The Broken-hearted She And The Icy He (Lily and John) novel Chapter 228

Chapter 228 The Price of Loyalty

Chapter 228 The Price of Loyalty

“We’ve known each other for so many years, John. In your heart, do you really see me as some selfish, vicious snake who lives to ruin others?”

Elsa’s voice trembled, and then steadied with practiced poise.

“I admit it. I threw myself down the stairs tonight to frame Lily. But in doing that, I only hurt myself—1 didn’t lay a single finger on her. I did it because I was desperate to save my mother, to spare her from prison. I have my pride. I have my principles. I know how important a woman’s dignity is You think I’d stoop so low as to strip Lily and take those kinds of photos of her? John, you shouldn’t be doubting me like this.”

In truth, Elsa felt nothing but relief.

When she’d thrown herself down the stairs and slipped that blood capsule into her mouth, her back had been to Lily. The camera hadn’t caught a thing. And just now, she’d discreetly slipped another capsule between her teeth.

As her final words left her lips, she bit down. The thick, crimson fluid spilled from the corners of her mouth and dripped onto the floor, one heavy drop after another. It made her look stunning and fragile. like a shattered porcelain doll.

With an air of stoic pride and quiet pain, she closed her eyes.

“I didn’t do those things. I have a clear conscience. But if you insist on seeing me as a heartless, scheming woman, then I guess I’ll just have to accept it.”

Then came the coughing–deep, gut–wrenching spasms that made it seem like she might cough up her

very organs.

“Elsa…”

John had only suspected her involvement in those two earlier incidents. Seeing her in such pain now made him regret his own doubts.

His tone softened. “I shouldn’t have questioned you. But you shouldn’t have framed Lily either. I laid hands on her just now. I’m sure she’s hurting. I’m sure she’s disappointed in me.”

“I’m sorry…

Elsa lifted her chin. Her pale face looked even more stubborn, even more pitiful.

Her voice rang out–clear, cold, and full of helpless defiance. “I’ve never stooped to underhanded tactics. I despise that sort of thing. But I just.. I couldn’t stand to see my mother suffer. Four years ago, after your car accident, the Quinn family forcibly sent me overseas. I was alone. I didn’t know anyone. I suffered so much. My mother missed me, worried for me, so she came to be with me. We leaned on each other, struggling to survive in a foreign country.”

“One time, a scumbag tried to take advantage of me. My mother fought to protect me. She ended up with three broken ribs. John, my mother’s given me so much. She’s getting older. Her health is fragile. I just couldn’t bear to see her rot away in prison. That’s why I made a foolish decision. That’s why I framed Lily……

1/3

Chapter 228 The Price of Loyalty

Three broken ribs…

The phrase pulled Joluy’s thoughts away, yanking him back into memories long buried.

+20 The Com

Four years ago, when the doctors told him he’d never walk again, the Jones family had abandoned him like trash. Elsa, too, had broken things off without hesitation.

He’d been hollowed out. Broken. He didn’t want to drag his ruined body through a life full of ridicule and cold stares. He’d wheeled himself to the riverbank, ready to throw himself in.

And Lily… Lily had stopped him.

She had dragged him back to her tiny basement rental. That winter had been brutally cold. They’d hudilled together for warmth in the darkness.

She told him jokes. She shared her dreams. She made plans for their future. She comforted him, encouraged him, and slowly, step by step, pulled him back into the light..

She was the only one who ever said–again and again, with unwavering certainty–that he would walk

again.

She’d heard about a hospital overseas that might be able to treat his condition. To raise the money, she sold her own blood. She worked as a human punching bag for the rich.

She’d often return corered in bruises, her face swollen, black and blue..

But every time she walked through that basement door, she’d still beam at him.

“John. I’m amazing, she’d say. “I made a hundred thousand today.”

“John, can you believe how incredible I am?”

The most she ever made in a single day was 230,000 yuan.

That day, she’d had three ribs broken–just like Wendy.

After becoming a cripple and being cast out by his family and Elsa, John had felt like he’d died inside.

He thought he had no more capacity for love, no more strength for rage or joy or grief.

But that night, seeing her smile through the pain, something inside him cracked open. He felt something.

He felt pain. Bone–deep, soul–wrenching pain.

And in that pain, love bloomed quietly, deeply, until it consumed him.

Thinking about that frail girl enduring so much for his sake… It left him aching. And in that ache, he found himself unable to feel sympathy for Elsa.

His voice turned hoarse. “Elsa, Wendy may have broken three ribs for you… But Lily broke three ribs for me too. You said being sent abroad, suffering for four years, was all because of me. Out of duty. I’m willing to take care of you. I’m willing to stay with you to the end.”

“But Lily is my girlfriend. The woman I want to spend my life with. We are one. I take care of you, and you

Chapter 228 The Price of Loyalty

turn around and hurt her? What the hell is that?”