Chapter 4

The afternoon was packed with surgeries and consultations.

Margaret and Tyler remained camped out on the benches in the hospital lobby.

Right before my shift ended, I received a call from the mayor of my hometown.

"Chloe, did your mother go to the city to find you?"

Mayor Davis lowered his voice over the phone.

"I'm only telling you this because you always send free medical supplies and charity checkups to the elderly back in our town. Don't let them trick you. Your mother didn't go to the city because she's broke."

I tightened my grip on the phone. "Mayor Davis, please tell me."

"Two months ago, the city bought our old neighborhood for redevelopment. Your family's old house was bought out by the developers."

"The first buyout check of $600,000 was wired to your mother's account weeks ago!"

Mayor Davis let out a long sigh.

"But your brother is a gambling addict. He got mixed up with some dangerous loan sharks and owed them a fortune. They threatened his life right at their doorstep."

"Tyler forced your mother to hand over the entire $600,000 to clear his debts. Once the money was gone, he complained that her back pain was too much of a burden. So, he drove her to the city overnight and dumped her on you to get rid of her!"

I hung up, and everything clicked.

They had squandered $600,000. Now that the old woman was broke and sick, they wanted to dump her on me.

How convenient.

As I was changing out of my scrubs, the door to the break room was pushed open.

Tyler walked in, accompanied by a heavy-set, middle-aged man. It was my Uncle Richard, a distant relative from our hometown.

Richard immediately assumed the role of the family patriarch, pointing a finger at me and lecturing:

"Chloe! What was that stunt you pulled in the lobby today? Airing your family's dirty laundry like that? Where is your respect for your mother?"

I looked at him coldly. "Richard, family drama is dirty laundry. But publicly defaming me to extort money is a crime."

"How dare you talk back to me!" Richard slammed his fist on a table, spitting out his toxic, backward logic. "In our town, the family property goes to the son, and the daughter is solely responsible for the parents' medical bills and funeral! That is how things are done!"

"You're successful now. You must carry the family load!"

Tyler, feeling empowered by Richard's presence, drew a "Support Responsibility Agreement" from his pocket and slapped it onto the table.

"Look closely!" Tyler sneered, tapping the paper.

"This legal document states that from now on, Chloe Vance will fully cover all of Margaret Vance's living expenses, medical bills, and nursing home fees!"

I glanced at the paper. My eyes locked onto a line written in tiny font near the bottom.

The clause required me to pay Tyler an additional $5,000 per month as a "caregiving fee."

"Do you honestly think that if you print something on a piece of paper, robbery suddenly becomes legal?" I asked.

Margaret was wheeled into the room, sobbing: "Chloe, I'm dying... Your brother needs to get married, and he's under so much pressure. You make so much money, why can't you just help him?"

Tyler stepped closer, leaning over my desk threateningly.

"Chloe, I'm telling you. If you don't sign this today, I will hire ten elderly people to book your appointments every single day starting tomorrow!"

"They will occupy every slot, scream, and make a scene in your clinic. Let's see how you get your promotion then. I will ruin your career!"

Richard pushed a pen toward me. "Sign it and put your thumbprint down! Don't be ungrateful!"

I looked at the three of them. I didn't touch the pen, and I didn't lose my temper.

I stepped back as my phone vibrated in my pocket.

I pulled it out. It was a text notification from the Land Registry Bureau.

Looking at the confirmation message, I let out a quiet sigh of relief and put my phone away.

My trap was set.