They Removed the Fake Chip but the Real System Came for Me Chapter 05

They Removed the Fake Chip but the Real System Came for Me Chapter 05

In the VIP room, Dominic sat at the bedside, face drawn tight.

“This is on Elena. She pulled that stunt and you almost got killed.”

Julian’s jaw tightened. “When she gets back, I’m handling it. She’s apologizing to you today. End of

story.”

Ivy leaned against the pillows, nodding with red-rimmed eyes.

“I’m fine. As long as Elena isn’t mad at me anymore, that’s all that matters.”

The TV on the wall was still on. The anchor’s voice came through, subdued and regretful.

[Breaking news. A severe accident occurred thirty minutes ago near Sinclair Memorial Hospital. A young woman, recently postpartum, was struck by a truck. Pronounced dead at the scene.]

The box of medication in Dominic’s hand hit the floor.

“The sound was small, but it landed like a detonation in the center of the room.

Even I flinched.

I looked down at my transparent hands and turned on the voice. “Why am I still here?”

It glitched. Sounded sheepish. [First time binding this kind of exit sequence. Inexperienced.]

[Transfer channel recalibrating. Soon. Very soon.]

Death had stripped away the pain and the emotions. Now I just wanted out of this world.

But I couldn’t do anything yet. All I could do was stay and watch.

On the screen, a brief image of the body flashed.

It was quick, but that ruined, bloodied face froze everyone in the room.

Julian spoke first.

His voice shook. “Is… is that Elena?”

Dominic didn’t answer. He snatched his jacket and was already moving toward the door. Julian followed

right behind.

“Dom…” Ivy’s cry cut through the room.

Dominic’s steps faltered.

Ivy clutched her chest, face pale, voice trembling hard. “I… I can’t breathe. It hurts. Dom, my depression… it’s happening again.”

She swayed like she was about to drop.

Julian’s eyes battled. “Sweetheart, there are doctors here. Your brother and I… we have to go check. We need to know if that’s Elena.”

Something ugly and vicious shot through Ivy’s eyes.

Then, just as fast, her gaze went teary and wounded.

“Actually… before we got in the car earlier, Elena said something to me.”

Ivy bit her lip. “She said she’s been staying away on purpose… to mess with your heads. She wanted to see who you’d chase after.”

“She said the second you all came running, she’d have security throw me out for good.”

Standing there invisible, I almost wanted to applaud. The tears were timed perfectly.

I’m scared. I’m so scared I’ll never see you again. Please don’t leave me.

The flicker of concern in Dominic’s eyes died like someone had dumped cold water over it.

“Dom,

What replaced it was pure fury. “She really thinks she’s something, doesn’t she? She’s nothing. She doesn’t even come close to you.”

His voice went cold and flat.

“Elena’s getting more delusional by the day. Unless she crawls back here on her knees and begs, she’s

dead to me.”

Julian’s expression hardened.

making jokes about something like this?”

“I was actually worried about her just now. And she’s out there

“All those children we lost, and she still hasn’t learned a damn thing. What a waste.”

I stood there, listening.

And I felt nothing.

No bitterness. No rage. Not even sadness.

It was like the body that died had taken more than my life. It took all those emotions that used to wreck

me, the ones that made it impossible to breathe.

I just watched them, quiet.

Almost curious to see their faces once they finally understood I was dead.

Ivy saw they weren’t leaving. She could barely contain the smugness in her eyes.

She leaned into Julian’s chest. “These past few days have been a lot. The doctor said I need to get away for a bit. It’ll help with the depression.”

Dominic’s gaze softened. “I’ll have my assistant book everything now. The three of us, European tour, private retreat in Aspen, whatever you want.”

he airthicknickened.

ry siery rested the wrongness. A beat later, Dominic lunged.

is bas hand closed around her throat and he drove her into the wall. Perfume bottles toppled off the table

nd shattered across the floor.

y’svg’s face went white. She clawed at his hand, legs kicking. “Dom… Dom, what are you doing…”

onDominic stared down at her, eyes blazing crimson. “My Elena is dead. And you’ve got the to do your

akeup and spray perfume?”

in Panic flashed through Ivy’s eyes. Then she forced the tears. “I wasn’t… I just covered any dadark circles so ou wouldn’t worry about me, that’s all…”

She wept, tears rolling down her cheeks.

“After all these years, how can you not dankowow who I am?”

“I know you’re grieving, and I know you’re hurting, so you’re latching onto every ryohorrible thing Elena

ver said about me. But none of it’s true.”

“If I were really that kind of person, would I have run into that hurricane te tasave you and her?”

Julian hadn’t spoken a word this whole time.

He just stood there, face dark as a coming storm.

Then he pressed play.

“Those two idiots. The reason I can’t have kids? I got knocked up at a party in middle school. Was too

scared to go to a real doctor. Some back-alley clinic botched the whole thing. That’s what made me

infertile.”

“And those morons actually believe I wrecked my body saving them.”

The recording kept playing, frame by frame, word by word.

Ivy’s face lost all color. The contempt in her own recorded voice stripped it away completely.

“Elena, you ran yourself into the ground saving them. You nearly died for them. And what did it get you?

Nothing. I took all of it.”

She knew. The act was over.

She dropped to her knees.

“I know you don’t believe me, but I only said those things to hurt Elena. I was just running my mouth.”

“I’m not like her. She was born lucky, she had you from the start. But I had to fight for every scrap. Ten

times harder, a hundred times harder.”

“All these years, I really did love you. If I did something wrong, my biggest mistake was loving you too

much. Wanting to stay with you too badly.”

She crawled forward on her knees, reaching for their cuffs.

Dominic crouched down. Slowly. He looked at her the way you’d look at something you found stuck to

the bottom of your shoe.

“You want to know what you are to me? You’re the stray Elena brought home one day because she felt

sorry for you.”

“Your only purpose was to make her happy.”

His voice came out soft. Every word aimed straight at her heart. “And now that dog turned around and

bit its owner.”

“So now it pays.”

Terror filled Ivy’s eyes. She finally understood. This was the end.

She opened her mouth to beg, but Dominic was already ordering someone to gag her and drag her out.

Years of repeated pregnancies. A body never allowed to heal. Hollowed out completely.

Dominic and Julian stepped closer.

The nearer they got, the whiter their faces turned.

Then they really saw, and Dominic looked like someone had driven a knife through him. He swayed.

Almost couldn’t stand.

Julian’s breath cut off. His whole body started trembling.

“How… how is it really her…”

Dominic reached out. His hand found my shoulder, the bone jutting out like a blade. His fingers went

stiff and his voice cracked.

“Why is she so thin? I hired her a nutritionist. Someone was supposed to be looking after her every

single day.”

The medical examiner stood to the side, flipping through pages in a flat, clinical voice that landed like

hammer blows.

“The deceased endured multiple back-to-back pregnancies over many years. No proper postpartum

recovery. No ongoing medical care following any of the deliveries.”

“Chronic physical depletion. Severe organ deterioration. Neurological damage. She was in the late

stages of ALS.”

“Even without the accident, she didn’t have much time left.”

Every sentence hit like a brick.

Dominic and Julian stood frozen. “She wasn’t faking. She wasn’t trying to gross us out. Elena, she was

really sick. All along.”

The blood drained from Dominic’s face. Images rushed at him, things he’d buried.

Me collapsing after every delivery. Me unable to stand.

Meals where my hands shook so badly I couldn’t hold a spoon.

So many times I told him I couldn’t breathe, that my legs ached so much I couldn’t sleep at night.

And what had he said?

He’d called it an act. Said I was faking to compete with Ivy, to fish for sympathy.

Julian’s knees hit the floor. “I don’t deserve to call myself a husband. How did I not see that my own wife

was dying? How did I not know you were hurting that much?”

Dominic raised his hand and slapped himself. Hard. The crack echoed off the morgue walls.