[Present time.]

  "Kaden," Mia begged, kneeling by his side. She grabbed his hand forcefully, her eyes filled with tears. Her lips trembled when she called for him, for he was always the same.

  "Kaden, please," Mia softly wept, bowing her head in defeat. She rested her forehead upon his cold fingertips. His skin was crackled from being in the same position for the longest time. By now, they might as well have turned into marble.

  "Kaden, please you have to move on."

  Move on.

  Kaden didn't think he ever could. Instead of responding, he stared at her unconscious body. So many people had attempted to visit her. Some secretary, a duo of friends, her family, and? random acclaimed artists who had contributed to the financial profit of her gallery and made her big money. People who claimed to be her clients waited by her door.

  Kaden never let them inside.

  No one was allowed to be near his woman. No one was allowed to take and touch what was his. No one should have the privilege to lay eyes on her again. The last time he let her out into the world, she was mortally wounded in the heart.

  "Miss Mia," Sebastian softly said, grabbing her by her elbows and pulling her to her feet. "Please, you are the Heiress to the Lin Triad. You musn't—"

  "Shut up and convince your Boss!"

  Sebastian bowed his head in surrender. He could not move the mountain. No one could.

  "He has been sitting here for an entire month and you've done nothing!" Mia shrieked, shoving Sebastian away. "Does he eat? Did he drink blood? Is he hydrated?! He has been sitting here for so long, he might as well collect dust on his shoulders!"

  Sebastian swallowed hard. He could not utter anything else. In the entirety of Ritan, only Mia was fighting to keep Kaden sane. How long had the man been sitting here for?

  The monitors beeping initially annoyed Sebastian, but now, he didn't hear them anymore. The scent of the place used to burn Sebastian's nostrils, but he had grown accustomed to it. His Boss' beard used to surprise Sebastian, but now he couldn't remember how his Boss looked without it.

  The only times Kaden departed from the chair was to use the bathroom and numbly shower. Then, he'd return to the spot and sit there. Again and again.

  "Kaden please," Mia tried again, lowering her voice. "You can't do this to yourself. Look at how thin you've become. You need to eat. You need to—"

  Suddenly, there was a knock.

  Mia sobered up, her face pulled into a grimace. She let out a shaky breath of irritation. Everyone was treating her like she was crazy. Was it so wrong to care for the man that had nothing left in this world? People were telling her to strike House DeHaven now. They were at their weakest. Now, the Second-in-Command had taken over the operations.

  Mia knew Holton was no weakling. But the minute people realized there was a child in the equation, enemies rushed forward. When one's weakness was just a little girl, how hard was it to get rid of her?

  "That must be your family," Sebastian spoke for her. "I will escort you to the door."

  "I'll try again tomorrow," Mia defiantly said to Kaden, her knees aching from how long she had sat by his side, on the floor.

  Kaden refused to look up at anything. Kaden's eyes were forever and always glued to the unmoving body. He barely uttered a word a day.

  "We'll try again," Mia choked out. "A-and then, perhaps we should discuss what the doctors have been telling us."

  "Do not bring it up," Sebastian warned her. "You know how he reacted last time—"

  "The survival rate is practically impossible!" Mia screamed at him. "How dare you keep your Boss in the dark? How dare you not tell him the truth no matter how painful it is! Your duty is to report to him, not lie to him."

  "Miss Mia—"

  "I don't care," Mia breathed out, touching her neck where the bruise had finally faded after an entire week. Even now, swallowing was a bit difficult for her.

  Mia vehemently turned to Kaden. She purposely knelt before him, to show that she was at his disposal. She wanted him to know that she was harmless. That, she was on his side, even if it meant on the ground. She peered up at him with hope-filled eyes.

  "Kaden, you have to accept the truth."

  The knock persisted.

  "Perhaps you should listen to your people," Sebastian coldly told Mia. His sympathy for her had reached its limit today. Out of everyone in the entire city, she should know how much Lina meant to the Boss.

  "No," Mia refused. "I will not be a coward like you, I—"

  "Did you not learn from last time?" Sebastian harshly asked, grabbing her wrist again. Screw her prestigious title.

  Sebastian could no longer tolerate her foolishness. He was paid and raised to obey Kaden and no one else. He was raised from birth to serve Kaden. His entire family and bloodline had been loyal to Kaden for generations. Their loyalty didn't lie with House DeHaven, it was with the Second King of Ritan, His Majesty Kade. This was what their first predecessor passed onto the next, again and again, until undeniable loyalty was formed.

  By now, Sebastian couldn't even remember his number in the family tree. Was it Sebastian Jr. the 13th? 12th? 15th? It didn't really matter.

  "He has to know," Mia shot back.

  "He already knows!"

  "Apparently not enough," Mia argued. "He—"

  "Lina."

  The two froze. Not a single cell in their bodies moved. The voice was hollow and hard. There was bitterness, but an infinite abyss of despair. The word came out like a croak, for he hadn't spoken for the entire day.

  "Lina…"

  Kaden mutely reached forward to grab her. For a split second, he thought he saw the bed move. Or maybe, her finger twitched. So, he rested his hand on hers. Nothing. She was as cold as ice. Her skin was blue. He wondered why she looked like that. Where did her rosy lips go? Why were they purple?

  "Kaden, you can't do this to yourself," Mia tried again…… "You have to accept it. You have to understand there is no survival rate! You have to pull the plug now!"