Betrayed by Blood, Saved by LoveChapter 3

She glanced at my phone. Then she put on a sweet, harmless smile.

"Sis, it's all my fault for being so sick. Alessandro and Matteo really didn't mean to leave you out there."

"Let me say sorry, okay? They're downstairs and dinner's ready. Let's go down together."

Before I could say no, she grabbed my wrist and dragged me down the stairs.

She was shockingly strong. I tried to pull free a few times, but I couldn't.

Only when she'd pushed me down into a chair in the dining room did I see that Alessandro and Matteo were both there.

The whole table in front of them was covered in seafood. It almost looked like they were really welcoming me home.

Victoria played the sweet, thoughtful one. She ladled out a bowl of fish soup herself and held it out to me with a big smile.

"Sis, you must be exhausted. Have some soup first."

The fishy smell filled the air. I fought back the nausea and said quietly, "No thanks. You guys go ahead."

I pushed the bowl away and turned to go back upstairs.

Victoria panicked. She chased after me with the bowl.

"Sis, are you still mad at me?"

"I know I'm nobody. I shouldn't keep living at the Moretti estate. If it upsets you, I'll move out right now, okay?"

She cried as she talked, and she held on to my arm for dear life.

Her nails nearly dug into my skin. She was pressing on my bad leg, and the pain went straight through me.

My vision went dark. Before I could get my balance, she smashed the bowl on the floor and pulled me hard toward the stairs. We fell down together.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alessandro and Matteo rushing over. Neither of them reached for me.

Almost at the same moment, they both pulled Victoria into their arms. They let me crash to the floor.

My knee hit the stone step. The old pain shot all the way up my leg.

"Isabella, what the hell are you doing?"

Matteo was furious. He yelled right at me. "How many times have I told you? Victoria isn't well!"

"She already said sorry to you. Why do you keep going after her? When did you get so vicious?"

Victoria isn't well.

They were all so worried about her. None of them knew that the girl they were yelling at only had a few months left.

Looking at the rage on his face, I honestly couldn't tell what hurt more. My leg or my heart.

For more than ten years, he had never once raised his voice at me. Let alone called me something like vicious.

Maybe Victoria really was the woman fate had picked.

Otherwise, why was it that the second she cried, everyone took her side without even thinking?

I gritted through the pain and stumbled to my feet.

When Matteo came at me like that, all I did was quietly remind him, "Matteo Moretti, I'm allergic to seafood."

Matteo stopped mid-yell. Even Alessandro, who was still holding Victoria tight, finally looked up at me.

Of course they remembered. The first time a seafood allergy put me in the hospital, they both sat by my bed the whole night.

But now they'd let Victoria lay out a whole table of seafood. They hadn't even stopped to think whether I could touch it.

I wondered if they felt even a little guilty right then.

"Even so, you still shouldn't... you shouldn't have pushed Victoria down the stairs!"

Matteo was quiet for a moment. Then he still forced himself to defend her.

"You're right. I shouldn't have."

I shouldn't have still believed in you, even now. I shouldn't have hoped you'd remember how good you used to be to me.

I didn't look at either of them again. I just bit through the pain in my leg and walked back to my room alone, one step at a time.