Chapter 7 Lily
Liana’s phone chimed with the message. She lifted it, unlocked the screen, and read the text. A small, knowing smile tugged at the corner of her lips before she lowered the phone.
At the Stark estate Sunlight poured in through tall windows, casting a warm glow over the pristine white walls. The room was spacious yet refined, with gold-accented bookshelves neatly stacked with hardcovers. A sleek marble desk sat in the center, holding a crystal vase of fresh roses, a leather notebook, and a steaming cup of tea. Plush white armchairs with silk cushions rested near the windows, while a chandelier overhead sparkled, adding to the airy, elegant feel of the space.
Then, the older, sophisticated woman, who looked far younger than her age, glanced past the table toward the restless young girl pacing back and forth in front of her.
"Mrs. Stark!" Ellie finally turned, rushing to the table. She slumped down into a chair and whined, "Please agree to it. Please, please, please!"
Liana blinked slowly, her face calm and uninterested, as she replied in a voice as cold as ice, "Our deal was for three years. You agreed to it. You can’t back out now."
Ellie’s frustration bubbled over as she threw her hands up. "Please, Mrs. Stark, let me leave now already!" She kicked her feet out in a fit.
Liana shot her a pointed glare, making Ellie freeze. But then, Ellie quickly leaned forward, resting her arms on the table, and flashed a sweet smile.
"Mrs. Stark, look," she coaxed. "I did everything I was supposed to. And it’s just, what… six months early? It’s not that big of a deal, is it?"
"I said no," Liana repeated coolly.
Ellie hesitated, then quickly stood and began to negotiate. "Alright, our deal was that you’ll give me two million dollars after three years are over, but now I’m asking to leave early. How about you just give me one point eight million instead?”
Liana stared at her blankly.
"One point five million?" Ellie’s voice quivered, desperation creeping in.
Silence.
"Alright, fine. One million! That’s it! That’s the last I can go." Ellie slammed her hands down on the table with an absolute face.
The room echoed with a sharp screech as Liana pushed back her chair and stood. Ellie instinctively covered her ears at the sound before meeting Liana’s piercing gaze.
"The deal was for three years, Ellie." Liana’s voice rang out like a whip, sharp and commanding. She met Ellie’s gaze, "You agreed to three years. It hasn’t been three years yet. Fulfill the agreement. End of conversation. That’s your only option."
"But his lover is back!" Ellie whined, exasperated, throwing her hands up in the air. "He’s going to throw me out anyway—it’s just a matter of days, a week, maybe a month at most. He’s going to toss me out soon, so just let me leave first!"
"It doesn’t matter," Liana repeated coldly, her hands pressed firmly against the table as she leaned forward, her tone as cutting as her stare. "I don’t want Olivia anywhere near my son. She was a good child once. I watched her grow up. But now, she’s changed completely. She's become a spoiled brat. And someone like her can never be our family."
Liana leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest. "If you want your money, fulfil the deal. Stay with Sawyer for three years and pull him out of Olivia’s grip so he gives up on marrying her. That’s the only way you’ll get to leave."
"Mrs. Stark…!" Ellie cried, her voice trembling with irritation. "You’re asking for the impossible! I’m just his side chick! His main girl is back, don’t you get it? He doesn’t even care—"
"Out." Liana’s voice was soft but chilling, "My dermatologist is here. Your time is up."
Ellie's mouth dropped open in disbelief.
"Out. Now," Liana repeated, her tone firm, like she was speaking to someone who was hard of hearing.
With a frustrated pout, Ellie pushed her chair back and stood, turning to leave the room.
As she walked out, she muttered to herself, a sly smile creeping onto her face. "Mrs. Stark, since you won’t let me break the agreement, I have one option left." She glanced back at Liana, her eyes glinting with evil. "I just have to make your son break it for me. Get him to throw me out, and then you’ll have no choice but to pay me to leave him." Ellie turned and walked out the door.
Ellie stepped out of the Stark estate and climbed into the cab waiting outside. But instead of heading to Sawyer’s house, she gave the driver a different address.
The car stopped in a much darker, humbler neighborhood—nothing like the grand Stark estate. Ellie grabbed her suitcase and the food package from the back seat, then dragged her belongings up the street to a small building across from the cab.
She climbed the stairs and pulled out a key, unlocking the door. Inside, the house was dark, so she didn’t bother turning on the lights. She walked straight into the room, dragging the suitcase behind her.
Just as she entered, a comb flew through the air, narrowly missing her face. Ellie ducked just in time, and the comb struck the wall before falling to the floor.
She spun around, horror written across her face, just as the lights flicked on.
"What the hell, Lily?!" Ellie snapped, her heart pounding.
Lily, sitting on the couch with a lap full of chips in various flavors, looked up at her, wide-eyed. Her dark curls were piled messily atop her head, a few unruly strands framing her heart-shaped face. Dressed in an oversized hoodie and shorts, she exuded the effortless charm of someone who cared more about comfort than fashion.
Lily glanced at her, a hand on her chest, still recovering from her own scare. "What the hell are you doing here in the middle of the night? I thought you were a thief!" she growled, a hand clutching her chest.
"And you were going to tackle a thief with a comb, sitting on the couch, surrounded by chips?" Ellie raised an eyebrow.
“…Yes?”
"Shut up!" Ellie groaned, dragging the suitcase to the wall. She slammed the door behind her and walked over to Lily, holding out the food package. "When did you get back from the hospital?" Ellie slumped down next to Lily on the couch.
"I have a night shift today. Gotta be at the hospital by two." Lily glanced at the clock. "So, like two hours from now."
"Great," Ellie grumbled, staring at the Blackpink’s ‘Ddu-Du Ddu-Du’ music video playing on the TV. Then she turned to Lily. "Wanna eat Machoman’s food?"
Ten minutes later, the food was spread out on the table in front of the couch. Both girls sat cross-legged on the floor, stuffing their faces as Ellie filled Lily in on everything that had happened with Sawyer that day.
"That bastard," Lily muttered, tearing into a piece of garlic bread, her face twisted with anger. "Seriously. Men have no shame, no self-respect! He just ditched you the moment his lover came back? No hesitation? Not even a little 'I'll see you at home'?"
"Not even that," Ellie agreed, nodding. "He was just like, 'You’re done here. Get lost now, shoo.'"
"Bastard!" Lily growled, shaking her head. She swallowed her bite and then paused, her gaze narrowing. “By the way, aren’t you even a little upset that he dumped you aside so easily as soon as this high and mighty Olivia came back?”
Ellie froze for a moment, the food nearly getting stuck in her throat. She quickly swallowed it, then reached for her water, swallowing another gulp. Shrugging nonchalantly, she grabbed a piece of chicken and stuffed her mouth.
"Of course not," Ellie muttered, her voice flat. "Why would it bother me? I signed an agreement. He had told me that the moment his love comes back, I’m out. So, why should I care? Why should I be upset that that damn bastard threw me out like I’m some fly he’s swatting away?" She ground the last words out, but then swallowed the chicken, sitting back and glancing up at Lily. "In fact, I’m actually kinda happy he did. Otherwise, how else would I get to enjoy this grand, expensive buffet with you?"
Lily chuckled, shaking her head at Ellie’s dramatic tone.
"By the way," Ellie mumbled through a mouthful, digging into her purse. She pulled out the check Jenelia had given her and handed it over to Lily. "Use this to pay for Uncle Tony’s ventilator and medicine for the next couple of weeks."
She fished out another card with a ten-thousand-dollar balance and handed it to Lily. "There’s some money in there, too. Use it for meds or whatever else. It'll come in handy."
Lily took the check but eyed Ellie with concern. "What about you? Do you have any money on your hands?"
"Don’t worry about me," Ellie said with a toothy grin, then dipped a spoonful of sauce onto her plate. "I’m not gonna starve."
Ellie swallowed and then paused, her expression becoming more serious. "Also, I was gonna ask you something. When Uncle saved me after I got burned, did he find any pictures of what my face looked like before?"
Lily hesitated, looking down for a moment, before shaking her head. "No. When you came in, you were badly burnt. We couldn’t even tell what you looked like before. The doc did the best he could to reconstruct your face."
Ellie’s face fell slightly. She nodded. "Alright."
But then something strange happened. Ellie felt her throat constrict, as if a weight was pressing down on her chest. She looked up at Lily, and her eyes began to tear up.
She wasn’t even that sad! Why was it suddenly so hard to breathe?
"Ellie?" Lily's voice was filled with panic. Ellie blinked, her vision swimming. Her heart was racing.
"What the—" Lily’s eyes widened. She glanced frantically at the dishes on the table. "Did you eat something with nuts in it?!"
Ellie couldn’t even open her eyes anymore.
Lily jumped to her feet, running to grab the first aid kit. "I might have something for you. Wait, just hold on," she said, her voice tense, her face filled with alarm. Ellie’s eyes were watering, and she couldn’t speak. Her tongue had swollen, and her breathing had become shallow.
"Got it!" Lily cried, grabbing an epipen and rushing to Ellie’s side. She injected it into Ellie’s thigh as quickly as she could.
Minutes later, Ellie’s breathing started to steady, and the allergic reaction began to subside. The panic in the room eased as Ellie calmed, her eyes no longer swelling with tears.
Lily collapsed on the floor beside her, breathing heavily, clutching her chest. "It’s been three years!" she yelled, her voice trembling with disbelief. "Three damn years, Ellie! And your boyfriend doesn’t even know that you’re deathly allergic to nuts? Is he out of his goddamn mind?"
Ellie couldn’t answer. She lay on the floor, her eyes filled with tears. But this time, the pain wasn’t from the allergic reaction—it was something deeper, something that clenched her chest, sharper and heavier than any allergy could be. And it hurt far more than she wanted it to.
***
After Lily left for her hospital shift last night, Ellie slept like the dead. By the next day, now that she was feeling much better, she pulled out her suitcase and threw it open to grab a dress to wear. Just as she yanked the dress from the bag, a loud banging on the door made her jump.
"Ellie Madden! Come out of this house right now!" A familiar voice echoed through the apartment.
“SNS?” Ellie panicked at once. "What the hell is he doing here?!”
Instead of answering the door, Ellie bolted toward the bedroom, diving under the covers to hide. The banging stopped after a few minutes.
"Is he gone already?" Ellie whispered to herself, peeking out from under the covers.
Another bang on the door made her jolt, her heart racing. She pulled the covers tighter around her, but the next moment, Sawyer stormed through the door with a dark look on his face. He didn’t stop there. He marched right in, as if he owned the place, and headed straight for the bedroom.
Behind him was the landlord, holding a set of keys in his hands. Just as Sawyer was about to enter the bedroom, he suddenly halted and turned around, realizing the landlord was still following him.
With a sharp lift of his brow, he eyed the landlord.
"Mr. Stark, the money?" The landlord gave an awkward, sheepish smile. "I opened the door for you."
"Right," he muttered, pulling out a card and handing it to the old man. The landlord grinned, taking the card, but just as he grabbed it, Sawyer didn’t let go.
The old man looked up at Sawyer in surprise.
"This card has ten thousand dollars," Sawyer said coldly, stepping closer to him. "And ten thousand more." He paused, his voice darkening. "The extra ten thousand is for you to never do this again—never open this door for any man in exchange for money. You get it?"
The old man blinked, confusion flickering in his eyes. But then, seeing the look on Sawyer’s face, he nodded, the fear creeping into his expression.
He tried to take the card again, but Sawyer held on tighter, bending down to make sure the landlord was looking straight into his dark, menacing eyes.
"If I hear you’ve done this for anyone else, if you’ve opened the door behind that girl’s back..." Sawyer’s voice was dangerously low, "I’ll send you to live with men triple your size in jail for the rest of your life. Understand?"
The landlord scrambled back, eyes wide with fear. He nodded frantically, no longer daring to hold on to the card. "I get it. I get it," he stammered.
Satisfied, Sawyer nodded, finally letting go of the card. He tossed it at the man, who caught it just before it fell to the floor. Without another word, the landlord rushed out of the house, the door slamming behind him.
Sawyer finally turned and entered Ellie’s room.
Ellie clutched the covers tighter, pulling them up over her head in an attempt to hide.
A large, loud thud echoed through the room, followed by a swift tug that yanked the covers off her face.
"Get out of this bed. We’re going back home," Sawyer snapped, his gaze fixed on her with an annoyed intensity.
Ellie stared at him in silence for a moment, her mind racing a thousand miles a second, trying to think of how to get out of this. Then she suddenly coughed, louder this time, before pulling the duvet back over her face, trying to wriggle away from his grasp.
"No, I can't," she said, her voice weak and desperate. "Please, don't make me, Sawyer." She coughed again for extra effect.
"You are going to get out of this bed. Or I’ll drag you out, and I’m not going to make it look pretty."
Ellie shot him a quick scowl, but the very next moment, she replaced it with a sad expression, her eyes looking sickly and her face pale. She slowly sat up, blanket on her head and body, only face showing, hands clutching the blanket’s edges to the neck. Taking a deep breath, she covered her eyes with a hand, letting out a soft sob.
"Sawyer…" she muttered, her voice wavering with faux sadness. "Now that things have come to this, I’m not going to hide it anymore. The truth is, I left Stark house because I’m not going to live much longer." She paused, letting her words sink in. "I have very little time left."
Sawyer’s confused frown deepened. "What are you saying?" He leaned closer, his voice softening. "What’s going on? Are you sick?"
Ellie nodded, her hand lowering to reveal her pitiful gaze, tears swimming in her eyes. "Sawyer, I… I am going to die soon. The doctor said I only have a few weeks to live. Instead of giving you pain and wasting your money, I’m just going to go abroad and live there until I… well, until the end of my life."
Sawyer’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t look sick from anywhere. Her face was rosy, eyes clean and white, nose the same. His anger rose. "You’re not sick. Get out of this bed right now."
Ellie coughed again, this time looking up at him with a defeated expression. "Why don’t you get it? I’m telling you, I have a terminal illness! The doctor said I should enjoy my last few days. And anyway…" She sighed, her voice dripping with fake sorrow, "Your girlfriend’s already back. You won’t need me anymore, so why waste your time on someone like me?"
Sawyer looked up at the ceiling, then back at her, his voice calm but barely restrained. "Ellie, you aren’t sick!"
"I am sick!" Ellie snapped, her voice rising. "I have a deadly illness!"
Sawyer crossed his arms, a cold, skeptical look on his face. "You don’t look sick from where I’m standing."
Ellie pressed her lips together, trying to keep her act up. "It’s not something you can see. The doctor said I have a very serious condition. I have rhinopharyngitis!" She gasped dramatically. “And it’s very serious! Last stage."
Sawyer stared at her for a long, calculating moment, his gaze fixed as if he were counting down from ten in his head to calm his unnerved nerves. Then, his eyes narrowed into a glare.
"So a fucking cold? That’s your ‘last stage’ illness?"
Ellie’s eyes widened in surprise. She blinked rapidly, cursing under her breath. ‘God damn it,’ she thought. ‘It didn’t even take him a Google search to catch me?’
Ellie’s gaze flicked past Sawyer. Her suitcase was still leaning against the wall. If she made a dash now and ran at full speed, maybe—
Before she could act, a hand gripped her waist, another one wrapped around her neck, and the next moment, she was tossed over a muscular shoulder, blanket thrown aside.
“Hey! Put me down!”
A loud swat to her ass made her flinch, and before she could react, two more followed, leaving her in shock.
“Shut the fuck up!” Sawyer growled, marching out of the house with her.
“I’m telling the truth!” Ellie’s voice rose in desperation. “I was really, really sick! You don’t believe me, but I even had to get a shot because I couldn’t breathe!”
She quickly grabbed the syringe off the top of the suitcase as he was carrying her out to show it to him.
"Ellie, shut it!" Sawyer snapped, his voice cutting through the air. "Enough with your tantrums."
"Why aren’t you listening to me? I told you—put me down!" She slapped his back, her frustration boiling over. "How many times do I have to repeat myself?"
Another few swats on her ass had her immediately shutting up.