Chapter 3

That day, I was on the balcony watching the clouds outside.

Suddenly, there was a loud banging on the door. I got startled and instinctively hid to the side.

In a few seconds, the door collapsed.

Harper, in high heels, immediately spotted where I was hiding and came over to grab my hand.

"Evan, you are still my husband. Who gave you permission to hide here?"

Faced with Harper’s scolding, my face turned pale as if drained of blood.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm worthless... I'm wrong..."

Her grip on my wrist was so strong, it felt like she was pulling me back into those dark days.

I closed my eyes, replaying the scenes of others tormenting me in my mind.

Harper was startled by my reaction and stepped aside: "Evan, what's wrong with you?"

I said nothing, so she assumed I was angry and frowned, telling me not to throw a tantrum.

"You harmed Ezra. I didn't send you to prison, just punished you a bit. And you act like this? Do you know how much Ezra suffered because of you? He's an artist, but his eyes can't see now! I know you hate him, but how can you be so cruel!"

"I honestly wish it was you who went blind. You’re as useless as a cripple anyway."

I kept my head down, silently enduring Harper's insults.

Eventually, Harper got tired of cursing and rolled her eyes, forcibly dragging me up and handing me to two bodyguards.

I was dragged to the ground floor and into Harper's car.

Afraid of angering Harper, I tried my best to shrink into a corner to diminish my presence.

I didn't speak the entire way.

Harper didn’t start any conversation either. Occasionally, when she looked at me, her eyes were full of impatience.

When I was pushed out of the car and saw our destination, I collapsed, kneeling before Harper, begging her not to take me inside.

She was taking me to the hospital where I used to work.

Why go there?

To show my colleagues what I had become?

In the past, I was the most famous doctor in ophthalmology, performing countless complex surgeries, and received numerous honorary banners. Now, I was like a dog.

Harper mercilessly ordered the bodyguards to place me in a wheelchair.

I continued sobbing uncontrollably.

A few seconds later, Harper frowned again: "Evan, what's wrong with you now? I'm just bringing you to the hospital to treat your legs. You are my husband. I can't just leave your legs crippled."

Here we go again.

She always claimed I was her husband.

So she had the right to discipline and punish me on behalf of Ezra, to bully and control me in the name of being a wife, to strip away everything from me.

Once inside the hospital, several young nurses recognized me, looking at me with a mix of disbelief and pity.

Harper brusquely ordered the bodyguard to put me in a wheelchair. I was still crying uncontrollably. Seconds later, Harper frowned, "Evan, what's wrong with you now? I just brought you to the hospital to treat your leg. You're my husband, and I can't just ignore your injury."

Here we go again. She always calls me her husband, as if that justifies her disciplining me, retaliating on Ezra's behalf, and controlling every aspect of my life.

As I was wheeled into the hospital, a few young nurses recognized me, their eyes filled with disbelief and pity. I avoided their gaze. Their pity felt worse than death.

As Harper was about to take me upstairs, I spoke up. "Harper."

She looked annoyed when she heard her name, "What do you want now? Can you stop being dramatic for a moment?"

I took a deep breath. After a moment, I finally gathered the courage to say what I'd been wanting to say. "Harper, let's get a divorce."

The hallway fell silent. Harper suddenly looked down at me, "What's your problem?! Are you trying to act pitiful now?"

I really wanted a divorce, but she thought I was playing some psychological game. Harper then hurriedly wheeled me into the department. A few orthopedic specialists were already waiting inside.

After taking X-rays and running a series of tests, a specialist who seemed about sixty hesitated before speaking, "Ms. Harper, Mr. Evans' injury... there's nothing we can do."

I numbly lifted my head. It meant I was beyond saving. I should have seen it coming.

"If it had been caught in time, we could have done something... but it's been too long, and Mr. Evans didn't treat the wound at all... the infection is too severe," the specialist sighed, looking at me with deep regret.

After being bitten by a venomous snake, there was no medical kit on the deserted island. I begged the guards for help, but they ignored me. I could only endure for several days, suffering high fevers, until I somehow improved, but the injury left me unable to walk.

Harper's face looked terrible. She waved her hand and brought in another batch of doctors, but the diagnosis was the same—they couldn't restore my leg.

Suddenly, Harper slammed her hand on the table! She pointed at me, speaking slowly, "I'll figure something out for your leg. As for the divorce, don't even think about it. You'll stay in the hospital for now."

Harper gave her order as if it were nothing. A nurse then knocked on the door, informing Harper that a woman named Stella was looking for me and threatened to call the police if she couldn't see me.

Hearing that name, Harper slapped me across the face. "Evan, I can't believe you're still fooling around even with a broken leg!"

Looking at Harper's furious face, I covered my injured cheek and lifted my head. "Stella is not like you. Don't think everyone's like you."

At this point, I was completely disillusioned with Harper. She wanted to say something, but I continued, "You know very well what your feelings for Ezra are."

Perhaps feeling a bit guilty, Harper didn't say anything further and just had someone take me to an adjacent room. Probably because I was too tired, I fell asleep as soon as I lay on the bed.

There were guards outside the room, but I heard footsteps. I opened my eyes and saw Ezra's face. It was like muscle memory; seeing him made me tremble involuntarily.

He just chuckled calmly, waving his right hand in front of me, "Awake?"

I saw the wedding ring on his ring finger. Harper had originally spent millions to customize it for me, but after I was abandoned on the deserted island, she took it back. I thought she had thrown it away, but she had given it to Ezra.

Sensing my fear, Ezra chuckled, "Look how obedient you are now, huh? I should have let Harper leave you there a bit longer. Weren't you always so proud? How does it feel to be broken?"

He knew everything. I pointed to the door, telling him to leave. As soon as I finished speaking, Harper appeared at the doorway.

"Evan, how can you talk to Ezra like that?"

Ezra didn't have a cane but stumbled towards Harper's voice, standing by her side. Harper's eyes were filled with such deep affection for Ezra it was almost tangible.

Facing me, Harper's tone turned cold again, "I should have left you there for another year."

Hearing this, I rolled off the bed with a thud, crawled to Harper's feet, and kept begging, even as my forehead was covered in blood, "Don't send me back there... please..."

Harper was shocked, quickly telling Ezra to leave, saying she needed to talk to me. But I was too traumatized, only knowing to keep pleading.

Just as Harper was about to help me up, a doctor walked in. He looked seriously at Harper, "After conducting an investigation over the past few days, we've found something odd. The snake that bit Mr. Evans shouldn't have been on that deserted island, and it was too coincidental that it only bit Mr. Evans' ankle... so we believe..."

"Mr. Evans being bitten was likely due to human intervention..."

Harper's face turned pale, seemingly in disbelief. She took the investigation report from the doctor's hand. My numbed nerves finally had a bit of reaction.

Human intervention? Meaning someone deliberately hurt me...

It seems the text you wish to translate is missing. Could you please provide it?

### Chapter 4

Harper suddenly turned to me.

"Evan, tell me everything that happened to you during those years on the deserted island."