How often does one run into their nemesis? She wasn’t about to waste this once-in-a-lifetime chance.

Adrenaline surged through her veins. All she could think about was catching Ivy and making her pay – brutally, mercilessly.

With all those viruses coursing through her system, even a scratch or bite could mean infecting someone else. Her very body had become a weapon.

Emma moved fast. She chased Ivy all the way to the elevator lobby, scanning the area and finally spotting an elevator arriving. Without hesitation, she squeezed in with the crowd.

This was Jamison’s hospital – the most prestigious and expensive private hospital in Neo Haven. The building she’d entered was the inpatient wing, where Jamison worked.

She knew which department he was in. Glancing at the elevator panel, Emma pressed the button for the cardiothoracic ward, then rode up with her pulse pounding.

But after circling the ward, she saw no sign of Ivy.

Maybe Ivy had ducked out on another floor. Maybe she’d already escaped – Emma was turning over the possibilities in her mind when suddenly she spotted Jamison emerging from a patient’s room.

He was tall – almost six foot three – broad-shouldered and striking in his white coat. Jamison was, hands down, the most handsome and magnetic man Emma had ever encountered in real life.

He always kept people at arm’s length, exuding a chill that warned strangers to keep their distance.

Except with Ivy. For Ivy, he melted. He doted on her, indulged her every whim, made her the center of his world.

The comparison twisted like a knife in Emma’s chest. She couldn’t find Ivy, fine, but Jamison was just as much to blame for how far she’d fallen.

She wasn’t leaving empty-handed.

Emma clenched her teeth, fists balled and shaking as she ran through scenarios in her mind, planning how to catch Jamison off guard.

But before she could make a move, Jamison glanced up from a patient’s chart and spotted her. Surprise flickered across his face.

“Emma? What are you doing here?” His tone was grave, wary.

Emma glared at him, her eyes cold and wild, like she might tear him apart. “Where’s Ivy? Did she come find you? Are you hiding her?”

“Ivy?” In an instant, Jamison pieced it together.

He knew Ivy was at the hospital; they’d just spoken, planning to meet for dinner. Jamison had told Ivy to visit her mother and then wait for him nearby after work. Judging by Emma’s agitation, she must have run into Ivy – and Ivy had managed to get away.

“Yes, I helped her. You’re not going to find her,” Jamison said coolly, hoping she’d give up and leave.

Emma’s fists trembled with fury, her whole body taut like a vengeful banshee.

“If I can’t get to Ivy, I’ll settle for you!” she spat, lunging toward him.

Jamison didn’t flinch. Before she reached him, his voice cut through the air – calm, clinical. “You’re bleeding.”

Emma froze, startled. She looked down and blanched in horror. Blood had soaked through her pants, a deep wet stain spreading between her thighs.

Jamison knew she was in the early stages of pregnancy, and that the baby was at risk. His doctor’s instincts took over. “You need to get to OB-GYN, now. If you wait any longer, you’ll lose the baby.”

Panic wiped out all her bravado. Emma’s eyes darted to Jamison, desperate. “Save… save my baby – please-”

She didn’t love the child, but she couldn’t afford to lose it. Without the baby, she had no leverage.

Jamison understood her motives. On a personal level, he wanted nothing to do with her – letting her miscarry would have been easier. But as a doctor, he couldn’t let personal grudges cloud his judgment.

He was sworn to save lives.

And she was right here, in the hospital. To ignore her would be unconscionable.

After a brief hesitation, Jamison called for the nurses on his ward. They hurried over with a gurney and helped Emma onto it.

But thinking of his colleagues’ safety, he spoke up, right in front of Emma. “She’s HIV-positive. Make sure you use proper protection and notify OB-GYN.”

Proper precautions were standard procedure in healthcare.

Though the nurses were visibly shocked, no one abandoned Emma. They moved quickly, wheeling her off to obstetrics as fast as they could.