After All the Hurt, She Chose Herself novel Chapter 256

Aria's face was completely red.

How was she supposed to answer that?

Anything she said would sound incredibly awkward...

Raphael let out a soft laugh and didn't press her for an answer. He gripped the steering wheel and casually changed the subject. "Seatbelt."

Aria quickly pulled the strap across her chest and clicked it in.

The atmosphere inside the car slowly thickened with a heavy, quiet tension.

Aria grabbed her phone, desperate to find something to do.

She absentmindedly opened her social media app, and a direct message immediately caught her eye.

It was from a patient asking if there was any alternative method to alleviate her condition.

Since the app only allowed one initial message from a stranger, the woman had attached a photo of her medical records covered in densely packed text.

Aria read through it carefully, word by word.

The patient was a forty-five-year-old woman with acute myeloid leukemia. Aside from the staggering medical bills, she had detailed the brutal physical toll the chemotherapy was taking on her body.

Aria followed her back.

Almost instantly, the woman sent another message. She profusely apologized, saying she shouldn't have dumped her negativity on Aria and acknowledging that Aria was under no obligation to treat her.

Aria sighed inwardly.

Tackling this one genetic disease was already taking every ounce of her bandwidth; she didn't have any miracle cures for acute illnesses like this.

But looking at the records, the chemotherapy was at least managing the progression of the disease.

[Aria: Send me your bank account number.]

The woman clearly hadn't expected a reply. She froze for several minutes before finally sending the account information over.

Aria transferred ten thousand dollars into the account.

[Aria: Keep fighting. You haven't reached the end of the line yet.]

Five minutes later.

[Sick as a Mountain, Deep as the Sea: Thank you. You are going to live a long, beautiful life!]

Seeing someone fighting so desperately to live, she couldn't bear to watch them die.

But eleven years ago, his father brought a dying woman back home.

His father only realized then that he had another daughter.

To help stabilize his mother's worsening condition, the Holt family adopted a girl. The condition stabilized, but his mother had remained in a vegetative state for over a decade.

The Holt family never stopped looking for the real daughter, but Bradley had his own selfish motives.

His phone rang, snapping him out of his thoughts.

The caller ID read: Ms. Holt.

"Bradley! Mom spoke today! The doctor said she's going to wake up soon. But when she does... will she accept me, a child with absolutely no blood relation?"

Bradley's breathing grew heavy as he sat up straight.

"Aria is not a good woman. Even if Mom wakes up, I will never allow Aria to return to the Holt family!

"If Mom wakes up and asks about the child from back then, remember this—you are that child.

"Don't worry. Mom has never seen Aria. As long as she never comes here, Mom will never discover the truth."