The Plane Tickets He Hoarded The Wife He Hid novel Chapter 284

84 Chapter 284 An Arm For

Another

Blanche’s POV

The day we first met?

I couldn’t really remember, but panic shot through me as I quickly texted Irene, “Did you take it?”

Irene’s response came fast: “Of course I didn’t dare, but Vincent just threw it at me and walked off before I could refuse.”

My stomach dropped. I typed back urgently, “Mom, hide that card somewhere safe. I’ll swing by in a couple days and return it to him.”

“Okay, I’ll keep it secure. Don’t worry,”

Irene replied.

I clutched my phone, hesitating before asking, “Mom, did Vincent say anything else?”

Irene didn’t sugarcoat it: “He said to consider it a wedding present for you two.”

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I stared at those words until they lost all meaning.

After sitting there stunned, I finally managed to type back, “Understood.”

The second I locked my phone, a deep, gravelly voice came from above. “Who’s got your attention?”

Zain.

+105

I glanced up at him. His face was tilted down, those sharp features lost in shadow, but I could feel his eyes burning into me.

Steadying my voice, I answered smoothly, “My mom.”

Without warning, Zain extended his palm. “Show me.”

I blinked, eyebrows pulling together. “Show you what?”

His hand didn’t move, voice unwavering. “No secrets between us.”

I almost laughed out loud. Instead of answering, I looked toward the room. Joanna’s muffled crying drifted out, and I finally said, “Maybe you should check on your friend first?”

I made sure to punch the word “friend” hard, like I was

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driving home a point.

Zain’s stare never left me. “It’s a scratch. She’ll survive.”

Ice water flooded my veins at his words.

I never expected Zain to be so brutal about Joanna, especially when she was hurt.

Does this man have any compassion at all? I

wondered.

I studied his face, searching for cracks in that mask, desperate to see what was really going on beneath that cold surface.

But his expression gave me nothing–completely unreadable, like he was carved from stone.

What the hell goes through his mind? I thought.

Inside the room, the doctor was applying Joanna’s cast. She was drenched in sweat, tears pouring down her face from the agony.

Carry hovered nearby, barely able to watch, her eyes glossy with unshed tears.

Seeing Joanna’s suffering, Carry suddenly thrust out

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her tiny arm. “Miss Joanna, if it hurts really bad, you can bite me! Maybe if you bite me, the pain will go

away.”

Joanna stared at Carry’s offered arm.

For a heartbeat, she looked tempted, but then she remembered Zain was outside. She forced a sweet smile. “Carry, you’re so precious. Just having you here makes everything better.”

Carry wouldn’t back down, still holding out her arm with tears sliding down her cheeks. “Just bite me! If giving you my arm will help, I don’t mind, as long as you stop hurting.”

Joanna looked genuinely shocked–she clearly hadn’t expected such devotion from Carry.

But whatever warmth flickered in her chest died instantly, replaced by cold calculation.

After everything I’ve sacrificed for Zain and Carry, they owe me this much, Joanna thought.

But Zain…

Joanna’s eyes drifted to the doorway where she could

<

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just see the edge of Zain’s jacket.

Right beside him… Blanche was probably standing

there too.

The thought made Joanna’s chest tighten with fresh pain.

Carry noticed the anguish on Joanna’s face and whispered, “Miss Joanna?”

Joanna snapped back to reality, turning to Carry with gentle scolding. “Don’t say such things, sweetheart. That’s terrible luck.”

Carry’s sobs got louder. “But I just need you to be okay.”

She launched herself into Joanna’s embrace, clinging tight.

Joanna wanted to shove this needy child away, but she held perfectly still.

Zain was right outside, and Carry was here being irritating.

Honestly, fainting would be easier than dealing with

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this circus, Joanna thought.

So she did exactly that–collapsing onto the bed in a theatrical faint.

Carry panicked completely. After a frozen moment, she screamed toward the door, “Dad! Dad! Miss Joanna passed out!”

Zain, who’d been locked in our standoff, didn’t

hesitate―he spun around and rushed into the room.

I kept my eyes down, listening to Zain’s worried voice calling, “Joanna?”

Carry’s heartbroken sobs filled the air. “Miss Joanna…”

In the end, it’s obvious–my husband and daughter both have their hearts with someone else. With Joanna, I realized, disappointment crushing down on

1. me.

No matter what Zain claimed earlier, maybe he really doesn’t care about me, I told myself, though the thought sliced deep.

But hearing Carry’s words hit even harder, that familiar weight settling on my chest like lead.

23.04

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My own daughter would sacrifice her arm–just to ease another woman’s pain, I thought, my heart twisting.

But wasn’t it me–her mother–who gave her that arm to begin with? I wondered, bitterness stinging sharper.

The whole thing made me sick inside.

I couldn’t stand listening to all that anxious fussing in the room anymore.

So I stood up and quietly walked away.

When I reached the stairwell, I pushed open the small window and gazed out at glittering Oakwood.

Traffic flowing through busy streets, neon signs blazing against the darkness, skyscrapers stretching toward the clouds–it all looked like a dream.

Everything appeared flawless from up here, but inside I felt like I was carrying a boulder in my chest.

I leaned against the window frame, letting the cool breeze whip through my hair.

Looking down, I mindlessly scrolled through videos on my phone.

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But every clip was about breakups or divorce–even ones claiming kids would be abandoned like trash after their parents separated. Each video made my heart sink deeper.

I got so frustrated I locked my phone, and when I looked up, Zain’s dark eyes were staring straight at

1. me.

Seeing him there, I forced myself to swallow the rage building inside me.

After a pause, I asked, “What are you doing here?”

Zain stood by the stairwell entrance. “I noticed you’d vanished and got concerned, so I came looking.”

For once–maybe the first time ever–I actually heard Zain say he was concerned about me.

Yeah, right. Like I’d fall for that, I thought, refusing to let his words affect me.

And now, after years of craving exactly this, when it was finally happening… all I felt was suspicion.

I didn’t take the bait and asked skeptically, “Shouldn’t you be with Joanna?”

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Zain replied, “They gave her pain medication–she’s conscious now, cast is finished, and Carry’s keeping

her company.”

I asked, “So we can go now?”

Zain saw how badly I wanted to escape and nodded.

“Yes.”

Without another second’s delay, I walked toward him, saying, “Let’s leave. I can’t stand another minute in this place.”

I just had to get out of there.

As I passed by, Zain automatically moved aside. The gentle fragrance of my body wash floated toward him, hanging in the air for a moment.

Zain’s POV

Suddenly, I felt dizzy.

I’d smelled that scent on her countless times over the

years.

But somehow, right now, it was absolutely

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intoxicating.

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