you rotten. Be good." I laughed bitterly and slowly closed my eyes amidst the ever-spreading pool of blood. Outside the operating room, Camilla suddenly felt a sharp pain in her chest. At that moment, her assistant appeared. Camilla softened her expression. "Did you find which operating room it is? Let's hurry and wait outside!" Her assistant didn't dare look up. Fear filled his eyes. He stood still and didn't dare to move. Just as Camilla was about to lose her patience, her assistant finally spoke in a trembling voice. "O-Operating Room Three. I-It's this one." Camilla suddenly looked up. The light above Operating Room Three went out.